Franchise Deep Dive: i9 Sports® Franchise Costs, Fees, Profit and Data

Franchise i9 Sports is one of the nation's largest youth sports franchises, with more than 3 million player registrations and nearly 160 franchise locations operating nationwide. Franchise owners offer youth sports leagues, camps and clinics for boys and girls ages 3 to 14 in today’s most popular sports, such as flag football, soccer, basketball, baseball, volleyball and lacrosse.

When Frank Fiume, a baseball fanatic and native of Queens, New York, graduated from St. John’s University and began a career as a medical equipment sales rep, he knew that his true life’s purpose was to pursue a career in sports. So, in 1995, he created his own adult men’s softball league: ABA Sports. The startup company quickly grew to over 900 teams in just six years, making it the largest adult sports organization on Long Island.

In 2003, Fiume sold ABA to create i9 Sports, a franchise business that catapulted him to national recognition. Entrepreneur magazine ranked it as the No. 1 children’s fitness franchise, and it was featured on the Franchise 500 list 14 times, most recently ranked at No. 307 this year. Inc. magazine placed i9 Sports on its list of the 5,000 Fastest-Growing Private Companies for seven years, while Franchise Times has placed the brand in the Top 200+ for 13 years.

Franchise overview

Today, with over 3 million registrations and nearly 160 franchise locations, i9 Sports is the nation’s largest multi-sport provider focused solely on high-quality, community-based youth sports programs.

i9 Sports franchises, located across the country, offer age-appropriate instruction for boys and girls ages 3-14 in flag football, soccer, basketball, baseball, ZIP Lacrosse and volleyball. Franchisees are committed to providing age-appropriate instruction, making sports fun for kids and convenient for today’s busy families.

The way to win with an i9 Sports franchise is to establish multiple playing venues, offering multiple sports for four seasons a year. Franchisees don’t need to own any real estate, and most staff members work part-time as needed each season, keeping costs down.

Financial performance

The average registration revenue for i9 Sports franchises is $596,796, with a median registration revenue of $484,633. The highest registration revenue was $1,780,943, and the lowest was $142,573. The average number of venues operated by i9 Sports franchises is 4.6, and the average number of sports offered is 4.5.

i9 Sports’ financial performance representation reflects the historical average and median of the registration revenue and certain key performance indicators, including the number of venues operated; the number of sports offered; and the market penetration rate of certain i9 Sports units for the period January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2021.

The combined revenue by number of franchise units owned by i9 Sports shows that the average registration revenue is $1,083,121, with a median registration revenue of $967,310. The highest registration revenue was $2,182,248, and the lowest was $552,620.

The total estimated i9 Sports franchise costs are between $59,900 and $69,900, which includes grand opening advertising, insurance, legal and accounting services, furniture, equipment, inventory and supplies, training expenses, and additional funds for three months.

The initial franchise fee for i9 Sports is $24,900, which is the upfront fee that must be paid when opening an i9 Sports franchise.