This post is all about sports mom bags!
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It’s soccer season and I’m passionate about a good tote for carrying all the things from car to sideline! And, while I like my clothes and bags to be very functional for this changing season, I also like them to be a bit stylish. I have aaa loootttt of tote bags (just bought two during our recent visit to Montreal and another while on vacation in Cape Charles), including a farmer’s market bag, various sized coolers, etc. This is in part because tote bags are cute and fun, while also super functional. Kind of like a cute dad cap, if you will.
It’s also in part because I have learned over the years, that various bags serve various purposes — the right tool for the job.
Whether a soccer mom, a swim mom, or a lacrosse mom, we need sports mom bags that make our responsibilities run smoothly!
In This Post:
The Lightweight Chic Sports Mom Bag
The Sturdier Sports Mom Bag
The Right Cooler Bag
The Giant Sports Mom Bag
The Grab & Go Car Sports Bag
Tote Bag Tips
1. The Lightweight Chic Sports Mom Bag
For me, the ideal lightweight bag is my Sézane tote. I received this free in an order from Sézane, and I use it alllll the time. It’s very light weight, malleable, and fairly large, so I can fit a decent amount in there. Are you like me and you carry several bags, plus chairs, plus a picnic blanket, and a ball for the soccer sibling? Also, a scooter + helmet. 🤪 In this case, a lightweight bag is very helpful.
If you want this exact one, keep an eye out for when Sézane is including a free tote with their orders. The color you receive is a fun surprise. My friend was sent green, and obviously I received this lovely shade of blue.
You may already have a great lightweight tote on hand. If not, here are a few good striped options: large striped pink tote & a lovely tan striped canvas tote.
Also, this canvas “Sports Mom” bag is cute and fully on-the-nose.
2. The Sturdier Sports Mom Bag
Conversely, there are times when a structured, sturdier tote is much more helpful. It does a great job of wrangling and containing, as well as sitting upright, which is a benefit in the grass or when sitting on benches.
Here is my go-to cute sturdy tote:
This was an Anthro find from a few years ago.
This Athleta option has great structure, comes in two colors, zippers, and also has pockets, which is ideal.
This Amazon find has amazing, box-like structure, and is quite large. Waterproof, zippered inside pocket, and two water bottle pockets on either side 👌🏾.
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3. The Right Cooler Bag
A mini/medium cooler bag is very helpful to have on hand for cold snacks, cooling towels, ice pops, and beverages. Truly, I love having various sized coolers available. We have several that we’ve collected over the years (cloth, plastic hardshell, small, medium, large) and they’ve all come in handy for various purposes (travel, baby bottles, soccer games, picnics, etc.).
Love this bag for holding a few cold items and ice packs. It’s very totable and super cheerful. I received this bag as a gift a few years ago, so it’s no longer available. A similar option is linked below if you’re interested.
Here are a few small/medium options:
Similar Striped Business & Pleasure Bag I Similar Budget-friendly Cooler Bag I Striped Cooler Drinks Bag
This Trader Joe’s cooler bag is so great. I use this not only for groceries, but for soccer excursions when I’m packing extra of everything for my son’s teammates and my daughter’s soccer sibling buddies. You can pick a version of this up at any Trader Joe’s stores (at least you could when I was last there!).
Here are a few larger cooler bag options, similar to the TJ’s one:
Business & Pleasure (love the scallop detail on this one) I Striped Cooler Tote
4. The Giant Sports Mom Bag
One of my friends who I met as a fellow soccer mom showed up to practice one day with a GIANT tote bag. You know how sometimes a huge bag is cumbersome and somehow everything gets lost, and then other times it’s exactly what you need? This one totally served its purpose — it had books, and balls, and snacks, and waters, and everything in between. It was genius!
Linking a similar one here (many color options). I wish I had taken a picture of hers at the time.
This sweet Mama Tote would also be a good option — it has SO MANY pockets!
5. The Grab & Go Car Sports Bag
I use this Bon Appetit tote as our “playground bag”, which often lives in our car for spontaneous play as well. After school my son always plays some type of sport on the playground. This bag has been SO HANDY.
I’m the mom (hi, it’s me) with the bag complete with a soccer ball, youth football, football gloves, and a few other goodies. The kids come to me to grab the balls if they get out of school prior to my son. It’s so cute! It sounds silly, but once I pivoted to using the bag, it helped me from thinking through grabbing all these items from the house or car as I’m quickly wrapping up work and shifting into soccer mom mode.
I received this tote with a subscription to the magazine, though they have several cute, colorful options for purchase on their website: pear essential tote & garlic essentials tote. This one has been through a lot of action and every stitch is still in place.
Merch totes are fun because they are also an easy conversation point on the sidelines, especially if you’re looking to connect with other parents.
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Tote Bag Tips:
Here are a few helpful tips for fellow sports moms and parents, from a soccer mom who has been there in every season, for several years:
- Have a grab and go bag prepared (or several) that’s equipped with tissues, band aids, hand sanitizer, baby wipes, snacks (granola bar, fruit snacks, etc.), and a few small toys if you have younger kids to entertain. When I’m running around after school/work getting ready to head out for practice, I typically grab one of these bags and am always grateful to have this pre-packed (or left over from a previous practice complete with dead grass, if I’m being totally honest).
- You could also have a smaller bag (or several) with these essential items that you move from bag-to-bag as needed. This is what I do with our sunscreen bag (see below). These are the ones we have — I also use them for travel.
- Consider having an extra change of clothes for all kids on hand. I usually have one of those for each kid in the car, but sometimes throw extra undies in the bag as well.
- Prepare a separate sunscreen bag (that’s what we call it), which is really a smaller bag for the pool/water play that can travel with us — I just moved this from bag to bag. Otherwise, just make sure you also have sunscreen at the ready.
- If your brain works like mine, it can be really helpful to have a list tucked away (taped to the back of a cabinet or tucked inside a drawer or the bag itself) that makes it easy to remember everything you want to bring. Between the snacks, the band-aids, the sunscreen, the inhalers, the water, my spritzy drink, hand sanitizer, my Invisalign goodies 🤪, etc. etc. — I appreciate not having to do the mental work to remember everything each time.
- Beach bags double beautifully as sports bags
- Cleaning trick: When I was in Montreal a few weeks ago, my sister was buying a tote and the shop owner told her to wash it in cold water and skip the dryer. I took this advice with my Sézane bag (above), after spraying the strawberry stains from the farmer’s market, and it worked perfectly!
I’m hoping at this point that you feel equipped to dig through some of your own totes, or maybe refresh your stash with the right fit for your current sports season.
In a few minutes we’re off to pickup soccer and it’s very hot outside. I have the large Trader Joe’s cooler prepped with my daughter’s bento box (necessary evening soccer snacks), large ice packs, the frog togg cooling towels, ice cold water, and ice pops for the kiddos.
It’s going to be a fun summer soccer night! ☀️ ⚽️
Do you have any sports mom bags that you love? Please share if you’re open to doing so! We love helpful tips to share with fellow sports moms and parents!
As always, thank you so much for being here!
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This post was all finding the best sports mom bags!
