Territorial Management of Amateur Sports: From Parochialism to a Pipeline Culture. The Bisiacaria case study, the cross-border comparison, and the paralysis of youth motor capital

This working paper investigates the systemic inefficiencies of youth amateur sports management in Italy through an empirical case study of the Bisiacaria territory (Friuli Venezia Giulia). Despite an urban continuity within a travel isochrone of less than 15 minutes, the area displays severe administrative and identity fragmentation, resulting in redundant micro-clubs competing in a zero-sum game for the same demographic cohort. Contrasting this dynamic with contiguous cross-border realities—specifically the federated minority network of the Karst (ZSŠDI/Kras) and the national sports architectures of Slovenia and Croatia—the study identifies the structural barriers inhibiting the Italian system. A dual psychological resistance is highlighted: the "managerial ego" that splits clubs to multiply executive titles, and the "coaching ego" (the Pygmalion trap) that enforces methodological autarky and rejects interdisciplinary specialists. The direct consequence is widespread motor illiteracy, early drop-out, and the failure of young athletes at the crucial 18–19 threshold. Finally, the paper proposes a vertical consortium framework based on a "pearl necklace" pipeline and presents an economic simulation demonstrating that eliminating structural duplications frees over €36,000 annually per district—resources sufficient to fully fund a shared multidisciplinary team of kinesiologists, mental coaches, and athletic trainers.