Long gone are the days where the sole baseball option for kids was the local little league. With as many Oakland County youth sports leagues that are available, parents are left to do research to find out which is best suited for their children.

Recently, we were looking for a summertime youth sports league that offered sessions throughout the summer, instead of a week long camp or a two-day deal. i9 Sports offered this option so we had our daughter do the summer soccer program (instructional with scrimmages) and our son did the flag football league which has practices, games, PPK competition (punt, pass, kick), and playoffs.

i9 is well organized and run by courteous, kind, and fun staff and ownership.

The i9 league is a fun oriented sports program. It's all about a "feel good" atmosphere. On opening day, outside at the silverdome, music was playing and the mood was upbeat. i9 had a BBQ grilling hot dogs for sale. It was a great intro to this recreational program.

The i9 youth sports league is not ultra competitive. It's based on four key concepts: fun, inclusivity, safety, and sportsmanship. A medal is given out each week based on the week's goal (e.g. good listening, showing respect...) and by the end of the season, everyone will have received a medal. The medals and the sticker program are great motivators for the kids to listen, treat others kindly, and show good sportsmanship. Coaches are given stickers to pass out to kids who do something outstanding in great sportsmanship. For example, if a child picks up someone else's flags, tells someone "good game," etc.

Click here for tips on how to choose the right youth sports league for your child.

Parents are encouraged to get involved with i9. They can put things up on their website, they can bring snacks, etc. i9 sends out weekly emails to the parents to recap the programs and what the kids are working on.

Jerseys come with the i9 youth sports programs. From what we saw at this summer's programs, there were about three coaches to 20 kids for soccer and one coach (plus parent helpers) to five or so kids on flag football. I'm sure this varies from league to league and season to season, but I think they're decent ratios.

i9 offers a $10 discount to OCM members. Be sure to mention OCM when signing up for an i9 program. Click here to find out how to save money on i9 sports leagues.

Youth sports programs offered through i9 are basketball, flag football, soccer, cheerleading and lacrosse.

i9 website.

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