Participation in high school football has declined 7% since 2009, according to data collated by the National Federation of State High School Associations.
Despite the fact that 11-player football, which 1,035,942 high-schoolers played last year, remains the No. 1 participatory sport for boys, participation dropped for the second consecutive year. Out of 14,099 schools with 11-player football, 20 dropped the sport. The decline in participants amounts to roughly 1.5 players per school. The total number of schools with 11, 9, 8, or 6-player football programs increased by 29 schools.
2,401 girls played high school football in 2017.
According to 51 NFHS member state high school associations, 7,979,986 high-schoolers participated in high school sports in 2017: 3,415,306 girls and 4,564,680 boys.
Soccer gained the most male participants, followed by cross country, volleyball, and golf. For girls, “competitive spirit” led the way, followed by swimming and diving, lacrosse and golf.
NFHS executive director Karissa Niehoff stated:
There are many positives about the numbers in this year’s sports participation survey. First, the upward trek of interest in high school sports continued for the 29th consecutive year. The model of sports within the education-based school system continues to thrive in the United States. Second, we are encouraged that the decline in high school football has slowed due, in part, to our efforts in reducing the risk of injury in the sport. While there may be other reasons that students elect not to play football, we have attempted to assure student-athletes and their parents that thanks to the concussion protocols and rules in place in every state in the country, the sport of football is as safe as it ever has been.
NFHS reported, “Two recent studies have revealed that the rate of concussions has decreased the past couple of years due to more stringent rules related to protecting the head.”
In Ohio, high school football participation has dropped 23% since 2009; North Carolina and Illinois have plunged 19%. NBC News reported that in Texas, the number of high school football players has dropped 2% since its peak in 2010-2011.
One reason for the decline in football participation may be parents’ fear of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease triggered by repeated hits to the head.
One youth sports organizer said, “Moms and dads are scared. The concussions are not coming at four, five, six, eight years old. They are coming at junior high. They are coming at the senior high level.”
The Daily Mail reported:
In April, researchers at VA Boston Healthcare System and Boston University School of Medicine found that among 211 players who were posthumously diagnosed with CTE, those who began playing tackle football before the age of 12 suffered an earlier onset of symptoms (typically cognitive, behavior, and mood issues) by an average of 13 years. Unsurprisingly, participation in youth tackle football (ages 6 to 17) dropped 19 percent between 2011 and 2016, according to Aspen Institute data from the Sports & Fitness Industry Association.