HIGHLIGHTS

• National teams will train this summer in Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Charlotte and communities throughout North America.
• That kind of connection with elite athletes has inspired young people to get more active.
• Children worldwide don’t get enough physical activity on any given day.

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As 48 national soccer teams converge on North American cities this summer to train for the FIFA World Cup 2026™, the stakes might go well beyond who wins or loses.

These teams will spur what psychologists call the “demonstration effect.” When young people witness elite athletes perform, especially in high-profile events close to home, they feel inspired to join the sport or get more active – the demonstration effect.

And that could make a huge difference in the health of the younger generations, said Abbie Wrights, associate teaching professor of Health and Exercise Science at Wake Forest University.

Guidelines from the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention and the World Health Organization advise that children and adolescents ages 6-17 years should do at least one hour of moderate to vigorous physical activity daily. Think tossing a ball around or martial arts or even team sports.

According to numerous research studies, Wrights said, those 60+ minutes per day deliver not only physical health benefits, including stronger hearts and bones, but also mental health benefits such as:

• Less stress and better moods.
• Reduced anxiety and depression.
• Improved attention, focus and classroom behavior.
• Better social skills and sense of belonging.

But 80% of young people worldwide won’t see those benefits, because they don’t engage in enough daily physical activity, according to the World Health Organization. 

Seeing a World Cup soccer athlete play could change that, said Wrights, a certified clinical exercise physiologist through the American College of Sports Medicine. The research shows that:

• Young people who identify elite athletes as role models are twice as likely to participate in sports.
• 43% of youths surveyed by the Aspen Institute’s Project Play said they would join a sport if it was fun, a key aspect of live sporting events.
• 18% percent of children surveyed in another study said elite athletes were their role models for physical activity, second only to their friends.

“I don’t think the goal is to inspire every kid to be a professional soccer player, but I think it can inspire them to move and want to be involved – play in their backyard, play on the playground, maybe join a recreational team,” she said. 

As the mother of three soccer enthusiasts, she sees the benefits in terms of exercise. But she also appreciates how playing the game helps her children regulate emotions, make new friends and learn lessons about hard work that transfer to areas like school and relationships. 

The students in her first-year seminar at Wake Forest, “The Culture of Youth Sports,” often talk about how elite athletes have inspired them. Wrights says having World Cup players in Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Charlotte and around the U.S., Canada and Mexico likely will amplify that inspiration.

It becomes more real when it’s happening nearby, and all the benefits of that demonstration effect start trickling down. Witnessing the kind of hard work and dedication it takes to compete at the World Cup level can evolve into good habits in so many other facets of life, she said: “If I can work hard in a sport, I can work hard in school. I can work hard in my friendships. I can work hard in my volunteer opportunities. Kids who play sports definitely do better in school, so there is that academic transfer as well.” 

Picking up the ball after the World Cup

So what happens when the World Cup wraps up, the local training sites close down and the teams head back to home base? 

Wrights said it’s up to each community to keep the momentum going. The demonstration effect won’t lead to actionable change unless the parents start to kick the ball around with their kids in the backyard or recreational teams boost their recruitment outreach or coaches find ways to engage and retain young athletes of all skill levels.  

In fact, research has shown that the demonstration effect is most likely to take root in communities that invest in organizations and facilities that support youth sports engagement.

“We don’t want to let that excitement fade,” Wrights explained. “We want to feed into it by then giving children and adolescents opportunities to get involved. The World Cup is only a starting point.”

Wake Forest University and the Graylyn Estate are hosting the German National Team beginning June 8 as it trains for the FIFA World Cup 2026™.