ESPN and Disney Jr. revive youth-sports push for preschoolers, funding costs for income-restricted families

ESPN and Disney Jr. are renewing their partnership aimed at getting more preschoolers into organized sports, with new funding for income-restricted families and a fresh slate of kid-focused programming designed to teach basic sports skills through play.

The effort, which runs through a second year of ESPN’s “Take Back Sports” and Disney Jr.’s “Disney Jr. Let’s Play!” initiative, is again teaming with national nonprofit Every Kid Sports. The grants are intended to cover youth sports registration fees for children ages 3 to 7, a stage when the companies say early exposure can help build confidence, teamwork, and sportsmanship.

Last year’s campaign drew more than 1,200 families across eight U.S. cities. Those participating families supported access to youth sports spanning 22 different sports, according to the companies. Disney Jr. and ESPN also highlighted that 50% of participating families said it was their child’s first time playing a sport.

In addition to the grants, the program included a free “Let’s Play Sports Clinic” in East Los Angeles last fall, drawing more than 70 preschoolers and kindergarteners. This year, the effort will broaden beyond the grant-funded registration support by adding preschool sports clinics in additional select markets.

Disney Jr. and ESPN say the expanded clinics this year will include locations such as Oakland, Chicago, Fresno, the Los Angeles-Inland Empire area, Philadelphia, and more. The objective is to introduce young children to multiple sports in a fun, kid-friendly format and to connect families directly with youth-sports resources in their local communities.

Registrations for this year’s grants are described as open for qualifying families from Los Angeles, Fresno, San Francisco, Houston, Chicago, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham, and New York. Disney and ESPN say the grants will be fulfilled through fall 2026 via what Every Kid Sports calls the “Every Kid Sports Pass,” a pass-based mechanism the nonprofit uses to route support to eligible families for youth sports costs.

The campaign also includes programming built around the same sports-and-play theme. A new collection titled “Me & Mickey: Let’s Play Sports” debuts Monday, June 29, on Disney+, Disney Jr., and Disney Jr. On Demand.

The company describes the collection as an extension of the “Me & Mickey” vlog series, with 10 short videos featuring Mickey, Minnie, and other characters laughing, playing, and working together as a team. The shorts are framed as preschool-friendly and focused on specific early-skill actions such as kicking a soccer ball and playing catch.

Disney’s messaging ties the media push to its longer-running “Let’s Play!” strategy. Disney Jr. programming head Alyssa Sapire said play is important for development and that the company works with consultants and experts from multiple organizations to embed positive life skills into its content. ESPN’s vice president of ESPN Corporate Citizenship, Kevin Martinez, said the broadcaster is “proud to partner” for a second year to expand opportunities for preschoolers and their families, arguing that sports can provide early lessons that last beyond the playing field. Every Kid Sports executive director Eleana Fanaika said the collaboration is about more than sports, describing it as a way to deliver joy and confidence and to create early moments that can encourage lifelong activity and connection.

Still, as with many community-grants programs, the public rollout does not disclose granular details such as the exact grant size per family, the number of awards by city, or how long clinics will run in each market. Disney Jr. and ESPN also do not specify any performance targets beyond last year’s participation counts, leaving questions about how outcomes will be measured for the 2026 season. For families, the key practical detail is availability through the Every Kid Sports Pass and the list of registration markets noted for this year.