Soccer Season On A Budget
The air is crisp, school’s back in session and the days are getting shorter … this can only mean one thing, IT’S SOCCER SEASON!
Your Guide To A Successful Soccer Season
For most families, that also means big bucks! League dues, new cleats, new ball, travel expenses, extra training. Let’s be honest, soccer can cost a family a lot of money when it’s all said and done. But it doesn’t have to be that way!
We sent my friend Jen, and her 10-year-old soccer player, Athena, to Play It Again Sports, a national chain that sells discounted used and new sporting goods and also accepts your old equipment for cash, or trade-in credit.
Our goal: to see what it would cost to get Athena ready for the soccer season from head to toe.
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This is their story….
Athena needed cleats, shin guards and a ball to get her 2018 soccer season underway. As a recently divorced mom on a budget, it’s important to me to save money wherever I can, so we eagerly accepted the challenge.
We had just downsized and moved into a townhouse, so I had already gotten rid of a lot of items that I would have loved to have traded in. But after calling Play It Again Sports and speaking to the manager, Ross, I realized I did have a few more items that just might work. So, I did a deeper dive into the boxes still unpacked and came up with: Nike cleats from last season, training cones and practice bibs from my coaching days, a set of boxing gloves, an Everlast helmet and old padded martial arts shin guards. I highly recommend calling ahead of time so you can bring items you know they are looking for as it helped me think of things I wouldn’t have grabbed normally.
It was great to clear a little more space in my already cluttered garage, so it was a win before I even left my house. There were several Play It Again locations nearby, all within 20-30 miles. I settled on the one in Sherman Oaks. (For your closest store, go to Playitagainsports.com and type your ZIP code into “Find a store close to you.”)
When we arrived, two employees, Jordan and Seth, helped us with our box of goodies from the car and then got started sorting through it. They took back all of our items for trade credit – minus a wetsuit.
Then we were shown a large selection of soccer cleats, both used and new. There were lots of fun, bright colors to choose from, which made my daughter happy.
There were also plenty of new shin guards and balls, too, at a great price. Athena decided on turquoise for gently used shoes and went old school with a classic black and white ball.
We were able to get a trade-in value of $22 towards the purchase of the items we needed: used shoes, new shin guards and a new ball.
We spent out of pocket a total of $11. We did consider purchasing a training net and speed hurdles, but decided against it at the end, just because of space at our new townhouse.
The weights and exercise equipment caught my eye on the way out; I think I might return for some soon, as I’m planning to start a new exercise regimen.
Overall, our experience was great. We are satisfied customers who will definitely be back again.
