Extreme Heat Is Rewriting The Rules Of Youth Sports
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 13: Achraf Hakimi of Morocco pours water over his face during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group C match between Brazil and Morocco at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 13, 2026 ...
EAST RUTHERFORD, NEW JERSEY - JUNE 13: Achraf Hakimi of Morocco pours water over his face during the FIFA World Cup 2026 Group C match between Brazil and Morocco at New York New Jersey Stadium on June 13, 2026 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images)
Getty Images
How Extreme Heat Is Changing Youth Sports and Increasing Heat Illness Risk
Extreme heat is changing youth sports, increasing the risk of heat illness among young athletes across the United States and around the world. From the FIFA Club World Cup to local soccer fields, coaches, parents, and sports organizations are adapting to rising temperatures by introducing hydration breaks, changing schedules, and teaching children to recognize the warning signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. When elite athletes pause competition to protect themselves from overheating, they send an important message: recognizing heat risk is part of being a stronger athlete.
Why Children Are More Vulnerable to Heat Illness During Sports
Children who play sports often internalize the belief that perseverance means pushing through discomfort. Yet in an era of rising temperatures, learning when to stop may be just as important as learning how to compete.
A warming climate demands new rules for how sports are played at every level—not just for elite athletes but for children. As Laura Schifter, Senior Fellow at the Aspen Institute, recently argued in TIME, sports organizations from professional baseball to Formula One are already adapting to extreme heat. "Yet for our children," she writes, "fragmented youth sports and camp systems and an unrelenting culture to 'just push through it' leave them vulnerable."
The Hidden Danger of Extreme Heat
Heat poses a unique health challenge because it is both invisible and familiar. Unlike hurricanes or wildfires, it leaves few dramatic visual cues, making it harder to recognize as an immediate threat. At the same time, because warm weather is part of everyday life, people often mistake dangerous heat for normal summer conditions, but heat illness is serious.
Heat illness includes a spectrum of conditions ranging from heat cramps and heat exhaustion to heat stroke, a life-threatening medical emergency. Children are particularly vulnerable because their bodies regulate temperature differently than adults, making early recognition and prevention essential during practices and games held in extreme heat.
MORE FOR YOU
Despite this real risk, research on risk perception shows that this combination of familiarity and invisibility leads people to underestimate danger and delay protective action—even though extreme heat is among the world’s deadliest weather hazards.
A Hotter Planet Is Creating Greater Health Risks
There is a long way to go ensure people accurately perceive heat risk, but attribution of risk is increasing as heat intensifies around the world. June 2026 was the second-hottest June ever recorded globally, continuing a trend that is reshaping summers across every continent. Europe, now the fastest-warming continent, has been particularly hard hit, with prolonged heatwaves straining health systems and exposing vulnerabilities in countries where air conditioning remains uncommon. Summer tourists, outdoor workers, and young athletes alike are increasingly experiencing dangerous heat conditions that were once considered exceptional. As Bernadette Woods Placky, Executive Director of the Talking Climate Collaborative, explains:
“Heat is the easiest type of weather to forecast, yet it’s our leading weather-related killer. And sadly, we know that we are undercounting the number of deaths.”
The health consequences of heat are already profound. More than 62,000 heat-related deaths were reported across Europe in 2024, while the World Health Organization estimates that extreme heat contributes to nearly half a million excess deaths globally each year. Researchers also caution that these figures likely underestimate the true toll, as heat is often recorded as a contributing factor rather than the primary cause of death. As temperatures continue to rise, the challenge is no longer simply responding to extreme heat events, but ensuring that people—especially children—recognize heat as the serious health risk it has become.
Why Athletes and Storytelling Can Change Heat Safety Behavior
If heat is difficult to see and easy to underestimate, then changing behavior requires more than weather forecasts—it requires memorable messages that help people recognize risk and take action. That is the idea behind Play It Cool--a national campaign launched to help reduce heat illness in youth sports by encouraging children, parents, coaches, and athletic organizations to recognize warning signs before a medical emergency develops.
The campaign brings together leaders across sports, health, media, business, and entertainment, with a unique partnership with Dr. Seuss Enterprises that uses the beloved character The Lorax alongside elite athletes Robin Arzón and Napheesa Collier in a series of public service announcements. Through storytelling, the campaign teaches children three simple actions to prevent heat illness: "Speak Up. Sit Out. Cool Down."
Dr. Seuss' The Lorax at a photcall for the new film The Lorax at the Dorchester hotel in London. (Photo by Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images)
PA Images via Getty Images
The approach reflects a growing understanding that addressing extreme heat is not only a matter of infrastructure, policy, or access to cooling—it is also a challenge of human behavior. Children often look to athletes and cultural figures as role models, and seeing elite competitors prioritize safety can help redefine what strength and resilience look like. In a hotter world, knowing when to pause, hydrate, and recover is not a sign of weakness; it is part of staying in the game.
Building a New Culture of Youth Heat Safety
As Laura Schifter said at the Play it Cool campaign launch:
“Our changing climate is reshaping childhood, but it doesn’t have to keep kids on the sidelines.”
By bringing together sports, media, health experts, and trusted messengers, Play It Cool aims to transform youth heat safety from an overlooked risk into a shared social norm.
Generally as temperatures continue to rise, preventing heat illness in youth sports will require more than hydration breaks alone. Coaches, parents, schools, sports organizations, and athletes all have a role in recognizing early symptoms, adjusting play during extreme heat, and creating a culture where taking a break is viewed as smart—not weak. As climate change reshapes the sports landscape, protecting young athletes from heat illness will become an increasingly important part of keeping children healthy and active.