Currently, the number of people infected with COVID-19 throughout Hillsborough County have spiked dramatically since the last phase opening. The CDC says the risk of COVID-19 spread increases in youth sports settings as follows:

Lowest risk: Performing skill-building drills or conditioning at home, alone, or with family members

Increasing risk: Team-based practice

More risk: Within-team competition

Even more risk: Full competition between teams from the same local geographic area

Highest risk: Full competition between teams from different geographic areas

The CDC advises that sports requiring frequent closeness between players “may make it more difficult to maintain social distancing. … For close-contact sports (e.g., wrestling, basketball, football, etc.). This will most definitely cause concern for the health of the youth and families involved. In order to keep the COVID numbers low, we have to do our best (as responsible citizens) to avoid the further spread of the disease.

We can start with protecting the lives of our children and families by keeping them from gathering with others. This would mean that we would have to sacrifice not having an athletic season this year. The overall lives and well-being of our children are far more important than the needs of any sports organization.

Please sign this petition to keep all youth sports organizations closed and off the fields/courts for the remainder of 2020. Our children need us to advocate for them.