Most sports complexes are designed around the game, but they could be so much more and provide an experience that extends beyond the field and deeper into the community. Siblings, friends and younger children need ways to stay engaged and a place to play. A thoughtfully designed playground extends that experience, transforming a single-purpose facility into a space that supports movement, connection and community for everyone.

Weekends at a sports complex bring people together — games, practices and time with friends. It’s a destination and a place where communities gather.

When the experience extends beyond the athletes to include families and the broader community, it creates even more value, offering opportunities for play, movement and connection for everyone.

Meeting People Where They Are

Organized sports run on schedules but there are always variables that make a place to play even more important. There are early arrivals and late pickups, rain delays and double-headers, gaps between games and more. These moments are part of every sports complex experience.

A thoughtfully placed playspace can shift the dynamic, offering an active outlet within existing green space. Freestanding spinners, climbers and swings invite movement, turning downtime into something more — and supporting the reason families came in the first place.

Bringing People Together

A sports complex is designed for athletes, but they rarely come alone. They bring parents with toddlers in tow, older siblings who'd rather be anywhere else, friends who tagged along and grandparents who came to watch but arrived an hour early. On a busy day, the number of people at a sports park who aren't on a team can easily match the number who are.

A playground or outdoor recreation space gives all of those people a reason to be glad they came. For younger kids, a Synergy^® Play System offers age-appropriate climbing, sliding and spinning in a space designed for their scale. For older kids and teens, an ELEVATE^® Fitness Course bridges the gap between playground and athletic training — three levels of challenge that feel right at home next to the ball fields. And for families looking to capture the day, a Giant Burke Chair offers a one-of-a-kind photo op with a view of all the action.

The result is a better experience — especially for those who came to watch but would rather get off the sidelines. It's a facility that serves the whole community without taking up any extra roster spots.

Making the Most of Your Community’s Recreation Investments

The fields are already built. The parking lot, the restrooms, the concession infrastructure — it's all there. What's often missing is the element that turns a sports complex from a place people go to a place people stay.

A playground extends dwell time. Families who might leave right after a game stick around when kids have somewhere to play. That benefits concessions, supports programming and increases the overall return on a facility that represents a significant community investment. Shade structures, benches and other site amenities round out the experience — the kind of details that signal to families that this park was designed with them in mind, not just the athletes.

It's already happening. In Minot, North Dakota, the park district recently announced plans for a new inclusive Burke playground at the Scheels Complex — an eight-field softball facility that welcomes more than 100,000 visitors a year. The project, made possible through partnerships with the Minot Area Community Foundation, Minot Junior Golf Association and the Garrison Diversion Recreation Program, will replace the existing playground with a space designed so children of all physical, sensory and cognitive abilities can play side by side. It's a perfect example of a community looking at a thriving sports complex and asking one question: Who else could this serve?

Whether you're adding a focused play area to complement existing fields or planning a destination-level park with a Nucleus Evolution^® play structure at its center, the scale can match the vision. The point is the same: a sports complex that includes a playground is one that works for everyone.

Completion, Not Competition

A playground doesn't replace what a sports complex already does well. It gives the whole facility a home field advantage — a reason for every family member to feel like they belong there, not just the ones on the roster. The playspace doesn't compete with the fields. It amplifies play that moves everyone.

Connect with your local Burke representative to start the conversation about what play can look like at your sports complex.