The major reasons young girls are leaving sport in droves

"A lot of kids struggle to balance school, homework and everything else they have going on in their lives."

Ashleigh loves soccer. So much in fact, that she’s playing for two teams this winter.

However, the 12-year-old has also seen a lot of turnover in her seven years playing organised sport, and already knows how tough it can be to keep young girls interested.

“From grades five and six onwards, I’ve seen many of the girls I used to play with give up on soccer, which I think is really sad,” Ashleigh told Kidspot.

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“I think the reason is a lot of kids struggle to balance school, homework and everything else they have going on in their lives.

“For me, I’m really glad that my parents have been so supportive. I’ve been able to stick with playing soccer because of that.”

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Ashleigh has played soccer for seven years. Picture: Supplied

Time and money the main barriers to participation

Recent research from Allianz shows that the majority of people said time (54 per cent) and financial commitments (46 per cent) were the top barriers to parents keeping their children in sport.

They also found 10 per cent of kids stop playing because they feel “anxious” on the pitch, a number that increases to a whopping 25 per cent for kids with disabilities.

Ashleigh said some of the girls she used to play with had dropped out for the simple reason that they viewed sport as more of a ‘boy’s’ activity.

“It may convince them to not take part in sport,” she said. “I think it has improved, but there’s still definitely some people with that mindset.”

Competitiveness is another big barrier for kids, and issues with adults taking their children’s sport way too seriously, including verbally abusing young referees and players on the team, have been well-documented in recent years.

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Ashleigh has seen many of her former teammates leave the sport. Picture: Supplied

"There are so many life skills sport can develop"

Clinical Psychologist at the Olympic Park Sports Medicine Centre, Dr Emma Steer, said it was crucial for parents to make sure they were supportive above all else if they wanted to keep their kids in sport.

“Ensuring children know they have a strong support network around them can be a huge motivation for them to stay in sport,” she said. 

“Seeing their parents and guardians cheer them on, showing pride in their participation and giving words of affirmation are some of the ways Aussie kids can feel supported.”

That’s a big focus for Ashleigh’s mum Karina, who can see the benefits sport has given her daughter over her seven years of playing.

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“It’s obviously good for her health to be out there running around getting exercise, but there’s so many other aspects of sport that are beneficial for kids,” she said.

“One is the ability to make new friends, and often with kids they may not have otherwise crossed paths with.

“Also resilience, being able to push through when things get a little tough. Whether it’s freezing cold in the morning and you don’t want to get out of bed, or learning to deal with losing a game you had really high hopes of winning.

“There are so many life skills that kids develop really well through sports.”

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Ashleigh with her mum Karina. Picture: Supplied

"Seeing Ashleigh play brings me so much joy"

Karina said it was amazing to see the amount of opportunities had to play sport nowadays, as she wasn’t given the same chance when she was a kid.

“I always wanted to play soccer, and my three younger brothers all got to play, but I didn’t,” she said. “As much as I asked my mum, she just said it wasn’t a sport that girls should play.

“I always missed out. I was allowed to ballet, but that wasn’t what I wanted to do. I wanted to run around with a ball.

“Now, I see Ashleigh out playing, and it brings me joy, and helps fill a bit of a void for me.”

Ashleigh was recently given the opportunity to play a match at Allianz Stadium in Sydney, an experience she described as “amazing”.

“It just motivated me to keep trying harder so one day I might get to that level and see those seats full of people cheering loudly,” she said.

Originally published as The major reasons young girls are leaving sport in droves