Challenge
The United States Marine Corps came to us with a problem. The Youth sports market is varied, diverse, complicated, disorganized, and chaotic. There are little pockets of athletes here and there, and youth tend to stay in their little group. We wondered, though, how we could create a series of events that responded to athletes of different abilities and interests. We also had one goal in mind: to impart leadership qualities on these athletes that translated beyond the court or field.
Our Approach
We are right in the heart of Kentucky basketball here at BrainBox Intelligent Marketing, so we’re keenly aware of recruiting and youth sports. We are right in the thick of it. But all that got us to thinking. Why isn’t there a series of youth sports events that is a little more democratic and teaches young athletes skills beyond what they learn in AAU. And we didn’t want to just limit ourselves to basketball, either. We felt that all athletes could benefit from leadership training, as well.
So as a reaction to this talent-based, insular system, we created the USMC Sports Leadership Academy.
SOLUTION
In 2017, we launched the USMC Sports Leadership Academy, activating 24 youth sports events across the country. These events, sponsored by the United States Marine Corps, aimed to build leaders out of these athletes. In 2018, we hosted 25 events in 25 different markets. This year, we are scheduled to activate 30 events in 30 unique markets, signifying awesome growth in this awesome property.
RESULT
Since 2017, we have activated more than 50 events in markets across the country. We have seen almost 10,000 young people register to become built to lead, hungry to take their ability to the next level. Now, we host events focusing on six sports: basketball, volleyball, lacrosse, football, wrestling, and soccer. In 2019, the USMC Sports Leadership Academy is stronger than ever.
Elite coaches in the area train the athletes, and members of the United States Marine Corps impart leadership traits on them so they can become that leader on their team. Our goal was to create an event that would promote that physical preparedness and leadership training, but what we didn’t quite anticipate was just how meaningful these events are and how much impact they have on these young athletes