Budgeting for Busy Sports Families: How to Stay Financially Fit on the Go

Reality is, being a sports family is getting more and more expensive.  Club fees, uniforms, tournament fees, travel, gas, and food on the go.  And thinking about it can be very stressful!  A budget can help relieve some of that stress, along with some tips to help make it work for you.

To start, have a clear idea of what your monthly income and expenses are prior to the addition of sports expenses.  This will give you an idea of how much disposable income you have that you can use for sports expenses.  Make sure you aren’t leaving out all the little things, subscriptions, meals out, small purchases, etc.  If you want a budget to really inform you, you need to be thorough.  There are plenty of apps to help you calculate your budget and track expenses.  Which will also save you time!

Next calculate to the best of your ability what the entire season of sports related expenses are going to be.  If you aren’t quite sure, contact your coach or club leadership to get a clearer picture of what the expenses could look like.  You are also going to want to know when some of those expenses will be due to either the club or team.  The hardest expense to calculate will be driving to and from practice and games. Do your best estimates here so you have some idea of those costs.  Don’t forget to add additional meals out. 

Now that you have your budget and your sports expenses, how do you manage the additional costs?  Here are a few things to consider:

• Does the club offer a payment plan?
• Do you have to get all your uniform items at once, or space them out?
• Do you have to opt out of certain opportunities if your budget doesn’t allow you to do them all?
• Are there items in your home budget that can be adjusted to make room for sports expenses?
• Are there ways to cut sports expenses like carpooling, sharing hotel rooms, packing your meals, etc.?

Another great benefit of this process is working through it as a family.  What a great way to start teaching your kids financial literacy skills! I know talking money can be uncomfortable, but starting conversations can also lead to easier decisions and discussions later on.  “I want the most expensive cleats?”  Easy to say as discussed, our budget doesn’t allow for that.  “I don’t want to pack my meal.”  Then you can discuss how you set out to say that packing meals would make it possible to play in more tournaments or go on that trip.

Budgeting can seem overwhelming, but once it is done and a plan is created, it can give you peace of mind! We usually are willing to make sacrifices for our kids, and a well thought out plan to make it happen lets us do so without sacrificing our financial goals.

Next time we will discuss 529 Plans.