The Youth Sports Games are the largest amateur sports event in Europe and a kind of phenomenon that, with its 28-year tradition, testifies that good vision, systematic work, and persistence can overcome all challenges and create a unique brand that has been recognized and supported by numerous world institutions, top athletes and officials and sponsors. They connect all their stakeholders and include them in the positive image and reputation they have established for years as promoters of a healthy lifestyle and social values among children and parents. Although the competitions are amateur, all activities have been conducted according to the standards of professional competitions, which include playing on professional sports fields, trained associates of kinesiologists and physical education professors, professional judges, delegates, and top event management. The uniqueness of the Games was evident during the interruption of all sports activities and competitions due to the coronavirus pandemic. Numerous world events and tournaments were immediately canceled and moved, so the Youth Sports Games are one of the few events that successfully continued and ended their season. The secret is in the well-arranged system of the Games, especially on the field, which has been built for years and continuously improved.
The Youth Sports Games are organized under the auspices of the International Olympic Committee, European Commission, UEFA, FIDE, and under the high patronage of the Government of the Republic of Croatia and the Croatian Parliament.
The Youth Sports Games have been participating in the social life of Croatia through their employees, ambassadors, and partners since 1996 and have become the largest amateur sports manifestation in Europe. The games provide an opportunity for children of elementary and high school age to participate free of charge in top organized competitions in 10 sports from January to September (Coca-Cola Cup, futsal, Kinder basketball tournament, HEP handball tournament, MIS volleyball tournament, Hrvatska pošta Cup in tennis, table tennis, beach volleyball, FIDE chess tournament, dodgeball and athletics as part of the Telemach Sports Day). All individuals and all freely formed teams, lovers of a healthy lifestyle and socializing, not only children who are actively involved in sports, have the right to participate.
Plazma Youth Sports Games has been organizing sports competitions for children from 6 to 18 years of age for 28 years, in which 2,700,000 competitors have participated. In addition to promoting sports and the sports lifestyle, through their programs, they work actively to educate children about all spheres of sustainable development, non-violence on sports fields, and fair play.
Plazma Youth Sports Games are systematically working on building recognition of the event and spreading it. As a result of this action, the Youth Sports Games began their international expansion in 2010 to Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, and this year welcomed Slovenia into the YSG family.
In 2023, 110,000 competitors participated in the Plazma Youth Sports Games in Croatia, and 60,000 participated in the 13th Youth Sports Games in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the tenth year of the Youth Sports Games in Serbia, 90,000 children and young people participated. In 2023, more than 260,000 young competitors took part in three countries.
In modern society, the need to organize and fulfill the free time of children and young people is becoming very important. The free time of young people today is a disorganized area. Organized care for young people’s free time is accomplished at the level of individuals, non-governmental organizations, or through the activities of local and regional self-government bodies with the aim of quality organization with appropriate content.
In this area, the Youth Sports Games have found an opportunity to operate and organize programs and content interesting for children and young people.
The Plazma Sports Games aim to promote healthy lifestyles and generally accepted social values (multiculturalism, tolerance, respect for diversity) through socializing and sports. The project was designed as the model of sports games, which promote cooperation, tolerance, and socializing. The concept which focuses on the games puts competition in the background. Games represent an alternative to the lifestyles and values children and young people are surrounded with (sedentary lifestyle, insufficient interest of children and young people in physical activity, and excessive use of modern technologies – mobile phones and computers). As a response to the detected problems, we consider the need for education about the importance of sports and a sporty lifestyle from the earliest school age as well as help for parents who, due to the accelerated pace of life, are unable to adequately devote themselves to promoting healthy lifestyles among children and young people. The media coverage of the Games makes them one of the largest sports events in Croatia. In this way, the Games promote their values in the social community. The communication mix includes classic advertising, own TV production (Games broadcasts on national TV), live TV broadcasts, media announcements (features on national and local TV stations, radio stations, web portals, and in the press), and social networks (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Tik-Tok).
