Letting your kid chase their dream of being a pro athlete can really add up. When Valerie More realized both her sons had serious baseball skills, she and her husband took the leap and signed them up for a competitive league, which ran them a tab of $10,000 annually for team fees, gear, and travel. “Every family with kids in sports will tell you that you sacrifice everything else,” More told Peak Money. In Canada, competitive youth sports typically range from $5,000 to $10,000, with pricier sports like hockey hitting $12,000 as kids get older and move up to higher leagues. This has led to a 17% drop in hockey sign-ups since 2010, as 58% of parents struggle financially to keep their kids in the game. If your child is interested in sports, start with free or low-cost options like community leagues or school teams. If they aim for a competitive team, consider team fundraisers to lower fees — the earnings of which typically are split equally among families and go towards lowering registration fees — and carpool to games. Prepare for the expenses by cutting back on nonessentials like dining out, movies, and vacations. “My vacation is spent at a baseball diamond,” More said. But for sports parents, it's all worth it. "It's shaping them into the people I hoped they'd become.”