--- description: Lebron James says his kids can't play football or hockey title: LeBron James Explains Why He Won't Let His Kids Play Football image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3e6da356c7f54434/698768b8a988ca49ef6aabb2/168116199.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Sports](/section/sports/) ## Sports Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Football](/tag/football/) ## Football Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # LeBron James Explains Why He Won't Let His Kids Play Football ## Video: Football’s Ultimate Cost: The Chad Stover Story [Watch (HLS stream): Football’s Ultimate Cost: The Chad Stover Story](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/OYDHBOhj.m3u8) (6:12)  _Published 2014-09-17. It was halloween night, and the Tipton Cardinals needed a tackle. Trailing 27-18 in the opening round of the Missouri high school playoffs, a stop here—would help keep Tipton’s fading season alive_  by [Eliana Dockterman](/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Nov 13, 2014 9:12 PM CUT  LeBron James, center, his sons Bryce James, left, and LeBron James Jr. attend a press conference to announce his Fourth NBA MVP Award in Miami on May 5, 2013 LeBron James, center, his sons Bryce James, left, and LeBron James Jr. attend a press conference to announce his Fourth NBA MVP Award in Miami on May 5, 2013Alexander Tamargo—WireImage  by [Eliana Dockterman](/author/eliana-dockterman/)  ## Eliana Dockterman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Correspondent Nov 13, 2014 9:12 PM CUT You won’t see LeBron James’ sons scoring touchdowns anytime soon. The Cleveland Cavaliers all-star [said in a new interview](http://espn.go.com/nba/story/%5F/id/11866239/lebron-james-says-kids-allowed-play-football "undefined") that he neither lets them play football, nor hockey. “We don’t want them to play in our household right now until they understand how physical and how demanding the game is. Then they can have their choice in high school, we’ll talk over it,” James reasoned to ESPN. “But right now there’s no need for it. There’s enough sports they can play. They play basketball, they play soccer, they play everything else but football and hockey.” James explained that health concerns led to the ban. “It’s a safety thing,” he said. “As a parent you protect your kids as much as possible.” Football aside, both of his sons still play several sports: LeBron Jr., 10, concentrates mainly on basketball while Bryce Maximus, 7, favors soccer. **MORE:** [Parents Deeply Concerned About Injuries in Youth Sports, Survey Finds](http://time.com/3502999/youth-sports-injuries-concussion/ "undefined") He’s far from the first big name to speak out against youth football. President Barack Obama [said](http://www.newrepublic.com/article/112190/obama-interview-2013-sit-down-president "undefined") last January that if he had a son, “I’d have to think long and hard” before letting him play. And _Friday Night Lights_ director Peter Berg took an even firmer stand in a [TIME op-ed](http://time.com/3395089/berg-football-lacrosse/ "undefined") this fall, saying he had forbidden his son from playing. But _New Yorker_ columnist and best-selling author Malcolm Gladwell holds perhaps the most controversial [position](http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2009/10/19/offensive-play?currentPage=all "undefined") of all — that all college football should be banned. James’ stance may come as a surprise to some fans. The two-time NBA champion has [called football “his first love.”](http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/03/sports/basketball/03james.html?pagewanted=all&%5Fr=0 "undefined") Along with being one of the most sought-after high school basketball recruits ever, he was also an all-state wide receiver at his high school in Ohio. But he dropped football in his junior year after breaking a wrist during the off-season. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3584387/lebron-james-youth-sports-football/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3584387/lebron-james-youth-sports-football/"},"headline":"LeBron James Explains Why He Won't Let His Kids Play Football","datePublished":"2014-11-13T21:12:27.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:25:53.082Z","description":"Lebron James says his kids can't play football or hockey","url":"https://time.com/3584387/lebron-james-youth-sports-football/","keywords":["Football","Lebron James"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3e6da356c7f54434/698768b8a988ca49ef6aabb2/168116199.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eliana Dockterman","jobTitle":"Correspondent","url":"https://time.com/author/eliana-dockterman/"}],"articleSection":"Sports","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3e6da356c7f54434/698768b8a988ca49ef6aabb2/168116199.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"LeBron James Receives 4th MVP Award","caption":"LeBron James Receives 4th MVP Award","creditText":"Alexander Tamargo—WireImage","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/sports/","name":"Sports"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/football/","name":"Football"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3584387/lebron-james-youth-sports-football/","name":"LeBron James Explains Why He Won't Let His Kids Play Football"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Football’s Ultimate Cost: The Chad Stover Story","description":"It was halloween night, and the Tipton Cardinals needed a tackle. 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