I’m asked regularly about IMG Academy, Spire Academy and similar places as options for student-athletes. In recent years, as more of these academies and their popularity has grown, the questions have increased.
I’ve been to both places multiple times and have worked with families on both sides – those who have attended IMG, Spire etc., and those who have contacted me once they’ve decided to leave when things didn’t turn out the way they expected.
IMG and Spire are fairly unique organizations, and they have their place in the overall landscape. IMG has been around for about 30 years. Spire opened within the last few years.
In many ways, IMG invented the for-profit sports academy business model in the US when it was just a tennis academy. They have since expanded to many more sports, most recently football and lacrosse. By any measure, they are incredibly successful. Spire Academy, outside of Cleveland, seems to be copying that model.
These are not prep schools, at least not in the traditional sense. Both are for-profit sports academies that offer academics as a supplement to athletics. This is fundamentally different than most traditional boarding schools which offer sports as a part of the whole educational/child development experience. IMG is working on improving its academic offerings as evidenced by the plans for new academic buildings shown on their website.
At around $90,000, IMG’s price makes most prep schools look like a bargain, which is saying something when the others are charging $70,000 to educate kids as young as 14. At times, they will discount the price based on the athlete’s ability and national recognition.
Their business model is to bring in Internationally recognized superstars on full scholarship which, in turn, draws families of “regular” athletes who can/are willing to pay $90,000 to chase their dream. Some of the coaches work on a commission basis. In other words, they get a financial percentage of what they recruit/bring in.
The education they offer is no longer merely the minimum it once was and they are making efforts to improve. Still, some/many courses are online and there remains a very large gap between the education they offer and the education at a traditional boarding school. They are not educators first, they are sports people first. That’s a concern for some/many when we’re talking about being responsible for kids 14-18 years old who are living away from home.
Living quarters and overall organization have come under scrutiny and are considered unacceptable by some of the families who have attended. Again, they are working on improving that. IMG, in particular, shows plans on their website for new dorms. While bad experiences happen at all places, even the traditional boarding schools, the percentage at IMG, Spire etc. is higher. That should be no surprise given the amount of freedom teenagers have at these places.
A couple months ago I was asked by the director of admission and financial aid at a prominent northeastern prep school to contact the mother of one of his existing students and discuss IMG. The young man is a basketball star and IMG had seen him at a major summer camp and was trying to get him to leave his traditional prep school and attend IMG. This mother has very little money and the prospect of saving thousands of dollars was very appealing to her. They initially promised her a full scholarship, but when it came time to get the deal done, that was not the case. She didn’t know what to think, whom to trust, or what to do.
Bottom line: Organizations like these clearly have their place. Given their cost and the alternatives available, parents who are serious about their child’s education and not just the sport should proceed cautiously when exploring them. The risk factor is higher at these sports academies as evidenced by, among other things, the higher transfer rate of kids leaving before they graduate. These are the right place for some kids but families need to make the decision to attend with their eyes open.
Updated: 5 June 2024
