Lil’ KickersFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A Lil’ Kickers franchise requires a total initial investment of $40K – $64K, including a $25K franchise fee and an ongoing 9.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2025 FDD, average unit revenue was $386K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 18, 2026 · figures per the 2025 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $40K – $64K
- 6th pct Education
- Avg gross sales
- $386K
- 18th pct Education
- Royalty
- 9.0%
- 44th pct Education
- Units
- 91
- 56th pct Education
- SBA default
- 100.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Education · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Education avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
Each dollar invested generates 7.4x in gross revenue, well above the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchised units fell from 85 to 77 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
Bottom line
- Total investment $40K – $64K including a $25K franchise fee, 9.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $386K/year (median $224K).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 24/100.
- System contracting at -9.4% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
- Legal entity
- Lil’ Kickers Inc.
- Ultimate parent
- Arena Sports, Inc.
- CEO title
- CEO
- Don Crowe
- Incorporated in
- WA
- HQ
- 9040 Willows Road NE, Suite 101, Redmond, Washington 98052
- Auditor
- Clark Nuber PS
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $3.5M
- vs $3.7M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
Overview
About
Lil' Kickers franchisees operate youth soccer instruction programs for ages 18 months to 6 years, typically delivering small-group classes at facilities they secure (parks, schools, studios). Day-to-day involves scheduling classes, teaching developmental soccer skills, managing instructor staff, handling parent/customer relations, and managing local marketing.
- CEO
- Don Crowe
- Headquarters
- WA
- Founded
- 2007
- FDD year
- 2025
- States available
- 24
FDD Item 7 · 2025 filing · 11 line items
Initial investment breakdown
| Line item | Low | High | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franchise Fee | $15K | $25K | |
| Technology Set-up Fee | $500 | $500 | |
| Initial Training Programnot refundable | $0 | $5K | |
| Real Property | — | — | |
| Equipment, signs, and decorating costsnot refundable | $7K | $17K | |
| Inventory to begin operatingnot refundable | $1K | $3K | |
| Insurance (annual premium) | — | — | |
| Security deposits and other prepaid expenses required to commence operations and working capital | $0 | $1K | |
| Marketing Fee - Initial Three Months | $1K | $3K | |
| DaySmart Recreation system - Initial three months | $0 | $885 | |
| Additional funds - three months | $0 | $10K | |
| Total initial investment | $24K | $64K |
Line items extracted from FDD Item 7. Ranges reflect the franchisor's stated low and high per line. Total is the sum of line-item lows / highs — actual costs may fall outside this range depending on market and build-out scope.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$42K
11.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
74%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
16 mo
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $40K – $64K
- Better than avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $0 – $10K
- Better than avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $15K – $25K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 9.0%
- Gross Sales · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- Fixed monthly fee $350 - $850
- Total fee load
- 9.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 9.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $500 |
| Training fee | $1K |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $0 |
| Inventory (initial) | $1K – $3K |
| Total fee load | 9.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $386K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $224K
- Item 19 type
- gross_sales
- Sample size
- 56 units
- vs category median 14 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $58K→$2.1M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Transparency tier
- limited
- Categorical assessment of disclosure depth
- Reporting year
- 2024
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 237 Education brands
Revenue is 7.4x the investment midpoint. At typical franchise margins, this suggests a payback under 3 years.
vs Education averages
How Lil’ Kickers Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 91
- Opened
- 6
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 1
- Terminated
- 1
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 3
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.1%
- Company-owned
- 6
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 93%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- +7.2%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -9.4%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Opened (3yr)
- 6
- Closed (3yr)
- 49
- Terminated (3yr)
- 1
- Transfers (3yr)
- 1
- Reacquired (3yr)
- 2
- Franchisor bought back
- Transfer rate
- 1.1%
- Owners selling to other franchisees
- Termination rate
- 4.4%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
- Ceased ops
- 4.4%
- Units that stopped operating
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 12 · 24 states reported
The Territory Map
FDD Item 12 reports the state count, but the specific list isn't in our current data. The map will appear once we re-extract from the FDD or enough franchisee contacts are available.
24
states with franchisees (per FDD Item 12)
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 3 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 3
- Loan volume
- $1.3M
- Median loan
- $365K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 100.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 0.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 2
- Defaults
- 1
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Lil’ Kickers's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 1 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 1 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 1-year lending trend
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Contracting unit base, missing profitability data, and high fee structure relative to disclosed revenue creates meaningful investment risk despite protected territory.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Largest disclosed settlement: $25,000
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Clark Nuber PS
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 24 / 100 rating
- 01MINORUnit count declining 7.2% YoY indicates shrinking franchise system and potential brand weakness
- 02MEDNet income not disclosed in Item 19 prevents accurate ROI analysis and profitability assessment
- 03MINOR9% royalty rate is relatively high for youth sports instruction category with modest $385K avg revenue
- 04MINORFranchise fee ($25K) + startup costs ($40-64K) require $65-89K total capital with unclear profitability timeline
- 05MINOR5-year term is shorter than industry standard (10 years), creating renewal uncertainty and reinvestment risk
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
| Initial term | 5 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 5 years |
| Territory type | Radius |
| Protected territory | Yes |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | Yes |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Restricted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Optional |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 3 years |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Termination groundsℹ | 2 |
| Curable defaultsℹ | 2 |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | King County, Washington |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Washington |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation is required to be disclosed in this Item.
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 24 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 18 hrs
- Training location
- On-site and corporate
- Ongoing training
- Required
- Time to open
- 4 mo
- From signing to launch
- Site selection
- joint
- POS system
- DaySmart Recreation
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: DaySmart Recreation
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
2 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
Lil’ Kickers · FDD (2025) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a Lil’ Kickers franchise?
The total investment to open a Lil’ Kickers franchise ranges from $40K – $64K, with an initial franchise fee of $25K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do Lil’ Kickers franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the Lil’ Kickers FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $386K. The median is $224K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is Lil’ Kickers's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for Lil’ Kickers (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many Lil’ Kickers franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, Lil’ Kickers has 91 total units in the United States, including 85 franchised units and 6 company-owned units. 6 new units were opened in the latest reporting year.
Is Lil’ Kickers a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates Lil’ Kickers as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 24 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.