* Country: Participation rates differ greatly between countries. The US tends to have higher participation rates than many other nations.
* Type of sport: Participation in popular sports like football (soccer or American), basketball, and baseball/softball is far higher than in less popular sports.
* School type: Public vs. private schools, and school size, can influence participation rates.
* Data source: Different organizations collect data using different methodologies, leading to varying results.
While precise figures are elusive, estimates for the United States often place high school sports participation somewhere in the range of 40% to 50% of students. However, this is a broad estimate and should be considered an approximation. You'll find different numbers depending on the source and the year of the data.