The big business of youth sports and how parks can get involved
It all started with Little League, when baseball aficionados introduced sports to kids by standardizing fields that were built to be the right size for them.
Of course, plenty of other sports have followed since then. Field hockey, for example, has Game On Hockey (GO HOCKEY), with fields measuring 30 yards long by 25 yards wide. (Goals are eight feet wide.) USA Field Hockey notes the format was designed to allow children to “learn basic game concepts in a stage and age-appropriate setting.”
Soccer’s youth developmental model also includes small-sided fields, many of which are promulgated by various tournament owners and rights holders as well as national governing bodies. These fields may support versions of the sport with play formats including 3v3, 4v4, 5v5, etc. Lacrosse, flag football, and cricket have small-sided versions as well.