Buying Sandlot: The Business of Youth Sports

Building A Gig Economy For Youth Sports Referees

Huck Sorock, Co-Founder and CEO of Refr Sports, is one of the fastest-growing companies in the officiating technology space. A former hockey player and referee, Huck experienced firsthand the challenges officials face—from inefficient scheduling and long payment delays to the broader referee shortage impacting youth sports across the country. We talked about how technology is changing officiating, the referee shortage, why assigners hold so much influence, and why Huck believes officials represent one of the biggest infrastructure opportunities in the entire sports industry. 0:00 - Identifying Tech Inefficiencies in Reffing 8:04 - Market Data: Age, Pay, Games & More 15:38 - Relationships, Distribution, & Scale 21:01 - Thoughts On NGB & Rec Partnerships 25:16 - How to Combat a Ref Shortage 30:12 - How Far Away is Ai Officiating? 32:38 - Community Building & Instant Cash Outs 37:25 - Funding Journey & Business Growth Follow Us: Subscribe to the Newsletter: https://www.buyingsandlot.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/buying-sandlot/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buyingsandlot TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@buyingsandlot

The Futures App: Home Base for Youth Sports

Jake Hirabayashi, founder and CEO of The Futures App, talks about his all-in-one youth sports technology platform focused on: team management, training delivery, and athlete development. During this interview we dive deeper into the player development modules, expanding to new sports, his thoughts on interoperability, and a new partnership with CURVE sports. 0:00 - Training Modules & Player Development 7:14 - Expansion Into Different Sports 8:35 - Interoperability & Payment Solutions 12:27 - Partnership With Curve Sports 14:51 - Funding Journey & Future Raises Follow Us: Subscribe to the Newsletter: https://www.buyingsandlot.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/buying-sandlot/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buyingsandlot TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@buyingsandlot

A Deep Dive into TPH Academy's Model with Steve Sanders

New Chief Growth Officer at TPH Academy, Steve Sanders, talks about the innovative day school model, growth opportunities in a variety of club sports, education trends, new revenue streams, and the emerging legislation. 0:00 - Premium Community Update! 3:42 - Why Steve Left For Tph & His New Role 6:03 - TPH Academy's Sports, Club, And Day School Model 10:46 - Sports Academy Opportunity & Demand 17:54 - EdTech, NIL Literacy, & NCAA Compliance 26:13 - Partnerships, Growth, & Flag Pathways 32:58 - Market Size, Consolidation, & New Revenue Streams 41:06 - Tourney Shifts, Private Equity, & Brand Partnerships Thanks to EventConnect for sponsoring the episode. Run your entire tournament on one operating system — or connect the tools you already use. Grow room nights, end spreadsheet chaos, and keep every datapoint in one place with live pace for hotels, impact for CVBs, and a smoother path for families. Check out the Operating System of Youth Sports at https://eventconnectsports.com/ Follow Us: Subscribe to the Newsletter: https://www.buyingsandlot.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/buying-sandlot/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buyingsandlot TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@buyingsandlot

US Soccer's Plan to Scout 70 Million Players Using AI

US Soccer execs spoke about a proprietary AI tool the federation built that will scout 50-70 million American-eligible soccer players. We also talk about the recent amendments the NCAA made to their eligibility rules, World Cup teams are forgoing state of the art training centers for high school sports academies, and there is a business opportunity as high school athletes capitalizing on NIL ball out on prom. 0:00 - Us Soccer Using Ai to Scout 70 Million Players 17:16 - Sports Academies Host World Cup Elite 20:21 - NCAA Amends Age Rule 22:56 - NIL Millionaires Ball Out on Prom 26:08 - TikTok Shows Brilliant Sponsor Idea Follow Us: Subscribe to the Newsletter: https://www.buyingsandlot.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/buying-sandlot/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buyingsandlot TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@buyingsandlot

i9 Sports' New President on Youth Sports Expansion

The new President of i9 Sports, Ron Shimek, talks about I9’s plans to scale with intention, their expansion into new mrkets, sports, and schools, and the goals they have around girls flag football plus more. 0:00 - Ron Shimek's New Role at i9 Sports 7:04 - Scaling i9 Sports with Intention 9:59 - Expanding to New Markets & Schools 17:39 - Customer Habits & Expanding Sports 21:23 - i9's Girls Flag Football Goals 24:04 - Rec vs. Club, LKP Act, & "Good PE" 27:41 - One Year Outlook: Media, Tech, Sponsorship Follow Us: Subscribe to the Newsletter: https://www.buyingsandlot.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/buying-sandlot/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/buyingsandlot TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@buyingsandlot