Blog
Booth notes.
Practical guides and stories for the parents and volunteers running music at youth sports games.
Start here
The guides.
From the booth
Every post.

The best youth sports DJ apps in 2026: BallparkDJ, Sports Audio DJ, RinkDJ, SportSongs and Sideline DJ compared
BallparkDJ, Sports Audio DJ, RinkDJ, SportSongs and Sideline DJ compared: sports, player announcements, music and prices, checked 6 Oct 2026.
Read
NHL goal songs by team, and what youth rinks can learn from them
All 32 NHL goal songs for 2026-27, team by team with sources: Oilers, Leafs, Canucks, Bruins, Rangers, Avalanche and more, plus what youth rinks can learn.
Read
The best goal celebration songs for youth sports
41 clean goal songs that hit hard through a rink PA, from Song 2 and Kernkraft 400 to Mr. Brightside and Hey Baby, grouped by age, with funny picks and tips.
Read
The best soccer goal songs for youth soccer
29 clean soccer goal songs, from Seven Nation Army and Hey Baby to Afrobeats, grouped by age, with tips for playing music at an outdoor field.
Read
Sideline DJ is live: thank you to the team that tested it
Sideline DJ is on the App Store. Thank you to the Thunderbirds U13 A2, who let me test it at my son's games, plus a real goal with the sound from the rink.
Read
Youth sports fundraising without burning out your volunteers
A team fundraiser with no products to stock, no orders to collect and no upfront cost. Any youth sport can start a page and earn $10 for each new family who gets the Sideline DJ Pass.
Read
The best warm-up and pump-up songs for youth hockey
30 clean warm-up and pump-up songs for youth hockey and ringette, from Thunderstruck to Titanium, grouped by style and age.
Read
Hockey songs for every moment of the game
54 clean hockey songs by moment: goal, faceoff, penalty, period break, victory and good-game songs, plus the goal horn. Picked for youth rinks.
Read
Good sportsmanship, built into game-day music
How Sideline DJ keeps game-day music fair: the same call for every player, a song for the other team's goals, a quiet horn in a blowout and a friendly final whistle.
Read
How to run music at a youth hockey game
A practical guide for the parent on booth duty: what to set up before game day, what to play when, and how to keep it fair.
Read
Clean music for youth sports: what it should really mean
Why a streaming explicit filter isn't enough at a kids' game, and what clean music for youth sports should include.
Read
Should "All I Want for Christmas" Make the Team Playlist? 🎶🎄
Someone in Surrey played Mariah Carey's Christmas classic at a youth sports game in September. It sparked an idea: should Sideline DJ create a holiday…
Read
Why Music is/was Missing from Youth Sports in Europe? (and How North America Changed My Perspective)
A sports parent from Northern Ireland shares how moving to Canada opened their eyes to the power of music in youth sports, and why Europe might be missing…
Read
Walking Into The Open: Music, Memory, and the Spark Behind Sideline DJ
There's something about walking into the grounds of The Open Championship, especially when it's on home soil in Northern Ireland, that hits differently.…
ReadMore Than a Hype Track: How Music Shapes Youth Sports from the Inside Out
In every locker room, bus ride, and pregame warm-up across the country, there's one thing that unites athletes of all ages: music. But is music doing more…
ReadBuilding Sideline DJ: From MVP to Game-Changing Music Moments on the Sidelines
Building Sideline DJ from MVP to game-changing music moments - our journey to launch a music-powered youth sports experience for hockey season.
Read
The Walk-Up Song Scramble: Why Baseball Deserves a Better Game Day Soundtrack
Discover how Sideline DJ makes it easy to play walk-up songs, celebrate base races, and create unforgettable baseball moments, stress-free.
ReadThe Breakaway That Inspired Sideline DJ: Why Every Game Deserves Its Soundtrack
A real story of the breakaway goal that inspired Sideline DJ, a youth sports music app built by parents, for parents who understand the stress of running…
ReadGet your team on Sideline DJ.
Sideline DJ is on the App Store for iPhone. Download it, set up your team in ten minutes, and run your next game from one phone.
