Many youth excel at sports and that's because they start early but at the same time many have to also consider their academics so that if one fails, the others can help them sustain. 

"We looked at how ambitious young Norwegian footballers experience the pros and cons of combining school and sports," says Stig Arve Saether, an associate professor of sports science at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology's (NTNU) Department of Sociology and Political Science. The findings were published in the International Journal of Sports Science.

Regardless of the option, you pay a price. The school you choose if you want to do school and sports makes a difference and finding one that is positively inclined toward combining them is key.