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Americans love football, but differ on whether kids should play

Football may be America’s most popular sport, but the nation is deeply divided about whether youth should play the tackle version of the game.In a new study, about 45% of Americans agreed that tackle football is appropriate for kids, while 50% disagreed. The remainder didn’t know.The findings...

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The issue divided Americans by race and class, results showed.

Black Americans and those with no more than a high school education were not as negative about tackle football for kids as were white people and the college educated. Higher-income adults were more likely to not support youth football.

“For less-advantaged people, football is seen as one of the only ways they can get ahead in society, which may explain why they support it for kids,” Warner said.

“It’s a way to get to college and maybe even play as a professional. They want to give their children that opportunity.”

Men and heterosexuals were more likely to think youth football was appropriate, as were people with more traditionalist values: those who identified as more conservative, who believed in traditional gender roles, who especially perceived female athletes to be inferior to male athletes, who thought playing sports was part of being an American and those who said they were Christian all were more likely to support kids playing tackle football.

Beliefs about the value of sports participation played a role, results showed. Those who agreed that sports build character and that collision sports had health benefits were more supportive.

Support for youth football is tied to people’s formative experiences growing up, Knoester said, including whether participants themselves played and whether their parents or friends were fans.

Where people lived was also a key: People in rural areas were more supportive than those in the suburbs. And the odds of strongly endorsing kids playing tackle football were 27% to 39% higher for adults from the Midwest and South compared to those from adults living in the West.

“Being immersed in football cultures – whether it is your family, your friends, your community – played a major role in your beliefs about kids and football,” Knoester said.

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