LeagueApps Sports Storytellers Contest (“Contest”)

Official Rules

1. Eligibility. Participation in the LeagueApps (“Contest Manager”) Sports Storyteller Contest is open to US residents in Grades 10 – 12 who have participated in any youth sports activity.

Void in Puerto Rico and anywhere by law. Members of the judging panel, employees, officers and directors of LeagueApps and their immediate family members (children, grandchildren, and minors living within household) are not eligible to enter. No purchase is necessary to participate in the Contest. Contest finalists will be required to have a parent or legal guardian sign a publication and photo release form to be eligible to receive any Prizes described below

2. How to Enter. To enter, go to https://leagueapps.com/sportsdog-storytellers/(“Site”) during the Contest Period (as defined below), read the Official Rules, and then submit your short story entry by uploading it per the Site instructions and completion of the required fields. Only online submissions will be accepted.  All entry information and short stories shall be collectively referred to herein as the “Submissions” or each as a “Submission.”  Submissions must comply with the Guidelines and Restrictions defined below.  Contest Manager reserves the right to cancel or modify this Contest in the event an insufficient number of entries are received that meet the minimum judging criteria. 

By entering, each entrant warrants and represents the following with respect to their Submission: (a) entrant is the sole and exclusive owner and copyright holder of the Submission and has the full rights to grant the license herein; (b) the Submission is 100% original and does not contain any third party copyrighted material, brand names or trademarks or any content that otherwise infringes on the privacy, publicity or other intellectual property or other rights of a third party; (c) the Submission is suitable for general audiences (i.e., it may not be obscene or indecent or contain objectionable content, including but not limited to nudity, sexual content, pornography or violent, illegal or profane depictions); (d) the Submission does not contain material that is tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous or that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred, harm to any group or individual or discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age; and (e) the Submission complies with all Guidelines and Restrictions (as defined at Section 4 below).

Each entrant further consents to give a royalty-free, sublicensable, irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive license for the Contest Manager, its media partners, and such other partners as may be determined from time to time to use, reproduce, modify, publish, create derivative works from, and display such Submission in whole or in part, on a worldwide basis, and to incorporate it into other works, in any form, media or technology now known or later developed, including any and all Internet media, including the Contest Managers’ or its partner’s web sites and properties and on social networking sites (i.e. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, X (formerly known as Twitter), etc.).

All entrants must have a valid email address. No automated entry devices and/or programs permitted.  Receipt of entries will not be acknowledged. Contest Manager is not responsible for lost, late, illegible, stolen, incomplete, invalid, unintelligible, technically corrupted or garbled entries, which will be disqualified, or for problems of any kind whether mechanical, human or electronic.  Only fully completed entry forms are eligible.  Proof of submission will not be deemed to be proof of receipt by Contest Manager. 

3. Start/End Dates. Contest begins at 8:00 AM ET on May 13, 2024 and ends at 11:59:59 PM ET on July 22, 2024 (“Contest Period”).
4. Content Prompts, Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions: By entering, each entrant confirms that his or her Submission conforms to the Submission Guidelines and Content Restrictions as defined below (collectively, the “Guidelines and Restrictions”) and agrees that Contest Manager, in its sole discretion, may remove any Submission and disqualify an entrant from the Contest if it believes, in its sole discretion, that the entrant’s Submission fails to conform to the Guidelines and Restrictions. 

Content Prompts:

• Tell us your youth sports story—how did you start playing sports? Why do you continue to play? How has sports impacted your life for the better? What lessons have you learned from your participation in sports? 
• Describe an unforgettable moment in your youth sports career—maybe it was a big win, a point you scored, an award, or unrelated to scoring at all. What lessons did you learn? What made this moment so special? 
• Can you tie any of these moments back to the following values?: Sportsmanship, Passion, Openness, Results, Team, Student of the Game, Difference Maker, Own Your Role, Grit

            Submission Guidelines:

• The Submission may be in written form (as an essay) or spoken word over a video
• The Submission must not exceed 500 words in length.
• The Submission must be in MP4 format if it contains a video
• The Submission must be clearly inspired by some aspect of youth sports.
• The Submission must be in English.
• The Submission must be fully uploaded into the entry form at the time of entry.
• The Submission must be created by the entrant, and cannot be generated using artificial intelligence (in whole or part).

            Restrictions:

• The Submission must be 100% original and entrant must be the sole and exclusive owner and copyright holder of the Submission;
• The Submission must not contain material that violates or infringes any rights of any other party, including but not limited to copyright, trademark, privacy, publicity or any other intellectual property rights;
• The Submission must be suitable for general audiences;
• The Submission must not in any way disparage Contest Manager, or its partners, or any other person or party;
• The Submission must not contain material that is inappropriate, indecent, obscene, hateful, tortious, defamatory, slanderous or libelous;
• The Submission must not contain material that promotes bigotry, racism, hatred or harm against any group or individual or promotes discrimination based on race, gender, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age;
• The Submission must not contain material that is unlawful, in violation of or contrary to the laws or regulations of the United States; and
• The Submission cannot promote illegal drugs, alcohol, tobacco or firearms (or the use of any of the foregoing), or any activities that may appear unsafe or dangerous, or any particular political agenda or message.

Contest Manager’s decisions are final and binding in all matters relating to this Contest, including, but not limited to, interpretation and application of these Official Rules.  By entering the Contest, entrants fully and unconditionally agree to be bound by these rules and the decisions of the judges, which will be final and binding in all matters relating to the Contest.  Contest Manager reserves the right to select fewer than the stated number of prizes if, in its sole discretion, it does not receive a sufficient number of eligible and qualified Submissions. 

5. Judging/Judging Criteria. The judging process will take place in stages as follows:

Judging Criteria: Representatives of the Contest Manager and its partners and designees that have the required knowledge and experience to apply the judging criteria will judge the quality of the Submissions. All Submissions will be judged based on the following criteria (“Judging Criteria”): 

• Strength of content
• Cohesiveness of story 
• Uniqueness and quality of story 
• If applicable: grammar, spelling, and structure
• Creativity 
• Ability to tie the story back to one of LeagueApps’ SPORTSDOG values (sportsmanship, passion, openness, results, teamwork, student of the game, difference maker, own your role, grit) 

Selection of Prize finalists: A panel of judges selected by the Contest Manager that have the required knowledge to apply the Judging Criteria will select five (5) Story Finalists (“Finalists”) from the Submissions on or about August 5, 2024. Subject to verification, eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules, from the Finalists the judging panel will then select one (1) Grand Prize Winner on or about August 19, 2024.  

Contest Manager retains the right, at its sole discretion, and without prior notice to entrants, to change or delay the dates of the judging process.

6. Prizes. Up to six (6) prizes (each, a “Prize”) will be awarded across the Contest.  

1. Up to five (5) short story Submissions will be declared Finalists.  The Finalists’ award is a  USD $500 electronic gift certificate from a big-box store (Amazon, Walmart, Target).
2. One (1) of the Finalist will be selected as the Grand Prize Winner.  The Grand Prize Winner will also receive:
   1. Al USD $1000 scholarship.
   2. An invitation to travel and share their story with the LeagueApps community at NextUp: the Youth Sports Management Conference to be held on October 16-17, 2024, inclusive of two round-trip economy-class airline tickets (for Grand Prize Winner and an adult chaperone) to New York City and two nights’ hotel stay (excluding any other costs for transportation, meals, etc). 
   3. A dedicated social media spotlight on LeagueApps social channels.

Total approximate retail value of Grand prize: USD $2500.

Prize(s) is/are non-transferable.  No substitutions.  In the case of unavailability of any prize, Contest Manager reserves the right to substitute a prize of equal or greater value.  

If Grand Prize Winner is unable to attend in person, LeagueApps will provide virtual accommodations, but no additional compensation will be provided. 

All expenses not specifically listed herein are the responsibility of winner(s).  If any winner is considered a minor in his/her jurisdiction of residence, such prize will be delivered to minor’s parent/legal guardian and awarded in the name of parent/legal guardian who must agree in writing to be bound by these Official Rules.

Parent travel and accommodation

7. Notification. Finalists will be notified by email by August 5, 2024. All Finalists will be required to execute and return an affirmation of eligibility, release of liability, and, except where prohibited, any necessary publicity release(s) (collectively, “Supporting Documents”) by email with return receipt requested within five (5) business days of such notification. Noncompliance within this time period will result in disqualification and, at Contest Manager’s sole discretion, an alternate Finalist may be selected from the remaining eligible Submissions. If any potential Finalist cannot be reached, is found to be ineligible, cannot or does not comply with these Official Rules, or if any or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, potential Winner will be disqualified and time permitting, and at Contest Manager’s sole discretion, an alternate potential Winner may be selected from the remaining eligible Submissions. Upon prize forfeiture, no compensation will be given. Grand Prize Winner will be notified by August 19, 2024. If any Grand Prize Winner cannot be reached, is found to be ineligible, cannot or does not comply with these Official Rules, or if any or prize notification is returned as undeliverable, potential Grand Prize Winner may be selected from the remaining Finalists. Upon prize forfeiture, no compensation wil be given. 
8. Conditions. Contest Manager shall not be liable or responsible in the event that any winning Submission is not used for any reason.  Submissions may be cut, edited, reformatted, rearranged, combined with other materials and/or otherwise modified, in Contest Manager’s sole and absolute discretion.  Any and all federal, state and local taxes are the sole responsibility of the finalists. Participation in Contest and/or acceptance of prize constitutes each winner’s permission for Contest Manager and its partners to use his/her name, address (city and state), likeness, photograph, picture, portrait, voice, biographical information, Submission and/or any statements made by each winner regarding the Contest or Contest Manager for advertising, promotional or editorial purposes without notice or additional compensation, except where prohibited by law. By participating, entrants and finalists agree to release, waive, discharge, absolve, indemnify, agree to hold harmless and covenant not to sue Contest Manager or its, representatives, agents, successors, assigns, employees, officers, directors and shareholders (collectively, “Released Entities”), from any and all liability, for loss, harm, damage, injury, cost or expense whatsoever which the entrant, or their heirs, executors, administrators and assigns had, now have or hereafter may have, by reason of any matter connected in any way with the Contest, including without limitation, property damage, personal injury and/or death which may occur in connection with, preparation for or participation in Contest, or possession, acceptance and/or use or misuse of prize or participation in any Contest-related activity and for any claims based on publicity rights, defamation, invasion of privacy, copyright infringement, trademark infringement or any other intellectual property-related cause of action.  Entrants who do not comply with these Official Rules, or attempt to interfere with this Contest in any way shall be disqualified. Contest Manager is not responsible if Contest cannot take place or if any prize cannot be awarded due to any cause beyond its reasonable control, including travel cancellations, delays or interruptions due to acts of God, acts of war, natural disasters, disease or epidemic, weather or acts of terrorism.  
9. Additional Terms. Any attempted form of entry other than as set forth in Section 1 above is prohibited; no automatic, programmed; robotic or similar means of entry are permitted. Contest Manager, its affiliates, partners and promotion and advertising agencies are not responsible for technical, hardware, software, telephone or other communications malfunctions, errors or failures of any kind, lost or unavailable network connections, web site, Internet, or ISP availability, unauthorized human intervention, traffic congestion, incomplete or inaccurate capture of entry information (regardless of cause) or failed, incomplete, garbled, jumbled or delayed computer transmissions which may limit one’s ability to enter the Contest, including any injury or damage to participant’s or any other person’s computer relating to or resulting from participating in this Contest or downloading any materials in this Contest.  Contest Manager reserves the right, in its sole discretion, to cancel, terminate, modify, extend or suspend this Contest should (in its sole discretion) virus, bugs, non-authorized human intervention, fraud or other causes beyond its control corrupt or affect the administration, security, fairness or proper conduct of the Contest. In such case, Contest Manager will select the finalists from all eligible entries received prior to and/or after (if appropriate) the action taken by Contest Manager. Contest Manager reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to disqualify any individual it finds, in its sole discretion, to be tampering with the entry process or the operation of the Contest or web site.  Contest Manager may prohibit an entrant from participating in the Contest or winning a prize if, in its sole discretion, it determines that said entrant is attempting to undermine the legitimate operation of the Contest by cheating, hacking, deception, or other unfair playing practices (including the use of automated quick entry programs) or intending to annoy, abuse, threaten or harass any other entrants or Contest Manager representatives.

In the event of a dispute as to any Submission, the authorized account holder of the email address used to register or submit content will be deemed to be the entrant and must comply with these Official Rules.  The “authorized account holder” is the natural person assigned an email address by an Internet access provider, online service provider or other organization responsible for assigning email addresses for the domain associated with the submitted address. Each entrant may be required to show proof of being an authorized account holder.

10. Limitation of Liability; Disclaimer of Warranties.  IN NO EVENT WILL THE RELEASED ENTITIES BE RESPONSIBLE OR LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OR LOSSES OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE SITE AND/OR ENTRY IN THE CONTEST, DOWNLOADING FROM AND/OR PRINTING MATERIAL DOWNLOADED FROM ANY WEBSITES ASSOCIATED WITH THE CONTEST. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THIS CONTEST AND ALL PRIZES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR NON-INFRINGEMENT. SOME JURISDICTIONS MAY NOT ALLOW THE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY FOR INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED WARRANTIES SO SOME OF THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. CHECK YOUR LOCAL LAWS FOR ANY RESTRICTIONS OR LIMITATIONS REGARDING THESE LIMITATIONS OR EXCLUSIONS.
11. Use of Data. By participating in the Contest, entrants hereby agree to Contest Manager’s collection and usage of their personal information for the purpose of the Contest.  The Contest Manager will collect and use entrants’ personal data for purposes including the administration of judging, prizes, monitoring of participation trends and marketing of the Contest and publicity of the finalists at the Contest Manager’s websites/social media platforms etc. The Contest Manager’s privacy policy is at https://leagueapps.com/privacy-policy/
12. List of Finalists. To obtain a list of finalists, send an email by August 31, 2024 to: mwickes@leagueapps.com
13. Contest Manager. LeagueApps Inc., 30 Irving Place, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10010.