Athleteoftheyear Reviews 

My Experience with Athlete of the Year 2026

After participating in this competition, my opinion is that it has very little to do with recognizing genuine athletic talent in children.

The competition is presented as an opportunity to recognize the Athlete of the Year, yet it does not evaluate athletic statistics, skills, championships, or actual sporting achievements. Instead, it ultimately comes down to a voting competition where families can spend significant amounts of money to move up in the rankings.

Over several weeks, I watched contestants rise and fall dramatically in the rankings, especially during double-vote promotions and the final minutes of each round. This creates constant pressure on families to keep spending money, with absolutely no guarantee of advancing.

The biggest concern is that families can end up spending thousands of dollars chasing a $25,000 prize, which may also be subject to taxes. Even the eventual winner could walk away with far less money than expected after accounting for expenses and taxes.

In my opinion, this is more of a popularity and financial competition than a legitimate recognition of athletic achievement.

I am not questioning the talent, dedication, or hard work of any of the children participating. My criticism is directed entirely at the voting system and how the competition is marketed.

If the goal is truly to recognize the Athlete of the Year, the competition should be based on athletic merit, not on how much money families and supporters are willing or able to spend.

My advice to other parents is to carefully understand how this competition works before spending any money. The title may sound impressive, but winning a voting contest does not necessarily mean someone is the best athlete.

I strongly caution families before spending money on this competition.

In my experience, this competition feels designed more to encourage families to spend money than to determine who should actually win. It appeals to parents, grandparents, friends, and relatives who are emotionally invested in supporting a young athlete and excited about the possibility of winning $25,000.

That is what concerns me most. A $25,000 prize is attractive to families who could genuinely use that money for college, sports expenses, training, equipment, or other financial needs. Yet the competition consists of round after round, giving families repeated opportunities to purchase more votes.

The longer your athlete remains in the competition, the more family and friends may feel pressured to keep spending to prevent them from being eliminated. Eventually, it stopped feeling like a competition based on athletic achievement or free public votes and started feeling like a competition based on who could continue buying votes.

Our family spent thousands of dollars.

After becoming concerned, I researched the competition and found BBB complaints and negative reviews from other consumers raising concerns about the competition, purchased votes, and its structure. I wish I had read those reviews before spending any money.

Families naturally want to support their children and grandchildren. When your athlete is close to advancing, it becomes easy to justify purchasing another package of votes and then another. With so many rounds, that spending can continue.

In my opinion, the structure appears designed to maximize spending rather than simply identify the best or most deserving athlete. It may operate within its published rules, but that does not mean consumers cannot find the structure exploitative or unethical.

After my experience, I personally feel scammed, and I would never participate again.

Before spending even $1, please research the BBB complaints and independent reviews, understand how purchased votes affect rankings, determine how many rounds are involved, and set a firm spending limit.

Had I understood how easily a family could spend thousands of dollars chasing a $25,000 prize, I would never have spent the money.

If I could rate this contest a zero, I would. THIS is a money grab for their organization. Your child will NEVER win. They play games and use Colossal to scam parents out of their money and then the competition just drops.

Complete pyramid scheme scam that preys on parents. They control all of the results and nowhere on their website do they disclose the real rankings. Who falls for this stuff? Well parents do, and understandably so...we do not think straight when it comes to our kids, and they know this. No transparency whatsoever - total scam.