By Ken Reed
Through the years, League of Fans has written a lot about how sports participation benefits young people physically, mentally, emotionally, and academically. On a global level, sport is also a valuable tool for protecting children’s safety, advocating for children’s rights, and creating young change agents.
Swiss organization Terre des hommes Lausanne (Tdh) campaigns for the protection of children in and through sport and shows how closely physical activity and well-being are linked with peace and children’s rights.
“Sport is a powerful approach to supporting children to recover from difficult circumstances, develop life skills and become advocates for change. Supporting access to safe sport contributes to our commitment to uphold children’s rights and create an environment where every child can thrive, regardless of their status or past experiences”, says Maria Bray, Tdh Child Protection Expert.
As an example of Tdh’s work, in Egypt and Bangladesh, children participate in football (soccer) tournaments organized by Tdh and take part in awareness-raising activities and discussions on issues such as abuse. In this way, they learn to protect themselves and other children.
Most Tdh sports projects are co-led by children and also involve the children’s families and communities to help achieve a lasting impact.
“Sport can fill the emptiness that some young people suffer from, and not only that, it replaces it with good self-confidence and ambition. A society that cares about sports is a society that can work towards a better future,” says Eslam, a 24-year-old participant in the football activities in Egypt.
To achieve the greatest impact possible,Tdh partners with sport organizations like the IOC, FIBA, Olympic Refuge Foundation and UEFA
— Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans
Episode #33 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Ken Reed Announces His Retirement and Chats With League of Fans Founder Ralph Nader – Ken and Ralph talk about the history of League of Fans and the reasons it was created. They then move into a discussion of a variety of contemporary sports issues that League of Fans has been working on in recent years. Ken and Ralph end by talking about the need for sports fans, athletes, and other sports stakeholders to get involved in the sports reform movement and be activists and change agents on issues important to them, whether that be at the local, state, or national level.
Episode #32 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Prolific Author Joe Posnanski Joins the Show – Posnanski is one of America’s best sportswriters and has twice been named the best sports columnist in America by the Associated Press Sports Editors. We chat about his new book, “Why We Love Baseball,” his new Substack newsletter called Joe Blogs.
Episode #31 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: Foul Ball Safety Is Still an Important Issue at Ballparks – Our guests are Jordan Skopp, founder of FoulBallSafety.com and Greg Wilkowski, a Chicago based attorney. We discuss the historical problem of foul balls injuring fans and why some teams are still hesitant to put up protective netting in some minor league and college baseball parks.
Episode #30 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The State of College Athletics with Dr. David Ridpath: Problems and Potential Solutions – Ridpath is a sports administration professor at Ohio University and a member of The Drake Group, a college sports reform think tank.
Episode #29 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: The Honorable Tom McMillen Visits League of Fans’ Sports Forum – McMillen is a former All-American basketball player, Olympian, Rhodes Scholar and U.S. Congressman. We discuss the state of college athletics today.
Episode #28 – League of Fans’ Sports Forum podcast: A Chat With Mano Watsa, a Leading Basketball and Life Educator – Watsa is President of PGC Basketball, the largest education basketball camp in the world. We discuss problems in youth sports today.
"How We Can Save Sports" author Ken Reed appears on Fox & Friends to explain how there's "too much adult in youth sports."
Ken Reed appears on Mornings with Gail from KFKA Radio in Colorado to discuss bad parenting in youth athletics.
“Should College Athletes Be Paid?” Ken Reed on The Morning Show from Wisconsin Public Radio
Ken Reed appears on KGNU Community Radio in Colorado (at 02:30) to discuss equality in sports and Title IX.
Ken Reed appears on the Ralph Nader Radio Hour (at 38:35) to discuss his book The Sports Reformers: Working to Make the World of Sports a Better Place, and to talk about some current sports issues.
Reed Appears on Ralph Nader Radio Hour
League of Fans’ sports policy director, Ken Reed, Ralph Nader and the New York Times’ Tyler Kepner discussed a variety of sports issues on Nader’s radio show as well as Reed’s updated book, How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan. Reed's book was released in paperback in February, and has a new introduction and several updated sections.
League of Fans is a sports reform project founded by Ralph Nader to fight for the higher principles of justice, fair play, equal opportunity and civil rights in sports; and to encourage safety and civic responsibility in sports industry and culture.
Vanderbilt Sport & Society - On The Ball with Andrew Maraniss with guest Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director for League of Fans and author of How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan
Sports & Torts – Ken Reed, Sports Policy Director, League of Fans – at the American Museum of Tort Law
