Characteristic issues surrounding parents in youth sport include examples of negative verbal and non-verbal behaviour demonstrated during competition. Numerous studies have done well to highlight while parents possess a great potential for positively influencing the sport experience, they can also exert a considerable negative influence by engaging in a range of non-preferred and inappropriate behaviours. There is certainly a need to further understand the nature of the sport-parenting paradigm given that encouraging and supportive parental involvement is a critical factor in promoting enjoyment and intrinsic motivation among participants. This is particularly important given that children's preferred parental behaviours are temporally dependent. That is, different types of parental involvement are preferred before, during and after competitive sport. However, one aspect of parental involvement in youth sport which has been largely overlooked is the post-game setting. Drawing on qualitative data derived from focus groups and individual interviews with 86 parents and children involved in junior Australian football, this paper reveals an aspect of the sport-parenting role which can further enhance or undermine the youth sport experience. Specifically, it reveals an intriguing insight into the way that parents engage in ‘debriefing’ children's performances—representing a challenge for parents who strive to engender a positive and supportive influence in youth sport. While the concept of sport-parenting receives much attention within the competitive setting, this paper argues that in order to enhance the quality of parental involvement in youth sport, much can be learnt from exploring ‘what happens after the game’.

Background: COVID-19 continues to represent the single biggest challenge to contemporary community sport globally. Compliance with social distancing policies, strict return-to-play protocols, and COVID-19 specific training has, perhaps, forever changed the way that children and young people engage in organised sport. Within this context, and while many children and families seek to re-engage with community sport, we (researchers and sport practitioners) have an obligation to ask questions about how the pandemic has impacted youth sport, understand the short- and long-term consequences, and explore what (if any) opportunities can be seized to assist and improve future participation and retention. The aim of this paper was to present an in-depth exploration of the impact of COVID-19 on youth sport in South Australia. Methods: Within an interpretive descriptive methodology, this qualitative investigation draws on rich, individual interview and focus group data with 39 youth (ages 15–18), parents, coaches, and sport administrators. A reflexive thematic analysis was undertaken, leading to the development of four substantive themes. Results: We conceptualised the ‘4 Rs’ to advance theoretical understandings about the pandemic’s impact on youth sport, including the themes ‘recognising struggle’, ‘reconnection’, ‘re-engaging after restrictions, and ‘reimagining sport’. The themes captured insights about a decline in mental wellbeing and physical activity, an increase in family connectedness, the challenge for sports to attract volunteers and participants back into sport, and the opportunities to reset values and philosophies underpinning the provision of youth sport. Conclusion: The findings provide valuable insight into the youth sport setting as a result of the global pandemic and suggest that families, sporting clubs and sporting organisations require additional resources and tools (for example, support for parents to facilitate their children’s training at home during lockdown) to aid recovery efforts and to ensure the survival and prosperity of youth sport into the future.

In Australian culture, males dominate sports such as football, cricket and Australian Rules Football. Girls and women in such sports are frequently required to negotiate persistent gender constructs and stereotypes. Despite this, in recent years there has been an increase in girls’ participation in sports that are constructed as masculine. The present study investigated adolescent girls’ experiences (N = 34, aged 13–17 years) in three sports that are traditionally constructed as masculine in Australia; football, cricket, and Australian Rules Football. Through a sociological gendered lens, results from narrative inquiry indicated that adolescent girls are required to navigate gender constructs and sexuality stereotypes. Numerous inequities between girls and boys exist and are challenging to negotiate. The present findings suggest that social connectedness, mentors and same-sex role models assist girls to navigate their sport involvement. These findings provide a sound basis for future research to explore practical solutions to keep girls engaged in such sports.

Increasing girls’ participation in organised sport in Australia represents an elusive challenge for most sporting codes. Girls encounter a range of barriers and obstacles that serve to discourage initial and ongoing participation in youth sport. One setting that has flourished is Australian football, coinciding with the establishment of a professional competition known as Australian Football League Women (AFLW) in 2017. This is somewhat ironic given that Australian football is widely perceived to be a masculinised sporting domain characterised by violence and injury. Despite this, national participation data suggests that Australian football is one of the most popular preferences among contemporary girls and young women at a time when attracting and retaining girls in sport is inherently difficult. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to generate a grounded theory surrounding how Australian football attracts and retains girls’ participation. A constructivist grounded theory (GT) methodology was used involving eight focus groups with 45 participants (girls and parents) involved in Australian football. Data were analysed through a process of initial and focused coding, and theoretical integration, leading to the development of a substantive grounded theory that comprised three categories including (a) sources of attraction, (b) facilitators for participation, and (c) reinforcers for retention. The concepts underpinning the substantive grounded theory and the implications for applied practice are discussed throughout.

Problems surrounding parental involvement in youth sport have received much attention in the international academic community. Most of the focus has surrounded the frequency and nature of parental verbal behaviour such as criticism, swearing and abuse. While such behaviour has the potential to exert a negative influence in youth sport, little is known about the socially constructed meaning of parental verbal behaviour. In other words, there is a current lack of understanding surrounding the social significance (or lack thereof) of parental comments, criticisms and abuse in the context of youth sport. Addressing this oversight is important given that parents and youth do not always share a common appreciation of parental involvement in sport. This paper reports on a study which sought to generate a greater understanding of parental involvement in the junior Australian football experience. Interviews and focus groups were conducted with parents and youth participants (n = 86) currently involved in a competitive Australian football season. Data were manually transcribed verbatim and subjected to a thematic analysis. The findings reveal how parents and youth attribute different social meaning to parental verbal behaviour during play, the breaks and the drive home. While youth appear to experience parental verbal behaviour in polarising ways, parents rationalise their own verbal behaviour and in doing so, contribute to a broader social reproduction of sport parenting behaviour.