Football is as American as it gets. On Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in the fall, we pack in stadiums that fit up to 100,000 people to watch kids or adults throw, catch, juke, lunge and—most notoriously—hit and tackle.
It’s a sport that most other nations don’t even play, yet the United States is completely obsessed with it. It is also the most violent pastime for which you could sign up your child. The University of Washington’s Sports Health and Safety Institute and Seattle Children’s Research Institute found in a 2024 study that 5% of youth football players ages 5 to 14 suffer a concussion each season.
With that in mind, parents may hesitate when their son or daughter runs up to them asking to sign up for a tackle football league. Many of their friends play, and they probably idolize a Ravens or Commanders star. So, how do you convince them that it’s in their best interest to try something else?
While there may be no way to avoid some pouting when you tell your child that they won’t be allowed to don a helmet and pads and run full speed into their peers, there are a handful of other great options that can scratch the itch your kid is seeking. Here are three sports that kids who are interested in football might also find fun.
Flag Football
This is, of course, the most logical choice for a football-crazed kid who needs to keep their head safe. Flag football offers the same skills and speed of the game without the contact. For that reason, it’s a great entry point for any kids with parents who want to meet them halfway, or even for kids and parents who may want to try the real thing later on. It is not unheard of for a player to make a career for themselves in high school or even college after starting in the sport’s non-contact version. Instead of worrying about injuries, flag gives you the chance to focus on football-specific skills that you cannot develop in any other setting. Flag football players may not be tackling, but they’re still throwing spirals, backpedaling in coverage and running a full route tree.
Plus, in the last decade, the sport has exploded in popularity as awareness of traumatic head injuries in contact football has become more widespread. That means that you should have no problem finding has become more widespread. That means that you should have no problem finding a league no matter where you live in the region. With minimal equipment, costs and travel needed for flag football, it’s a great option for families who have other things going on, too.
Rugby
Football’s English cousin that inspired its American, and more commercially popular, family member may scare some parents off because it is a full-contact sport with virtually no protection. The science, however, says that rugby is a safer alternative to football despite that. Basically, the belief is that rugby players end up with just as many, if not more, cuts, bruises and bloody noses as football players, but far less concussions and other devastating injuries like dislocations or torn ligaments because the lack of a helmet and pads forces players to tackle safely.
In football, players are lured into a false sense of security by their equipment, often wielding their heads like a battering ram. In rugby, that phenomenon is unseen. In fact, the National Library of Medicine found in a study of youth athletes that injuries in American football were 50% more likely to have resulted in a concussion than injuries in rugby. That being said, rugby is still a contact sport, and kids are at more risk for head injury than they would be playing golf or swimming. However, if you’re set on a contact sport or have a child who really needs to get some aggression out, rugby might be the way to go.
Karate
Hear us out: It’s not a ball sport, it isn’t played outside and there is no team element, but karate might still work as a substitute for your football-loving child simply because of its fighting nature. Like football, combat is the name of the game here. However, if you are unfamiliar with martial arts and think that karate is only good for teaching your kids to punch and kick, you’re wrong. Karate is, first and foremost, about self-defense. Unless the setting is a competition, you are not ever supposed to be seeking out a chance to use your skills. Plus, early students won’t actually fight each other for a while, and when they do, they’ll have a plethora of protective gear on. The primary benefits of learning karate are not necessarily ones you’d think of: Balance, flexibility, discipline and respect for authority are cultivated as well as strength, flexibility and stamina.
Karate dojos can be found in nearly every town in the country, and many have some sort of try-before-you-buy deal or special for first-time customers, making karate a viable option for any family regardless of the budget. While team sports offer their own benefits, none of them are as much of a cultural exchange as karate is. Most important, of course, is that your kid is guaranteed to come home satisfied, safe and tuckered out!
Where Can I Find a Local Team?
Flag Football
i9 Sports
Annapolis
i9sports.com/annapolis-youth-sports-leagues
South River Youth Athletics
Edgewater
srya.org/home/our-sports/football/flag-football
Queen Anne’s County Parks and Recreation
Centreville
qac.org/1694/Flag-Football
Rugby
Severn River Rugby
Severna Park
severnriverrugby.org
Arden Rugby
Crownsville
facebook.com/ardenyouthrugby
Andover Apaches Youth Sports
Linthicum Heights
facebook.com/THE.ANDOVER.APACHES
Karate
Kent Island Martial Arts Center
Stevensville
kentislandmartialartscenter.com
AJ Bartlinski’s Karate Supercenter
Glen Burnie
ajkarate.com
The Lab Martial Arts and Fitness Center
Easton
thelabeaston.com
