Private equity companies would be banned from investing in youth sports teams, leagues, facilities and events under a new federal bill, a move lawmakers say would lower participation costs for families and restore control of a public good to local communities.
Sponsored by Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Connecticut) and Rep. Chris Deluzio (D-Pennsylvania), the Let Kids Play Act targets private equity firms and other companies that have invested hundreds of millions of dollars into youth sports in recent years, turning kids activities long rooted in local charitable organizations into profit vehicles for wealthy investors.
At a press conference Wednesday announcing the bill, lawmakers cited studies showing that the cost of playing youth sports has risen by 46% in five years, with many families paying more than $5,000 per child for a single season. If passed, the law would require private equity companies to divest from their youth-sports businesses within two years, compensate community-based programs they harmed and refund families charged “junk fees.”
The Let Kids Play Act comes on the heels of investigative reporting by USA TODAY into investment firm-backed Black Bear Sports Group’s rapid consolidation of youth hockey in the Northeast and Midwest and the NHL’s Dallas Stars monopoly over youth hockey in Texas.
“Black Bear ownership’s roots are in private equity,” Murphy, whose son plays in a Black Bear-run league, said at the press conference. “They see my son’s hockey experience as a chance to make a massive amount of money. They are using youth sports to get rich.”
Black Bear spokesperson Evan Nierman said in an emailed statement responding to the bill announcement: “We look forward to engaging with lawmakers and sharing all the ways we are growing youth hockey at four times the national rate, providing free and low-cost programs and letting more kids play by saving and revitalizing ice rinks.”
The bill would specifically forbid practices that Black Bear, the Stars and other companies have used to monopolize and vertically integrate the youth sports experience in hockey and beyond, driving up costs for families and pricing out many kids.
One such practice is the use of “stay-to-play” mandates, in which tournament hosts require participants to book stays for the duration of the event at specific hotels from which the tournament companies receive kickbacks. Many parents subject to these rules described to USA TODAY spending hundreds of dollars on hotel rooms they didn’t want – often paying rates higher than the general public – or risking their kids’ teams’ disqualification from the event without a refund.
The bill would ban what Deluzio called “vulture practices,” including consolidating power over local programs through serial acquisitions, locking customers into exclusive dealings with a company’s affiliates and degrading services while increasing prices.
Companies that violate the law could be forced to relinquish their earnings to a federal youth sports fund, from which the money would be used to reduce participation costs for families, provide scholarships and keep local sporting venues free for community use.
“Big-money vultures have turned youth sports into a luxury item,” Deluzio said. “Kids should not be collateral damage in this private equity takeover of youth sports.”
The law would empower parents and state attorneys general to sue companies that engage in vulture practices. The attorney general offices in both Texas and Michigan already launched investigations into potential anticompetitive business practices in youth hockey, with focuses on the Stars and Black Bear.
Private equity’s intrusion into youth sports has garnered attention from federal lawmakers in recent months. Antitrust experts and youth sports advocates testified about the issue at a December 2025 subcommittee hearing in the U.S. House of Representatives on the modern crises facing young athletes.
“Private equity has transformed youth sports from a public good into a profit center, with children and families paying the price,” said Katherine Van Dyck, a senior legal fellow with the American Economic Liberties Project who testified at the hearing and recently wrote a paper on the topic. “Families deserve to enjoy youth sports without emptying their bank accounts. This bill makes that possible.”
Backed by Democrats, the bill could face an uphill battle in Congress, both houses of which are controlled by Republicans. If passed, it would also have to be signed into law by President Donald Trump.
Christine George, a western Pennsylvania hockey parent, said the proposed legislation signals progress on a problem that has long frustrated parents nationwide.
George was president of the nonprofit North Hills Amateur Hockey Association when Black Bear in May 2021 bought its teams’ home rink. Black Bear offered to buy the nonprofit’s teams for $1, then kicked most of them out when the association’s parent-run board refused to sell.
With nowhere else to play, the association in February 2024 voted to fold the region’s oldest youth hockey program, the Pittsburgh Vipers, after 60 years. Black Bear officials cited the program’s declining participation rates and finances as the reason.
Murphy and Deluzio specifically cited Black Bear’s treatment of the Vipers, which was first reported by USA TODAY, during the press conference Wednesday.
“I am proud to have our voice and story about the Vipers heard, and to see people fighting for positive changes across youth sports and the protection of non-profit organizations that prioritize athletes over investors,” George said.
Kenny Jacoby is an investigative reporter for USA TODAY who uncovers issues in sports, higher education and law enforcement. Contact him by email at kjacoby@usatoday.com.