I remember the very first time I went to soccer, which was (and still is) Europe’s number 1 sport. We had a team at our school, but it wasn’t serious and it would play only on occasion. Heck, most schools didn’t even have a team! It is pretty much everywhere the same around Europe, where you play sports on a federated team, which is a team that is associated to the national federation and where everyone plays and parents pay a contribution fee.
That is how I went the first time to soccer practice. The team was the best in the city and we joined it because the head master of my school was also the club’s president.