The Path To Athlete: New Jersey’s Promising Odds For Future Pros

Remember when you were little and your teacher asked you what you wanted to be when you grow up? Back then, it was so easy to daydream about the future, wasn't it? I loved to act, sing, and dance. If you're like me, you answered something like actor or lawyer. I have no idea why I wanted to be a lawyer so badly, but I'm still not convinced I'd be horrible at it.

Obviously... I took a totally different path than anticipated when I was six.

If your kids are really into sports, they probably come back with answers like soccer player or football star.

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We all know how likely that is to actually come true: slim to none.

Or is it?

NJ Kids More Likely To Become Sports Pros

The Sports Geek conducted a study to analyze the likelihood of someone from New Jersey becoming a professional athlete. By examining professional players from various sports over the past 18 years, they calculated the odds based on the state of birth of each player. The study compared the number of professional athletes from each state to the number of male births in that state during the same period.

The results showed that New Jersey ranks 11th in the nation for the likelihood of children becoming professional athletes. Specifically, New Jersey is the 2nd most likely state for kids to become professional soccer players, 9th most likely for NFL players, and 10th most likely for tennis players. This highlights New Jersey's strong representation in several major sports, providing promising odds for young athletes in the state.

New Jersey could have ranked worse, that's for sure. It's still a long shot for anybody to become a professional athlete. Even though NJ's kids are the 2nd most likely in the country, that's still a 1 in 167,524 chance per kid. Still, this is proof that you shouldn't crush your kid's athletic dreams if you live in the Garden State.