MSN’s Business on Main recently featured i9 Sports as the nation’s first and fastest growing youth sports franchise and highlighted our focus on putting the fun back in youth sports.
“There was a time when youth sports were synonymous with kids picking dandelions in the outfield and “Bad News Bears”-style bumbling. Today it’s often about parents socking each other in the bleachers and steely-eyed athletes stretching their young bodies to the limit in their determination to win, ” said Jason Daley of Entrepreneur. “Athletics, instead of being a way to let off steam, socialize and build confidence, have become one more competitive stress.”
Frank Fiume saw those trends coming to a head back in the late 1990s. That’s why he organized a flag-football league for kids in Tampa, Florida. While he thought it would be a fun side project, demand proved so high that he began running the league full time, and in 2003 sold the first franchise – i9 Sports (named for the nine principles that guide the leagues).
Now our 115+ locations offer flag-football, soccer, basketball and baseball programs for kids ages 3-14 in communities from New York to Hawaii.
Read the full MSN article: Sports Franchise Is Making Youth Sports Fun Again
