Best Sports Goggles – Top 10 Revealed

Protective eyewear for sports has been around almost as long as the sports themselves! The very first fencing masks were used in Egypt around 1200 B.C. and the following next big innovation was actually blinders made for horses to allow them to focus on what's ahead of them during the 18th century C.E. In the 19th century, when baseball became the love of America, a catcher at Harvard named James Tyng created a modified fencer's mask for a layer of protection during the game. Though he was mocked at the time, the idea took to the wind of popularity quite quickly!

In the 1960s came the next breakthrough when skiers started using anti-fog sports goggles which led to basketball players to adopt the style and wear them during games as they protected from accidental scratches. Some even had prescription lenses put into them for maximum vision. During the 70s visors started making appearances in football and hockey when the NHL made visors mandatory. Football leagues banned everything besides clear visors to better diagnose concussions or other head injuries.

Fast forward to today, and sports goggles are common in every sport that involves contact. Even if you are picky about style and looks in your protective eye gear, the market has vast amounts of options for you nowadays as sports goggles have been around long enough that we are in a customizable era with our protective gear.

Besides just considering the sport you play that will require protective eye gear, there are a number of things you can consider narrowing your choices and decide which pair of sports goggles will best suit your needs, lifestyle, and fit your personal preferences. If your sport requires you to play in unpleasant or unfriendly elements, you should want a pair that's more snug and anti-fog. If you are just worrying about balls and other players, you can look into less snug models that have helpful specs such as UV protection.

You'll obviously want a tough pair of sports goggles that will hold up throughout your game, and as such, you should look into scratch-resistant polycarbonate lenses set in durable plastic frames. If you have to wear a helmet, make sure you get a pair that's small enough to fit inside it! If your sport is a racing one, consider wraparound lenses as they can deflect wind around the eyes and eliminate vision-obscuring eye-watering. Users who wear contacts will also benefit from wraparound lenses as they will reduce dust getting into the eyes.

Make sure, more than anything else, that the fit is proper. It's much more worth it to have a low-quality pair that fit perfectly than a high-quality pair that just doesn't sit right on your face. This rings all the more true for young children! When shopping for sports goggles, make sure you treat it the same way you would treat glasses shopping. Take your time and try your hardest to get it right the first time, so you don't suffer your game by wearing goggles that hinder you rather than help you.

It's not uncommon for children to be resistant to wearing sports goggles, especially if no one else is wearing them on the team. If you're worried about your child expressing disdain over wearing sports goggles or they've already put up a fight, start by letting them choose the frames (as long as they're an appropriate fit). If they have a say in the matter and it's their personal choice, they'll be much more likely to wear them without fussing.

If they idolize athletes, point out some notable ones who've worn sports goggles such as Dwyane Wade, Tony Parker, and Michael Phelps. They'll be motivated to accessorize just like their heroes! Let your children wear the goggles around the house to get used to them and/or invest in other types of glasses such as gaming glasses to get them accustomed to understanding that safety and eye protection is part of playing a game. If none of these methods work, you can make wearing the goggles a condition of being able to play the sport. Hopefully, it won't come to that!

Protective eyewear such as sports goggles can be found in most sporting goods stores such as Dicks, Wilson, and Spalding. Places like Walmart or Target will have the basic, run-of-the-mill models that may be cheaper but won't be the quality you'll want in long-lasting sports goggles. We highly recommend searching for and purchasing your next pair of goggles on online sites such as Amazon.

Amazon offers competitive prices and well-organized varieties of brands with testimonials from manufacturers and honest customer reviews. We have included the Amazon links to each item on our list so you can find out more information on any given item and easily purchase it for yourself.

As with most consumer products, the price of your sports goggles is up to what you are willing to pay, with factors like your personal preference and your sport of choice adding into the total. We chose only goggles that are an excellent value for the money to appeal to the budget-conscious, and we have included the price for each item on our list so you can easily decide if it's within your budget or not. Our overall price range is $9 to $20.