Participating in sports helps children develop healthy habits – both physically and socially. You probably already knew that if you fell into the 41 percent of parents in southeast Michigan who consider sports ‘very important’ or even the 41 percent who consider them ‘somewhat important’ according to a survey by the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation.
Despite over 80 percent of parents who recognize the importance of sports in their children’s lives, only 13 percent of kids in the area are physically active for an hour a day – and most of those kids are only exposed to sports through gym classes or school teams.
What can parents in Macomb County do to make sure their kids are getting in an hour of exercise a day? How about joining a local sports league? Macomb County is full of opportunities when it comes to extracurricular sports, from soccer to dance leagues and everything in between, so you’re bound to find something that will keep your kids healthy and having fun.
Multi-Sports Facilities and Leagues
YMCA-Macomb
- Address: 10 N. River Road, Mount Clemens
- Phone: 586-468-1411
The Y has been offering a variety of programs for young people for over 100 years. The Macomb County branch offers karate, gymnastics, basketball, tumbling, swim team and lessons, and has a running club called Girls on the Run. Programs are offered for different skill levels for kids ages 4-15 and range between $20 and $100 depending on the program. Discounted prices are available to members. Programs are between 10 and 20 sessions (two per week for 5-10 weeks.)
Total Sports Park
- Address: 65665 Powell Road, Washington
- Phone: 586-336-4000
This facility boasts 24 outdoor soccer fields, one indoor field, five volleyball courts and five batting cages. There are soccer leagues available for high school girls and boys, which practice Monday-Thursday after school, host eight games for the girls league and six for the boys and costs $2,000 per team for the girls and $1,500 per team for boys. TRIBE is the facility’s youth volleyball league that costs $40 to try out for and $300 to participate in. The facility also offers volleyball skills clinics and camps throughout the summer to prepare students for their school team tryouts.
The Sports Academy Chesterfield
- Address: 30845 23 Mile Road, Chesterfield
- Phone: 586-949-6266
2SP Shelby Township
- Address: 50625 Van Dyke Ave., Shelby Township
- Phone: 586-488-3794
This national sports training program offers flag football, soccer, baseball, and lacrosse opportunities for boys and girls ages 3-15. Parents can register players individually for between $100 and $150 dollars, or can sign up a whole team for training for $630. Sessions include games and practices (usually on the same day) and run on 6-week schedules.
Premier Sports Center
- Address: 14901 23 Mile Road, Shelby Township
- Phone: 586-262-4239
Soccer, lacrosse, baseball and martial arts training are all available at this location. Motor City Machine is the all-girls lacrosse club that offers programs for girls grades K-12 ranging in price from $75 to $200 per player, depending on the players’ skill levels and expectations of the different programs. The Premier League offers indoor soccer for all ages and skill levels and Kickstart! Toddler Soccer has six age groups from 18 months to 4- to 5-year-old teams. Kickstart! Programs are seven weeks and range $100-$110. Metro Detroit Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu also offers programs here, including a “bully-free” class that teaches kids self-defense and is available at two levels – Little Grapplers for ages 5-7 and Junior BJJ for ages 8-12. For baseball and softball enthusiasts Five Tool Baseball Club offers travel teams for ages 8-18.
Skyhawks
- Address: Multiple locations
- Phone: 800-804-3509
This is your resource for finding any sport program in Macomb County. Simply go to the website and select a sport – basketball, baseball, soccer, cheerleading, tennis, track and field, volleyball, golf, lacrosse and flag football options. Once you pick a sport you can search what programs are in your area. Make sure to check out a Mini-Hawk Camp, which covers baseball, flag football and soccer for 4- to 7-year-olds for $180.
Elite Indoor Sports
- Address: 49771 Oakland Drive, Shelby Township
- Phone: 586-532-0011
While this facility mostly offers youth soccer leagues, there are also training camps and high school leagues available for other sports. There is a boys’ lacrosse mini-league that plays four games a season and offers places to individual players for $40 and will register a whole team for $400. The girls’ high school soccer league plays 12 games a season and players can register as individuals for $120, or a whole team for $1,300. Youth soccer leagues are for players ages 7-12, last eight weeks and cost $125 per player.
Joe Dumars Fieldhouse
- Address: 45300 Mound Road, Shelby Township
- Phone: 586-731-3080
Offering basketball, volleyball and roller hockey league, Joe Dumars Fieldhouse is a great place for kids to get involved in a variety of sports. Boys’ basketball leagues are available for grades K-12 and girls’ leagues are available for grades K-2 and 5-12. Boys leagues cost $170 per player plus the $20 required membership fee, which covers a 10-game season for a team of a minimum of eight players. Girls basketball is $100 per player plus the required $20 membership fee for an 8-game season for eight player teams. Youth roller hockey is $150-$200 and covers 10 season games for players 8-18. The facility also offers camps, sports academies and training clinics.
Individual Sports Leagues and Facilities
Soccer
AYSO 459
- Address: P.O. Box 182038, Shelby Township
The American Youth Soccer Organization has programs across the country but area 459 is where residents of Macomb, Shelby and Utica can sign up their kids to play. There are five available programs based on age and skill level ranging from ages 3-18. There is also a program geared at players with special needs. Registration costs between $75 and $140 for players to participate in 5-10 games, depending on the program.
United Soccer League
- Address: P.O. Box 180260, Utica
- Phone: 586-441-0540
For 44 years, the USL has provided soccer programs for the children of southeast Michigan. Programs are available for children age 5-14 and range from 8-10 matches per season, with some programs offering 3-4 tournament matches. Seasons are fall and spring and parents can register for a full year bundle for $230- $550 or one season for $150.
North Macomb Community Youth Soccer
- Address: NMCYS P.O. Box 248, Romeo
- Phone: 586-615-9982
Family soccer for ages 3-19 that is recreational and travel with no tryouts – “everybody plays” is their policy. Registration costs $116 for one player, $220 for two and $285 for three or more However if you register all players together, they must be siblings for these prices. The price includes a full uniform, and eight games per season with seasons being in the spring and fall.
Golf and Tennis
Cherry Creek Golf Course
- Address: 52000 Cherry Creek Blvd., Shelby Township
- Phone: 586-254-7700
This golf course has tee-times just for your golf-inclined kids. There is a basic program for players ages 7-15 to learn the game in five hour-long sessions, a PGA Jr. League for players 13 and under, which includes eight team practices, and four to six matches per season, and camps for differing levels for ages 4-15. Registration costs $300 for the Jr. League, $105-$150 for camps and $150 for the junior golf basics program. The league’s season is in the spring, but camps are available over the summer and into the fall.
TGA of Southeast Michigan
- Address: Multiple Locations
- Phone: 248-252-0208
The Golf Association has programs throughout the U.S. and their southeast Michigan programs include after-school clubs, junior leagues, camps and parent/child events. All of these programs are available on their website and range in price from $120 for after-school events to $430 for summer camps.
Peach Tree Tennis Club
- Address: 37600 Little Mack Ave., Clinton Township
- Phone: 586-469-7000
Offering lessons for players ages 4-18, whether your child is just starting to learn or is a junior varsity player looking to hone their skills, this club has a class for them. Sessions for members can be prepaid, but drop-ins are also available when space is available. Drop-in sessions range from $17 to $34, or junior memberships are $50 per year. There are also 18 and under leagues for boys and girls that run for eight weeks over the winter and cost $120 on top of the required membership fee. The club also offers private lessons, court time and pickleball.
Basketball
Greg Grant Basketball and Training Center
- Address: 6606 Metropolitan Parkway, Sterling Heights
- Phone: 586-795-0186
This facility offers camps, leagues and training for kids in grades 5-12. Camps run through the summer and cost $215 per person. Kindergarten to fifth graders can attend the Little Ballers summer camp for $140. Leagues include a minimum of 10 games, accept a minimum of eight players per team, are divided by grade/age and range between $110 and $150. There are fall and summer leagues available. Clinics and training cover everything from fundamentals and strength training to one-on-one sessions with the coach Greg Grant.
Baseball
Macomb-Clinton Babe Ruth Baseball
- Address: Multiple Field Locations
- Phone: 586 677-8153
Players are divided into teams based on age and levels of play, starting with T-ball for 4-6 year-olds and ending with the senior division, which is for 15-18 year-olds. The season runs from April-June with prices ranging from $80 to $130, depending on the player’s age. There is a $10 discount for families with more than one child playing in one season.
Macomb Township Little League
- info@mtllb.org
- Address: Multiple Locations
Teams are divided by age from 4 to 13 and prices are based on those divisions. Minor, major and intermediate leagues are for ages 7-13 and cost between $170 and $210. All divisions play two games a week and the season lasts from April until July.
Football and Cheerleading
Elite Cheer Michigan
- Address: 25151 Terra Industrial Drive, Chesterfield
- Phone: 586-948-5867
Tumbling, gymnastics and cheer technique classes are offered throughout the year to different age/skill groups for costs between $105 and $120. There are also performing and competitive teams, which accept members of all levels and operate on a no tryout, first come-first served basis.
Oakland/Macomb Youth Football Association
- Address: Multiple locations
- Email: murdock4450@hotmail.com
The association supports 12 teams across Macomb and Oakland. They offer four levels from flag to varsity football based on ages 6-13. They also have a cheer program available. Each team has different registration requirements, which you can find more information by going to the teams’ individual websites.
Sterling Football Club
- Address: 44585 Schoenherr Road, Sterling Heights
- Phone: 586-254-3838
The club runs four divisions – a total of 18 teams – with mostly flag football and one tackle team. The director of the program Dan Wesner says that the teams are intentionally made to represent the high school teams that the kids will hopefully one day play for. For example, the Big Reds uniforms mimic the Chippewa Valley uniforms. The kids also benefit from interacting with student coaches. The programs focus on boys and girls in first through sixth grade, run three practices per week and eight games per season with the seasons starting in August. Registration and equipment costs $135.
Swimming
Macomb County Swim League
There are six teams that compete in this league: The Romeo Dolphins, Utica Shelby Swim Club, Blue Water Swim Club, Lakers Aquatic Club, the Lake Orion Liquid Lightning and the Macomb Octopus Swim Team. In addition to registration and participation fees, some clubs have a mandatory fundraising fee set at $200 per family. Meet fees are not included in registration or participation fees and are paid per event your child participates in.
Romeo Dolphins
USSC
- Address: Home Pool: Stoney Creek High School, 575 E. Tienken Road, Rochester Hills
- Contact: Erica Thomas: coach_erica@yahoo.com
Practices are determined by age and skill level – and offered a minimum twice per week, and maximum six times a week. Whichever practice group your child is assigned to will determine the monthly fee. Parents who do not volunteer to work meets will be charged $45. There is also a mandatory fundraising fee for this club.
Blue Water
- Address: 2200 Clinton Ave., St. Clair
- Phone: 810-887-7731
Fees and practices are determined by season and skill level. For the fall, beginning levels practice four days a week and advanced levels practice five days a week. Registration is $100 and monthly payments range from $125 to $145 depending on skill level. This team has mandatory fundraising fees.
Liquid Lightning
- Address: 495 E. Scripps Road, Lake Orion
- Contact: Rebecca Alexander: ralexander@liquidlightning.org
Practices are based on skill level. Most levels practice four days a week, while advanced teams practice eight times a week. There is a $275 registration fee plus a monthly fee based on level, which ranges from $85 to $130. Sibling discounts are available.
Lakers
- Address: Multiple Locations
- Phone: 586-921-4019
Monthly fees are based on skill level and range from $80 to $200. Practices are also based on age and skill level and range from three practices per week for beginners age 5-7 to nine per week for advanced high school students. This team also requires “dry land” team exercises.
M.O.S.T
- Address: Home Pool: L’Anse Creuse High School, 23700 21 Mile Road, Macomb
- Contact: Jennifer Williams (President): jenjoep@comcast.net
Required registration for the team is $175. Amount of practices per season decided by the coach after team is established.
For more information on Macomb County and its offerings, visit the Make Macomb Your Home website.
