The U.S. youth sports problem that connects soccer and baseball 串连足球与棒球的美国青少年运动困境 Despite challenges of cost to play, there are those who are fighting to widen the entry way for young athletes 尽管高昂的参与成本是一大挑战，仍有人努力替年轻运动员拓宽进入运动的大门。 William C. Rhoden July 16, 2026 https://andscape.com/features/the-u-s-youth-sports-problem-that-connects-soccer-and-baseball/ https://shorturl.at/eW6nF PHILADELPHIA — Ali Curtis is the executive vice president of Major League Soccer sporting development. Kenneth Wood is the father of James Wood, an outfielder for the Washington Nationals and a two-time MLB All-Star. 费城 ── Ali Curtis 担任美国职业足球大联盟（Major League Soccer，MLS）竞技发展 执行副总裁（executive vice president of sporting development）Kenneth Wood 则是 华盛顿国民队外野手 James Wood 的父亲，而 James Wood 已两度入选 MLB 明星赛。 Curtis and Wood are involved in different sports but share the same passion: casting a wider net and removing cost as a major barrier to participation. I spoke with them earlier this week during the perfect confluence of baseball and soccer: MLB All-Star Week and the World Cup semifinals. Curtis 与 Wood 虽然投入不同的运动领域，却怀抱相同的理念：让更多孩子有机会参 与，并消除高昂费用这道主要门槛。本周稍早，我在棒球与足球交会的最佳时机──MLB 明星周与世界盃四强赛期间，分别与两人进行了访谈。 While basketball and football reign supreme in the United States, baseball and soccer have come to epitomize the excesses of a billion-dollar youth sports industry that excludes as many as it attracts because of the spectacular cost of participation. In their own way, for their own reasons, Curtis and Wood are trying to widen the entry to their respective sports. 尽管篮球与美式足球仍是美国最受欢迎的运动，但棒球与足球如今却成了价值数十亿美元 的青少年运动产业过度商业化的缩影。由於参与费用惊人，这个体系在吸引许多孩子投入 的同时，也将同样多的人拒於门外。Curtis 与 Wood 虽然出发点不同，却都正以各自的方 式，努力扩大自己所属运动的参与机会。 For Curtis, there is an ocean of untapped talent in this country that could make the United States a soccer mega power if gathered, identified and developed. 在 Curtis 看来，美国仍有大量尚未被发掘的足球天赋。只要能够将这些人才找出来 、辨识并加以培养，美国完全有机会成为世界足球强权。 “When it comes to addressing how we develop players in the U.S., it is a really complicated topic. It’s an issue that has been growing for decades,” Curtis said during a recent interview. “You have people that have worked in the sport for 30, 40, 50 years and you have leagues and clubs that have been around. So, the institution of youth soccer has evolved every year. With that, the topic has become very complex.” Curtis 在近日受访时表示： 「谈到美国该如何培养球员，这真的是一个非常复杂的议题。这个问题已经累积、发展了 数十年。」 「有些人在这项运动已经投入了 30、40、甚至 50 年，也有许多联盟与俱乐部长年存在。 因此，美国的青少年足球体系每一年都在演变，而随着制度不断演进，这个议题也变得愈 来愈复杂。」 A suburban soccer culture has developed in the United States over the past five decades. Many of the players in the United States who reach the highest level of the sport often come from middle- and upper-class economic backgrounds.** 过去五十年间，美国逐渐形成了以郊区（suburban）为核心的足球文化。许多能够踢上最 高层级赛场的美国球员，大多来自中产阶级与上层阶级家庭。 The talent pool in the rest of the world is far more diverse, consisting of children from poor, middle-class and wealthy backgrounds. How to diversify the United States talent pool is a solvable but complex challenge that starts with acknowledging that there is a problem. 相较之下，世界其他国家的足球人才来源更加多元，涵盖了贫困、中产以及富裕家庭的孩 子。如何让美国的人才库也变得更加多元，是一项可以解决、但相当复杂的挑战；而第一 步，就是必须先承认问题确实存在。 “In order to address a really complex problem, it’s really important that you have some collective alignment,” Curtis said. “One of the challenges that we have within the sport — the industry — is that there’s a lot of fragmentation and there’s a lot of division.” Curtis 表示： 「如果要解决一个非常复杂的问题，最重要的是各方必须建立共同的共识。」 「我们这项运动──甚至整个产业──目前面临的一大挑战，就是过於分散，彼此之间也 存在许多分歧。」 The presence of the World Cup in the United States, the mostly solid performance of the U.S. Men’s National Team and the team’s dismal 4-1 loss to Belgium in the round of 16 have put soccer’s youth development system at the center of a debate. There are those who clamor for greater inclusion and those who embrace the status quo and don’t feel the doors need to be opened wider. 世界盃在美国举办、美国男子国家队整体表现尚称稳定，以及球队在 16 强赛以 1 比 4 惨败给比利时，都让美国足球的青训体系成为激烈讨论的焦点。 有人强烈主张应该扩大参与机会、提高包容性；也有人支持维持现状，认为没有必要再把 大门开得更大。 Rather than focus on those arguments, Curtis, a three-time All-America soccer player at Duke, is fixated on solutions. The greatest challenge in his view is how to widen the pathways to soccer in this country. Curtis 曾是杜克大学（Duke）三度入选全美最佳阵容的足球员。与其把焦点放在这些争论 上，他更专注於寻找解决方案。 在他看来，最大的挑战，是如何让更多美国孩子拥有踏入足球的管道与机会。 “Where we are today is more advanced than where we were 10 years ago or 20 years ago or 30 years ago, but we still have some of the same challenges that need to really be addressed,” he said. 他表示： 「今天的我们，比起 10 年前、20 年前、30 年前都已经进步许多，但我们仍然面对一些 相同的问题，而且这些问题仍然需要真正被解决。」 For all of the talk about youth soccer’s pay-to-play system, Curtis said access is a greater challenge. 虽然外界经常讨论青少年足球「付费才能参与（pay-to-play）」制度，但 Curtis 认为， 真正更大的挑战其实是『能否接触得到这项运动（access）』。 “Even if player registration fees are reduced, we still have other key challenges that we have to address in a very serious, deliberate and intentional way: where the clubs are located and where the sport is played,” he said. “Players from all communities and all neighborhoods need to have access and the ability to play soccer, which is the greatest challenge. It’s really a complicated topic. It’s easy to say pay to play is bad, but that is really just scratching the surface.” 他说： 「即使球员的报名费降低了，我们仍然有其他关键问题必须以非常严肃、审慎且有计画 的方式去解决，例如俱乐部设立在哪里，以及这项运动在哪些地方进行。」 「来自各个社区、各个街区的孩子，都应该拥有接触足球、踢足球的机会，而这才是最大 的挑战。」 「这确实是一个非常复杂的议题。说『付费制度不好』很容易，但那其实只是触及了问题 的表面。」 https://andscape.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/GettyImages-2225130094.jpg Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood played for the Olney (Md.) Boys & Girls Club growing up The reality is that participation in all youth sports is expensive. The professionalization of the youth sports industry has dramatically increased the cost of participation. 事实上，参与任何青少年运动的成本都相当高昂。随着青少年运动产业日益职业化（ professionalization），参与这些运动所需支付的费用也大幅攀升。 Kenneth Wood found that out when his son decided that his passion was baseball. Each of James’ older sisters played basketball. His middle sister played college basketball for Northwestern. 当 Kenneth Wood 的儿子决定将棒球作为自己的热情所在时，他便深刻体会到这一点。 James 的两位姊姊都打篮球，其中二姊还曾代表西北大学（Northwestern）征战大学篮球 。 Kenny Wood, who played college basketball at the University of Richmond, discovered that the youth baseball system was an entirely different animal. 曾在里契蒙大学（University of Richmond）打大学篮球的 Kenny Wood 发现，青少年棒 球的生态与篮球完全是两回事。 “The baseball world was a completely different thing,” he said. “The better you get in basketball, the cheaper it becomes because you have the sponsors. My daughter played on a travel team that was Nike-sponsored. We didn ’t pay for a flight, not for uniforms, not for tournaments, none of that. But with baseball, the better you are, the more expensive it gets. From our area, it’s $5,000 to pay for travel team now. 他说： 「棒球圈完全是另一个世界。」 「在篮球界，你打得越好，花费反而越少，因为会有赞助商支持。我女儿待的旅行球队 （travel team）就是由 Nike 赞助，我们不用付机票、制服，也不用支付比赛费用，这 些通通不用。」 「但棒球正好相反，你打得越好，花费就越高。以我们这一带来说，现在加入旅行球队一 年就要花 5,000 美元。」 “James was 11, his team was 12, and they were going to Florida. We were like, ‘He’s too young to go to Florida without us,’ and we couldn’t afford to go, so we’re not sending him to Florida to play in this tournament. It was fine. We trusted the parents, but we were just like, ‘We think it’s too early for him to do that,’ so we kind of kept him close.” 「James 当时才 11 岁，而他的球队要前往佛罗里达州参加比赛。我们觉得：『他还太小 ，不能没有我们陪同就跑去佛州。』但我们自己又负担不起同行的费用，所以最後决定不 让他去佛州参加那场锦标赛。」 「其实我们信任其他家长，只是觉得他还太小，不适合这麽早就自己远行，因此我们选择 让他留在家附近打球。」 James Wood was not immersed in the travel baseball circuit. He played for his local organization, the Olney Boys & Girls Club, where he had the same coach from 7 years old until he was 13. James Wood 并没有完全投入旅行棒球（travel baseball）体系。他一直效力於家乡的 Olney Boys & Girls Club，从 7 岁到 13 岁，都由同一位教练指导。 “He made it fun for the kids,” James Wood said of the Boys & Girls Club coach. “I think now they’re getting too serious too early. I mean, there’s no need for a 10-year-old who lives in New York and Maryland to have to go to Florida or Georgia to play. Get good local, be the best team around your area, and then go somewhere else to play. I mean, I just think it’s just gotten too far on that end.” James Wood 谈到 Boys & Girls Club 的教练时表示： 「他让棒球对孩子们来说充满乐趣。」 「我觉得现在很多事情太早就变得过於严肃了。住在纽约州或马里兰州的 10 岁孩子，根 本没必要跑到佛罗里达州或乔治亚州去打球。」 「先在当地把球打好，成为自己地区最好的球队，之後再去其他地方比赛。我真的认为 ，现在这种做法已经走得太极端了。」 For Wood, the big move was leaving his high school team in the middle of his junior year and transferring to IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida. 对 James Wood 而言，人生的重要转折，是在高中三年级（junior year）期间离开原本 的高中球队，转学至位於佛罗里达州（Florida）布雷登顿（Bradenton）的 IMG Academy 。 **IMG Academy 欧子乔赴美就学学校 “When he went to IMG, I knew nothing about the draft or anything. We just wanted him to get a great opportunity to go play, learn and develop,” Kenneth Wood said. “It wasn’t like when he was 9, 10, 11, 12 and I’m thinking, ‘Oh, he’s going to be an MLB player.’ We just wanted him to be the best that he could be.”** Kenneth Wood 表示： 「当他去了 IMG 时，我对选秀什麽都不了解。」 「我们只是希望他能获得一个很好的机会去比赛、学习、成长。」 「并不是他 9、10、11、12 岁时，我就在想：『喔，他将来一定会成为一名大联盟球员 。』」 「我们只是希望，他能成为能力范围内最好的自己。」 James Wood was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the second round in 2021, but the memory of the cost associated with the journey stuck with his father. Kenneth Wood said his son’s experience at age 11 and the expense of supporting his daughter’s basketball activities — meaning they couldn’t afford softball, which she also wanted to play — made him begin thinking of ways to reduce the cost of youth sports. James Wood 在 2021 年於第二轮被圣地牙哥教士队选中，但一路走来所承担的庞大开销， 始终深深烙印在父亲心中。 Kenneth Wood 表示，儿子 11 岁时无法前往佛州参赛的经历，加上家中为了负担女儿的 篮球费用，导致无力再让她参加同样喜欢的垒球运动，让他开始思考：是否有办法降低青 少年运动的参与成本。 Kenneth Wood joined two experienced technology executives to create KeoApp, a platform designed to simplify how youth coaches connect and schedule games. The platform is launching with baseball, softball and basketball teams in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Kenneth Wood 与两位资深科技产业主管共同创立了 KeoApp，这是一个协助青少年球队教 练更容易彼此联系、安排比赛的数位平台。 目前平台率先服务华盛顿哥伦比亚特区都会区（Washington, D.C., metropolitan area） 的棒球、垒球与篮球队伍。 “For years, coaches have relied on scattered Facebook groups, text messages, emails and word of mouth to find opponents, arrange scrimmages and learn about tournaments,” Kenneth Wood said. “We offer a way for teams to connect with each other and organize scrimmages or games where there are no fees. Old school, just two teams connecting to play. This is our way of providing an opportunity to make competition more affordable. Kenneth Wood 表示： 「多年来，教练们一直依靠零散的 Facebook 社团、简讯、电子邮件以及口耳相传，来 寻找对手、安排练习赛，以及取得各项赛事资讯。」 「我们提供一个平台，让球队彼此直接联系，自行安排练习赛或正式比赛，而且完全 不收取任何费用。」 「就是很传统的方式──两支球队直接约好就开打。我们希望透过这种方式，让比赛变 得更负担得起。」 “This is something I’ve had a passion for because we went through it. We couldn’t afford to send our son to Florida and our daughters to all this stuff when they were at that age. You just can’t do it, so there has to be a better way for kids just to play.” 「这是我一直很有热情投入的事情，因为我们亲身经历过。」 「孩子们那个年纪时，我们没有能力送儿子去佛罗里达州，也负担不起让女儿们参加所有 那些活动。」 「一般家庭真的做不到，所以一定要找到更好的方式，让孩子们单纯地享受运动。」 Curtis and Kenneth Wood are pushing back in their own way against the extraordinary expense of youth sports and its impact on access and inclusion. For Kenneth Wood, the mission is to give more youth who look like his son the opportunity to be like James. Curtis 与 Kenneth Wood 都正以各自的方式，对抗青少年运动日益高昂的成本，以及它 对参与机会与包容性造成的不公平影响。 对 Kenneth Wood 而言，他的使命就是让更多像自己儿子一样的年轻人，都能拥有和 James 相同的发展机会。 For Curtis, the World Cup will pay dividends in the ongoing effort to expand soccer’s reach in the United States. The United States’ World Cup performance, which ended with a dismal elimination, may have opened eyes to the need to cast a wider net. Curtis 则认为，世界盃将会为美国推广足球带来长远的正面效益。 虽然美国队最後以令人失望的方式遭到淘汰，但这样的结果，也可能让更多人意识到：美 国足球必须扩大人才来源，接触更多不同背景的孩子。 “I think the cultural impact that it will have will be amazing,” Curtis said. “You’re talking about soccer and it being a real unifier and people being exposed to the game. I think culturally that will really have a significant impact in ways that we aren’t even thinking about right now.” Curtis 表示： 「我认为，它所带来的文化影响将会非常惊人。」 「足球是一项真正能够凝聚人心的运动，它会让更多人接触并认识这项运动。」 「我相信，它在文化层面的影响将会非常深远，而且很多影响，是我们现在甚至还无法 想像的。」 --William C. Rhoden is a columnist for Andscape and the author of Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete. He directs the Rhoden Fellows, a training program for aspiring journalists from HBCUs. William C. Rhoden 是 Andscape 的专栏作家，也是《Forty Million Dollar Slaves: The Rise, Fall, and Redemption of the Black Athlete》一书的作者。 他同时主持 Rhoden Fellows 计画，这是一项专为来自美国历史性黑人学院与大学 （Historically Black Colleges and Universities，HBCUs）、有志从事新闻工作的 学生所设立的培训计画。 ※ANDSCAPE Andscape 是一个由黑人（Black）主导的媒体平台（media platform），致力於创作、呈 现并推广展现黑人身分（Black identity）多元面貌的各种故事。 在华特迪士尼公司（The Walt Disney Co.）的资源、影响力与全球触及范围支持下， Andscape 旗下涵盖编辑部门（editorial division）、图书出版部门（book publishing arm）、影视部门（film and television division）以及音乐出版部门（ music publishing group）。这些单位共同肩负相同使命：展现黑人文化（Black culture）与黑人生活经验（the experience of Blackness）的深度与多样性。 Andscape 成立於 2022 年，是对 The Undefeated 原有平台进行重新构想（ reimagination）、扩展（expansion）与多元化（diversification） 後所诞生的新 品牌。 --

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