BUFFALO, N.Y. — For the first time in three decades, there was as year-to-year drop in the number of kids playing high school sports across the country, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS).
The decline of 43,395 for the 2018-19 school year (compared to 2017-18) is based on surveys sent to state sports associations across the country.
The biggest drop was in traditional 11-player football with 30,829 fewer participants compared to the year before. There was also a decline in football in New York State and in Section VI, which includes Erie, Niagara, Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties.
"The greatest threat to interscholastic football today at the high school level or at any level for that matter is misconceptions that exist about football in general," said Robert Zayas, executive director of the New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA). "Today, football is safer than it ever has been before. We're minimizing risk through education, training, equipment."
Zayas attributed the overall drop in participation to the changing trend of kids choosing to play just one sports instead of multiple sports.
Across New York State, we saw the sharpest declines among some of the most popular sports: track, basketball, soccer, softball, baseball and football.
There was growth in New York in cheerleading, with "Game Day Cheer" added as a sport, in addition to "Competitive Cheerleading." Volleyball, swimming, badminton, rifle and fencing also grew in 2018-19 in New York State.
In Section VI, 130 fewer boys participated in sports last year; however, that was offset by an additional 943 girls playing high school sports.
The most popular sport among boys in Section VI remained football, and the most popular sport for girls was track.
"Sports benefit kids," Zayas said. "Sports give kids an opportunity to belong to their school. They have a sense of belonging. They get better grades. They attend school at a greater rate. And we need to continue to put an importance on supporting high school sports throughout our state."