So true but is is all driven by clubs and college coaches and will never change
Have you even been watching what has been going on with lacrosse. They just got recognized lacrosse for the Olympics, there is a new Professional lacrosse league starting up. All good things for the sport. So you may want to rethink what you are saying. They are really making a push for the sport.
Some select group of today's 8th graders will benefit themselves/their families from the "investment" in one or more ways:
- Get into a better high school and/or college and thus, possibly, improve their future earnings potential - Get money from said college (note that pretty much no kids get full rides for lax) - Eventually play professionally (and make almost no money unless you are one of a handful of superstar players)
Each of those outcomes is progressively less likely. The monetary value of those possible outcomes is, on average, nowhere close to the amount of money parents spend on club membership, clinics, camps, equipment and travel. Lacrosse, like every youth sport, is a money lost for parents. It is probably worse than most other sports.
If your kid enjoys the game, and you enjoy watching them compete, than pursue it. If you think that you are making an "investment", you should probably just buy a lottery ticket instead - better return.
So true. Listening to some parents talk about their son moving on, playing college lacrosse, blah, blah, blah! On top of that, when ask, what the kid will major in, I receive the same boiler plate answer; Finance... Personally, standing around during practice, tournaments, etc talking about 13 year old kids the majority of the day/weekend is a total waste of time and money. If my kid didn't enjoy playing lacrosse along with other sports, it would be fine with me. As a union crane operator, what the heck do I know. Recognized lacrosse for the Olympics? Who gives a dam![/quote]
You’re way off. Getting into a better college and improve your earnings potential is the best ROI from all this lax money. Hard to put a number on it but the likely differences in post college earnings between Maryland and any Ivy is massive. Changes your life trajectory.
