Key Takeaways
- The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation’s formal Little League commitment began with a five-year, $500,000 pledge announced in 2017, per Little League International.
- Stack’s father helped grow Binghamton’s local Little League program from four teams to 16 before founding what became DICK’S Sporting Goods.
- Two $25,000 Sports Matter grants were awarded at the 2026 ceremony, to leagues in North Carolina and West Virginia.
Little League International enshrined Ed Stack, Executive Chairman of DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc., into the Little League Hall of Excellence Class of 2026 on August 24, during the organization’s annual Sports Matter Monday celebration at the Little League Baseball World Series. The Little League Hall of Excellence, established in 1988, honors Little League graduates who have achieved excellence in their professions while carrying forward the values of the program. For Stack, the induction connects a corporate partnership that has grown for nearly a decade back to its origin: a Little League field in Binghamton, New York.
A Family Story That Started With Four Teams
Stack played Little League in Binghamton while his father, Dick Stack, worked to expand the local program. According to Little League International, the elder Stack helped grow it from four teams to 16. Dick Stack had founded DICK’S Sporting Goods in Binghamton in 1948 as a small bait-and-tackle shop. Ed Stack joined the family business full time in the 1970s and later led its transformation into one of the largest names in sports retail.
That personal history is not incidental to the business relationship that followed. The retailer’s youth sports philanthropy, run through The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation and its Sports Matter program, is built on the same premise the announcement attributes to the Stack family’s Binghamton years: communities that invest in sports invest in children.
How the DICK’S and Little League Partnership Developed
The two organizations began working together on technology services for local leagues in 2016, followed by an official partnership in 2017, per Little League International. That same year, The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation announced a five-year, $500,000 commitment to Little League Baseball and Softball programs, funding facility improvements, uniforms, and equipment.
The relationship has since expanded beyond that original pledge. The Foundation continues to provide grants and resources to local Little League programs, while DICK’S supports initiatives aimed at strengthening baseball and softball access nationally. Sports Matter Monday, held each summer at the Little League Baseball World Series, has become the annual showcase for the partnership.
Sports Matter Grants Awarded at the 2026 Ceremony
The 2026 event included two $25,000 Sports Matter grants. The DICK’S Sporting Goods Foundation awarded one to Twin Rivers Little League in New Bern, North Carolina, to expand Little League Softball participation. Moments before receiving his award, Stack presented the second to East Hardy County Little League in Baker, West Virginia.
“I always wanted to get here when I was 12 years old, and I never made it,” Stack said during the ceremony. “From the day I was a young man, I loved baseball, I loved Little League, and I couldn’t be happier to be here.”
For youth sports operators, the grants illustrate how a national retail sponsor structures local impact: modest, targeted awards delivered through a recurring, high-visibility platform rather than one-time headline gifts.
From a Binghamton Bait Shop to the Williamsport Stage
Stack’s enshrinement closes a loop that spans nearly 80 years of family and company history, from a 1948 bait-and-tackle shop and a volunteer father expanding a four-team league to a Fortune 500 retailer with a formal Little League partnership entering its tenth year. The next marker on the calendar is already set: Sports Matter Monday returns to Williamsport next summer, where the Foundation’s grant-making will again run through the partnership Stack helped build.
Source: Little League International, August 24, 2026, https://www.littleleague.org/news/ed-stack-officially-enshrined-into-the-little-league-hall-of-excellence/
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How big is the youth sports market?
American families spend approximately $54 billion annually on kids’ sports and recreation, according to the YSBR and Kinetica Group Youth Sports TAM & Parent Spending Report, with organized sports alone representing a $40 billion-plus market. The average family spent $1,016 on a child’s primary sport in 2024, up 46 percent since 2019, per the Aspen Institute’s Project Play, and market research projects the global youth sports market will reach approximately $114 billion by 2032 (Business Research Insights).
How many kids play youth sports in the United States?
Approximately 27.3 million children ages 6 to 17, or about 54.6 percent, played organized sports in 2022-2023, according to the National Survey of Children’s Health as reported by the Aspen Institute’s Project Play. High school sports participation reached a record 8.26 million athletes in 2024-25, per the NFHS.
Who founded Youth Sports Business Report?
Youth Sports Business Report was founded by Cameron Korab, a sports marketing veteran with more than a decade in the industry and an MBA from Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management. Korab also co-founded Vertical Sports, a sports marketing advisory serving brands across youth, college, and pro sports.
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Youth Sports Marketing Questions, Answered
Where can brands sponsor youth sports? Brands can sponsor youth sports through local leagues and clubs, tournaments and events, facilities and complexes, governing bodies, and national platform programs. Sponsoring a child’s own program is the most powerful entry point: 81 percent of parents say it captures their attention, outperforming TV, social media, and pro sports sponsorship, per a 2026 Priority Partnerships study conducted by YouGov Sport.
How much does youth sports sponsorship cost? Youth sports sponsorship costs range from a few thousand dollars for a local league or team sponsorship to six and seven figures for regional facility naming rights and national platform programs. The environment is welcoming at every level: 84 percent of parents hold net positive sentiment toward brands sponsoring youth sports, with negative sentiment under 5 percent, per YouGov Sport research. Most brands start with a pilot activation, measure engagement, then scale.
What is the ROI of youth sports marketing? The data is striking: 80 percent of parents say they would choose the brand that sponsors their child’s youth sports program when comparing two similar products, per a 2026 Priority Partnerships study by YouGov Sport. A 2026 EMARKETER and DICK’S Media survey found 84 percent of sports parents say that role influences their purchase decisions, and 60 percent spend more on game and practice days, driving loyalty across categories from dining to travel to automotive.
Ready to build a youth sports strategy? Vertical Sports is an Advisory+ delivering integrated expertise across all levels of sport. Youth, College, Pro. Every Fan, Every Level. Brands and youth sports organizations can reach the team at info@verticalsports.us.
