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This could very well be my nostalgia getting the better of me, but the ‘90s was like a little renaissance when it comes to kids sports movies. The final decade of the 20th century gave us some of the greatest baseball movies with the likes of The Sandlot, classic hockey films like The Mighty Ducks, and popular releases from pretty much every sport imaginable. Looking back at the best sports movies of all time, and a lot of those were released between 1990 and 1999.
If you’re like me and like to occasionally take a trip down memory lane and revisit your favorite childhood sports movies, especially if you’re a kid of a certain era, then stick around and go on this journey with me as I break down the best ‘90s kids sports movies and how to watch them.
The Sandlot (1993)
Few movies capture the fun, excitement, and pure joy of playing baseball with a group of friends more than The Sandlot. Directed by David Mickey Evans, the movie follows Scotty Smalls (Tom Guiry) during a summer break that would change his life forever and teach him the importance of friendship, courage, and why you don’t take your step-dad’s baseball signed by Babe Ruth. One of the best ‘90s movies, this classic coming-of-age story has one iconic scene after another and a killer cast of young actors.
Stream The Sandlot on Disney+.
Rent/Buy The Sandlot on Amazon.
Buy The Sandlot on Blu-ray on Amazon.
The Mighty Ducks (1992)
One of the reasons so many of my friends were into hockey (despite living in the deep south), The Mighty Ducks was released in 1992 and became an instant hit with audiences of a certain age. Featuring one of the best sports underdog stories, a tremendous cast of future Hollywood stars, and an all-time great performance by Emilio Estevez, this tale about a ragtag group of outcasts finding what it means to be a team on the ice is nothing short of magical.
Stream The Mighty Ducks on Disney+
Rent/Buy The Mighty Ducks on Amazon.
D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994)
There’s a case to be made for D2: The Mighty Ducks being better than its predecessor in just about every possible way. The core cast came back for this 1994 sequel, but the movie also added a number of other players who would become instrumental to the franchise moving forward, and the international tournament at the center of its story raises the stakes to create a hilarious and action-packed experience.
Stream D2: The Mighty Ducks on Disney+.
Rent/Buy D2: The Mighty Ducks on Amazon.
Air Bud (1998)
Though some will say Air Bud is a nostalgic ‘90s movie that actually sucks, there’s still a case to be made for this 1998 live-action Disney film being one of the best kids sports movies of the decade. Let go of that middle-aged cynicism and watch as Air Buddy, one of the cutest big-screen pets we’d love to adopt, wears a basketball jersey and those adorable sneakers while running some dynamic plays in the paint.
Stream Air Bud on Disney+.
Rent/Buy Air Bud on Amazon.
Space Jam (1996)
Released at the peak of Michael Jordan’s popularity and at a time when the Looney Tunes characters were having a major resurgence. Space Jam put the two cultural phenomena together to create an unprecedented cinematic experience. Loaded with pop culture references, some hilarious scenes with the likes of Charles Barkley, and a hilarious premise that sees MJ play on a team with Bugs Bunny, this live-action/animation hybrid is iconic, to say the least.
Rent/Buy Space Jam on Amazon.
Buy Space Jam on Blu-ray on Amazon.
Ladybugs (1992)
A staple of HBO’s mid-afternoon lineup throughout the ‘90s, Ladybugs follows Chester Lee (Rodney Dangerfield) as he convinces his girlfriend’s son (played by Jonathan Brandis) to dress up like a girl to help his struggling soccer team. Though a tad bit edgier than other kids sports movies thanks to some classic Dangerfield lines, this underappreciated 1992 comedy is worth a revisit all these years later.
Rookie Of The Year (1993)
A movie that helped define 1993, Rookie of the Year has one of the wildest concepts in sports movies of the decade. Following a freak accident that gives him the ability to throw a baseball at a high rate of speed, 12-year-old Henry Rowengartner (Thomas Ian Nicholas) becomes a star pitcher for the Chicago Cubs. Henry was strong enough of a pitcher (and a baserunner) that he earned a spot on our ultimate baseball movie team several years ago and I stand by it.
Stream Rookie of the Year on Max.
Rent/Buy Rookie of the Year on Amazon.
Little Giants (1994)
One of the funniest Rick Moranis movies, Little Giants sees the actor play Danny O’Shea, a small yet crafty gas station owner who gets back at his older brother (played by Ed O’Neill) and his peewee football team by putting together a squad of his own. With his daughter, Becky “Icebox” O’Shea (Shawna Waldron) leading the team, Danny tries to pull off the impossible in this hilarious family-friendly comedy.
Stream Little Giants on Tubi.
Rent/Buy Little Giants on Amazon.
The Big Green (1995)
Riding the wave of kids sports movies, 1995’s The Big Green follows Anna Montgomery (Olivia d’Abo), a British teacher who tries to get her new class of students from Texas into the game of soccer. This fish-out-of-water story (for both the teacher and students) is charming and humorous albeit a tad bit predictable, and fun to watch for the first time since the days of the Disney VHS tapes or for the first time entirely.
Stream The Big Green on Disney+.
Rent/Buy The Big Gree on Amazon.
Angels In The Outfield (1994)
Angels in the Outfield centers on a young orphan named Roger Bomman (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) who uncovers an otherworldly phenomenon while attending a California Angels baseball game with his best friend, J.P (Milton Davis Jr.). With the help of some real angels, the underperforming team, which is made up of future Oscar winners like Matthew McConaughey and Adrien Brody, turns its season around in spectacular fashion.
Buy Angels in the Outfield on DVD on Amazon.
Little Big League (1994)
Little Big League is one of the most preposterous concepts for a baseball movie around, but it’s still a fun nostalgic trip for viewers of a certain age. Following the death of his grandfather, 12-year-old Billy Heywood (Luke Edwards) becomes the owner and then coach of the Minnesota Twins. It’s silly, makes little to no sense, and takes a lot of cues from other kid-centric baseball movies, but this bleacher feature is like a time capsule to mid-’90s MLB with the likes of Ken Griffey Jr., Randy Johnson, and ESPN’s Chris Berman.
Rent/Buy Little Big League on Amazon.
Sure, these movies are silly, predictable, and haven’t aged as well as we would have hoped, but there’s no denying they’re the best the ‘90s had to offer in terms of kids sports films. And who knows, maybe we’ll see a resurgence of the genre at some point on the 2024 movie calendar.