Why was Play For Sport founded?
Play For Sport was founded in 2005 by Mike and Ruthi Elliott as a way for parents to better introduce their children to organized sports. Since we, as a society, are starting our children in organized sports at younger and younger ages, it is imperative we teach them the proper social skills, basic fundamentals and teamwork ideas prior to signing the players up for a full season of team sports. It is very common for children to get their first ‘real’ exposure to a sport only once they have committed to playing a full season.

What if the player doesn’t like the sport once they have made that commitment? This always puts the parent in a hard place! Do you allow the player to stop playing? Do you discuss the fact the player has made a commitment to his/her teammates and must finish the season? What to do? Any decision the parent makes will certainly make someone if not more than 1 person unhappy.

If coached and introduced properly, sports are a great outlet and resource for our youth. We try to foster a safe environment where children can be allowed to learn the fundamentals of different sports while having fun, learning teamwork and fair play.

What is the Play For Sport program?
Play For Sport offers sports readiness, fitness, exercise and movement training to preschool aged children. We offer the services at public and private daycare centers, mother's day out programs, youth centers and other locations. The classes not only bring added value to the centers, but they help children with cooperation, perseverance, teamwork, sharing, concentration and other social skills. Because our classes can be taught indoors or outdoors and don't require much room, our program allows centers to offer a full spectrum of sport classes right at their facility, thus increasing their value to their customers.

Parents enjoy the addition of our classes because their children are being active, fit and healthy during the time they are already at the childcare facility. Parents also love the fact that their children are being exposed to all major sports without having to run all around town from practice to practice after a hard day’s work.

This information is not intended as an offer to sell; or the solicitation of an offer to buy a franchise. It is for information purposes only. There are approximately 15 US states and 14 countries that regulate the offer and sale of franchises. The states are California, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. The countries are Australia, Brazil, Canada (provinces of Alberta and Ontario), China, France, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain and the United States of America (federal Law). If you are a resident of one of these states or countries; are receiving this message in one of these states or countries; or intend to operate a franchise in any of these states or countries; we will not offer you a franchise unless and until we have complied with applicable pre-sale registration and/or disclosure requirements in the applicable jurisdiction.

The communications made through this web page should not be construed as an offer to sell a franchise; nor are the communications directed by or on behalf of Company to the residents of any jurisdiction that requires registration of a franchise prior to offering and selling the franchise in that jurisdiction. No franchises will be sold to any resident of any such jurisdiction until the required Uniform Franchise Disclosure Document (United States), or necessary disclosure documents; if any, has been delivered to the prospective franchisee before the sale in compliance with applicable law. Nothing in this disclaimer should be construed as a waiver of any applicable exemption provisions that may be available to the Company.

More than thirty million kids play on a wide range of recreational and competitive or select teams at younger and younger ages. Parents want to encourage safe sports for their children, both on the field and off.

Amateur sports used to mean varsity and JV teams in high school and college, but today more than thirty million kids play on a wide range of recreational and competitive or select teams at younger and younger ages. Parents want to encourage safe sports for their children, both on the field and off. Whether your athlete is a five-year-old beginner or the star of a varsity team, The Young Athlete provides guidance on everything from working with the coach to preventing and treating sports-related injuries.

Jordan D. Metzl, M.D., co-founder and medical director of The Sports Medicine Institute for Young Athletes and one of America's premier pediatric sports physicians, provides much information in his book: "The Young Athlete". The following information was obtained from and editor’s review of the book.

Sports are for fun, but they also offer benefits and lessons that carry
over into all aspects of life.

When kids are asked why they play sports, here's what they say:

• To have fun
• To improve their skills
• To learn new skills
• To be with their friends
• To make new friends
• To succeed or win
• To become physically fit

Kids usually get the benefits they seek from sports and more. Kids need attention and respect (in that order), but they have few ways to get them. What is unique about sports is that they offer kids an arena where they can earn attention and respect by exerting their natural abilities. Kids are good at sports because sports are essentially about speed, strength, coordination, vision, creativity, and responsiveness-the necessary physical attributes are the attributes of youth.

Given that athletics involves all aspects of the human being, it is not surprising that participants benefit in all of the areas they mention. According to researchers at the Institute for the Study of Youth Sports at Michigan State University, kids who participate in organized sports do better in school, have better interpersonal skills, are more team oriented, and are generally healthier.

Participation in sports provides opportunities for leadership and socialization, as well as the development of skills for handling success and failure.

Moreover, when playing games, children learn how rules work. They see how groups need rules to keep order, that the individual must accept the rules for the good of the group, that rules entail a consideration of the rights of others. They also learn about competition, but within a restricted and safe system where the consequences of losing are minimized.

Physical Benefits

• Fitness. Kids who play sports develop general physical fitness in a way that's fun, and they establish lifelong habits for good health. This is particularly important at a time when obesity in the United States has reached epidemic proportions: the incidence of obesity has increased by more than 50 percent among America's children and teens since 1976 and continues to grow at a staggering rate!

• Stress relief. Sports allow kids to clear their minds of academic and social pressures, to literally run off the tension that's accumulated in their muscles. In the words of one patient, "If you play really hard, you feel better because playing takes your mind off things that bother you, and afterwards you can concentrate better." Most doctors recognize the positive mental effect of physical exertion, even though we're not sure exactly why this is so. I know that my ability to study in college and medical school was greatly enhanced when I ran during the day, and I'm not the only athlete to find this true. Many athletes get better grades in-season (theories posit the discipline and the need to manage time, along with an increased ability to concentrate). During exams, Duke University opens its gyms twenty-four hours a day to provide stress relief for its students.

• Mastery. Sports give kids a satisfying, enjoyable way to develop their own talents: through personal effort they get good at something they're interested in. Doing something well makes them feel good about themselves, but equally important, it teaches them about the process of how to improve and work more effectively. Learning a skill-to dribble left-handed, say, or to execute an effective second serve-entails a recognition that practice is essential and that improvement is incremental. The process of repetition teaches the athlete how to master a move and also how to experiment with different approaches to improve a skill. The feedback in sports is usually immediate and visible-does the ball go into the basket?-so that the athlete can change or repeat what she's doing and figure out how to get better. Not only that, the whole process of seeing practice lead to improvement gives kids a feeling of control, a feeling all too rare in their lives.

• Healthy habits. Because sports increase an awareness of one's body and how it responds to different stimuli and circumstances, sports help prevent drug and alcohol abuse. Most athletes value what their bodies can do and want to maintain those abilities. Being an athlete also gives kids an acceptable reason for telling their friends no to drugs, booze, and other high-risk, unhealthy behaviors. (Of course, not all athletes avoid drugs and alcohol.)

Personal Benefits

• Attitude control. Older teens learn that a confident attitude improves their performance, and that they have some control over their attitude. They learn to disregard comparative stats in preparing for an opponent and instead to adopt "attitude enhancers" such as visualization exercises, team or individual rituals, singing specific songs together, or having dinner as a team the night before the game. Some might call these superstitions, others, self-fulfilling prophecies, but they work.

• Leadership opportunities. Team sports offer kids a rare opportunity to serve as leaders. Kids can be in a position to assess the strengths and weaknesses of their various teammates and help to exploit their strengths and compensate for their weaknesses. They can minimize conflicts among players. They can reinforce values-such as fair play, teamsmanship, hard work, mental preparation-by speaking up when appropriate and setting a good example. They can also take the initiative in arranging for team dress on game days (football players wear their jerseys to class, female basketball players wear their warm-up pants), organizing team dinners or team movie nights, and inviting teachers and administrators to their games.

• Relationships with other kids. Athletes develop relationships with their teammates. For boys, sports are a primary, and unfortunately sometimes the sole, way of socializing with others. In many schools and communities, nonathletic males find it difficult to develop a social network at all. For girls, who according to the feminist theorist Carol Gilligan tend to define themselves through their relationships rather than their achievements, sports offer yet another way to make friends and create an alternate peer group. According to Mike Nerney, a consultant in substance abuse prevention and education, multiple peer groups are always a good idea for teens, who have an intense need for inclusion and belonging, but who can also be volatile, cruel to each other, and foment destructive behavior as a group. Having a refuge when relations go wrong with one group can alleviate a great deal of stress and offer an alternative for kids who feel uncomfortable or frightened by peers who engage in high-risk activities.

• Teamwork. On a team, kids learn about cooperation, camaraderie, give-and-take. They learn that while their natural position might be wide receiver, the team needs a cornerback, so they sacrifice their personal desires and play defense. They learn that you don't have to like someone in order to work together toward a common goal. They also discover that you can work for people you don't respect and still be productive, improve your skills, and have fun. A team is a natural environment in which to learn responsibility to others: you can't stay out carousing the night before a game; sometimes you need to pass up a party in order to show up and play well.

  Kids learn these lessons from their teammates and, most important, a coach who encourages the good of the team over the needs of an individual player. This attitude is sometimes rare in today's sports climate, where what's glorified is to "be the man." I think the earlier the message is instilled about the good of the larger whole, the better for kids in the long run.

Who is successful?
As with most businesses, success is based on the quality, dedication and determination of the people owning the business. For this reason, Play For Sport is selective in who we invite to use our proven system.

As you would expect, we have found our best Affiliates are enthusiastic about the program, aggressive, eager to make money, self-motivated, results-oriented and excited about long-term growth potential.

Do you have what it takes?
Do you have what it takes to own your own business, To build a profitable operation running multiple schools and possibly even multiple territories, To be a part of a pioneering, growing sports franchise located in your area?

Successful Affiliates can generally answer 'YES' to most all of the following questions:

• Are you organized
• Do you deliver on your promises
• Are you looking for a career NOT a hobby
• Do you have a drive to succeed
• Are you open to change
• Are you motivated and energetic
• Can you follow a proven program
• Are you a good communicator
• Are you willing to make things happen for yourself instead of waiting for things to happen to you

Quick Points

• Play For Sport's start fee is less than $20K
• Play For Sport does NOT take a % of your gross sales
• The monthly royalty fee is low
• The monthly royalty fee is waived the first few months
• Play For Sport does not require a full-time commitment to start but recommends it
• There are no hidden fees
• You are NOT required to contribute to a National Marketing Fund

• Affiliate Orientation
• Running your business
• Hiring & training employees
• Coach's training
• Coach's certification
• Observing classes
• Assisting with classes
• Leading classes
• Marketing to schools
• Marketing to parents
• Growing & maintaining enrollments
• Industry specific tips
• Actually form your company & file the necessary state & federal documents
• File for and obtain your EIN (employment identification number)
• Setting up EFTPS (Electronic Federal Tax Payment System )
• Accounting software usage training given by a certified training firm (QuickBooks)

• Operations Manual
• Employee Handbook for employees if you hire coaches
• NDA and Non-compete agreements for employees if you hire coaches
• Coach training manual for coaches if you hire coaches
• Hiring packet for employees if you hire coaches
• Hiring checklist for employees if you hire coaches
• School & Director marketing packets
• Parent marketing packets
• Access to our growing library of Lesson Plans which currently has over a years’ worth of fun, tried, tested and proven Lesson Plans
• Access to send home Parent Handouts that match every Lesson Plan
• A Designated Mentor
• Over a years’ worth of unique T-Shirt designs
• Participate in our bulk pricing program to save money on T-shirts, fliers, post-cards, tri-fold glossy brochures
• Annual Affiliate Celebration (where idea sharing and training happens)

Buy a Franchise or Start Your Own Business?
This section only provides you with a few links to information that you may find interesting. It is not intended to try and sale you a business of any type.
      The Benefits of Buying a Franchise
      Is It Safer to Buy a Franchise or Start Your Own Business?

As with most businesses, success is based on the quality, dedication and determination of the people owning the business. For this reason, Play For Sport is selective in who we invite to use our proven system.

As you would expect, we have found our best Affiliates are enthusiastic about the program, aggressive, eager to make money, self-motivated, results-oriented and excited about long-term growth potential.

There are a few basic requirements you must meet before being eligible for consideration:

• Like to work with children
• Minimum of 18 years of age
• No felony convictions
• Minimum of $16K in liquid capital
• At least 15 hours per week to dedicate exclusively to Play For Sport
• Provide at least 3 references (2 of which can not be related to you)
• Have and maintain a professional appearance
• Business oriented
• Not afraid to market
• Motivated to succeed
• Self-motivated, outgoing and driven
• You don't have to have a great deal of experience in sports (we teach you what you need to know, and our lesson plans and training are very detailed)