Save Money On Kids Sports – 10 Easy Ways

Looking for easy ways to save money on kids sports?  Phew, I’m so glad you are wondering about this too!  I’m going to share with you 10 easy ways to save money on kids sports so you won’t bust your budget trying to afford all the sports your kids want to do.

 I know you are busy stay at home mom who has enough expenses to juggle already and kids sports can really bust the budget if you are not careful.  Before I share some great ways you can save money on kids sports, I have to share one other thing with you first before I forget.

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I Want Them To Play Sports

I’m in the same boat as you, I have kids that want to play sports and I want them to be able to play them.  As a kid, I loved to play basketball – so much, that I would spend hours and hours dribbling a basketball all over my neighborhood, to get as much practice as possible.  I would walk to babysitting jobs dribbling my ball just to give myself even more chances to practice. 

Teams Are Important

I was serious about my sport and loved the chance to play on any team I could talk my parents into letting me play on.  So much good comes from our kids participating in organized sports – team building skills, learning to work in groups and how to deal with difficult situations and people.

I want my kids involved in sports, but we both know that sports can be very expensive.  Especially if you have more than one child that wants to be involved in sports. 

Affording Sports Is Tricky

Affording the stay at home mom life requires that you learn some very easy ways to save money on kids sports so that you can afford to have them part of the team without busting your family budget.

I’m a proud soccer mom! My kids love soccer – especially my youngest two kids. All three of them have played soccer and as the years have gone by, we have coached a lot of their teams.  I love to watch my kids play sports and can’t help but be the loudest fan on the sidelines!

How Do You Save Money On Sports?

So the big question is how do you save money on kids sports?  I’ve had a lot of people ask me this over the years and I thought it was time to get all my ideas on paper and share them with you!  Believe it or not, there are a few things you can do to help with costs for your kids to play sports.

Save money on kids sports by starting out in the rec league. Click To Tweet

10 Easy Ways To Save Money On Kids Sports

1. Rec Sports

1. Rec sports are much cheaper than competitive. Hold off on getting your kids involved in competitive sports as long as you can. The price difference is HUGE and if your child still isn’t sure if they want to make a big commitment to a sport, just keep them in the rec league.

2. Buy Used Equipment

2. Buy used equipment. Don’t be ashamed to buy used sporting equipment like cleats, bats, shin guards, etc. Kids grow so fast, and rarely wear our their equipment before they need the next biggest size. Save the money and buy used.

3. Buy A Bigger Size

3. Buy a bigger size. Try to make the equipment/uniforms last for two by buying a bigger size if you can manage it. Stretch your dollar by buy a half size bigger cleats and a size bigger practice shorts and hope they last through 2 seasons!

4. Ask for Discounts

4. Ask for referral discounts. Ask your sports league if they offer referral discounts if you bring in other players. Some place might offer you a discount if you invite your friends to participate.

5. Volunteer

5: Volunteer To Coach. Some leagues also offer discounts to the kids of coaches. If your schedule allows it, volunteer to coach your child’s team and earn a discount.

6. Skip Private Lessons

6. Skip Private Lessons.  Don’t hire a private coach for your child until you need to. 

7. Carpool

7. Carpool!  Save money on kids sports by carpooling with other parents to practices and games.  Volunteer to drive them to and from practice one week and then switch with another parent. This not only helps you save money on kids sports, but it also helps you save time too!

8. No Extras

8. Don’t Buy All the Extras.  Don’t be fooled, your kids don’t need all the extras to still participate in sports.  There are tons of special equipment bags, fancy socks, frilly hair bows, expensive bats or gloves, special shoes etc that your kids may want in order to play their sport that are not necessary.  They would be nice to have, but are not necessary.  You can save money on kids sports by sticking to the bare minimum and I promise your kids won’t miss out on any of the fun!

Ask for referral discounts on sports! Refer a few friends and get a discount! Click To Tweet

9. Their Dream, Not Yours

9. Make Sure It’s Their Dream, Not Yours.  As a parent, wouldn’t you just love if your kids played the same sports you used to play?  And, secretly you hope they will love them?! 

I know how you feel.  I wanted my kids to love playing basketball as much as I did.  But, none of them do.  My youngest son is the only one who even tried basketball and although he was pretty good at it, he didn’t love it and only played one season. 

I do know some parents that will sign their kids up to play a sport without their child having any interest in it at all.  Don’t waste your money on sports if your kids are not interested.  Find what they do love and spend your money there instead. 

10. Try Different Sports

10. Try Different Sports.  Before you sign your child up for year long dance lessons, make sure she likes it first.  Which also means you need to check with the front office to ensure that you can give it a couple months try first, before a long commitment. 

You might find yourself at the first or second class with a crying ballerina who just doesn’t like to dance anymore.  In that case, try a different sport before any big financial commitment so you are not wasting your money. 

True Story

True story, my daughter wanted to try gymnastics with a friend when she was 5.  We found a gym and signed her, but not before I made sure that I could just give it a month try before we purchased the special leotards, shorts, shoes, bag, hair bows..etc.  All the things the gym tried to sell us on the first day.  Thank goodness I listened to my intuition, because 2 classes into her gymnastic career, she was done. 

Her coach was tough and halfway through her second class brought her out to me in “parent hallway” and told me she could not return to class until she had stopped crying. 

She was done.  She got scared and rather than push through, she had made up her mind she was done.  We finished out the month that I had paid for and never looked back.  She still wants nothing to do with gymnastics and has moved on to soccer.

There you have it – 10 easy ways to save money on kids sports so you and your kids can enjoy sports, without busting the budget in the process.  Now get out there and let them play, and save as much money as you can along the way!

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