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Coventry University researchers find competition is vital to enjoyment in children’s sport
The research suggests competition should not be considered a negative thing in youth sport
Research news / Health and Community Wellbeing
Tuesday 02 June 2026
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How competition is presented to children in grassroots sport has a massive impact on how much they enjoy physical activity, according to researchers at Coventry University.
The study, led by Michael Duncan, Professor of Sport and Exercise Science at Coventry University's Research Centre for Healthcare and Community Transformation, looked into what boys and girls enjoyed about playing football, with the findings showing some stark differences between both groups.
Researchers involved children aged 9-15 who were then split into under and over 12 age groups and divided into boys and girls groups.
Each group was asked what they enjoyed most about playing football, with researchers using a write–draw–show–tell approach - a child-specific method designed to provoke deeper discussions with participants and gain more thorough answers.
The study’s most prominent findings were that boys found the element of competition to be at the core of what they enjoyed about sport, whatever their age, while the girls groups valued the support and togetherness that comes with playing as part of a team, more than anything else.
The findings could influence how coaches introduce competition into training sessions to ensure participants enjoy the sport and remain motivated to take part.
Enjoyment can really be defined as high-quality motivation. We know that for a variety of reasons there is a big drop off in participation in sport after the age of 11 so finding ways to maximise the enjoyment children get from football and community sport at a young age is very important to ensure they continue to participate and gain the huge benefits we know come through physical exercise.
There has perhaps been a tendency to consider competition at an early age to be a negative thing for children, but our research suggests that competition is not a bad thing and - especially for boys - it is an integral part of why they enjoy playing.
The picture for girls is a little more nuanced, they gained most enjoyment from the togetherness, support and social connections you experience as part of a team. They still valued competition, but it was competition and success as a team that they most enjoyed most, whereas with the boys it was more focussed on just being competitive. Interestingly we found that boys enjoyed it when they performed well individually, even if the team didn’t, while the girls’ enjoyment was more rooted in the success of the wider team.
Our methodology involved asking children to depict what they enjoyed about sport in drawings so for the boys we saw a lot of trophies and league tables, that sort of thing, whereas with the girls there were more pictures of people being together.
We’d like to challenge sports organisations and coaches to not see competition as a negative thing for younger children, it is healthy and important in increasing enjoyment.
Michael Duncan, Professor of Sport and Exercise Science
Find out more about studying Sport and Exercise Science at Coventry University.
