Oh my. It is very expensive to have a kid in sports. (I don't have any kids, but have heard stories about how expensive sports gear is for boys and girls, for most sports.)
When I was growing up, most of the sports equipment was supplied by the schools. Even in the summer, my two brothers were in town baseball leagues. The local business owners would donate money for the boys to have baseball caps and t-shirts. (Of course, the backs of the shirts might say, "Compliments of Bill's Hardware" or something along those lines!
) My parents bought sneakers for the boys, and they wore jeans. The fathers volunteered to be coaches, and the mothers would bring beverages and snacks.
I also know some parents in different towns that even have to pay for their kids' school buses, for the school year. That wasn't the case years ago. My heart goes out to parents now--I don't know how (many of them) manage to come up with the money for all these things.