Professional High School Sports Thread

[wlu_lax6]

IMG Academy (former Bollettieri Tennis Academy before being bought and expanded to other sports) sold for 1.25 Billion. This private equity group is rolling up a few of these sports-academic academies from around the world.

[cerranoredux]

I’m of the opinion that HS sports is on its way out as we know it. Money-wise, if districts get rid of sports and rent out their fields and facilities to clubs, they realize significant cost-savings on coaching, officials, equipment, and insurance. Specialization and the dominance of club sports has been expanding significantly over the last 25 years and with this deal for IMG, it’s clear investors believe there is a lot more room for growth and that, I think, will come at the expense of HS’s.


We’re even having a lot of trouble finding coaches and players for the staple sports like baseball and football. That could be a post-Covid thing but it might be a catalyst for districts letting programs wither on the vine over the next 10 years.