A sports backpack made from flexible sheet material has a main container and a pair of elongated upwardly extending shoe containers mounted at the rear of the main container in laterally spaced apart side-by-side relation to each other. The shoe containers cooperate with a back wall of the main container to define a rearwardly open carrying space for receiving in a carrying position an elongated portion of a sports playing device such as the barrel portion of a baseball bat or the handle and shaft portions of a tennis racket. An upwardly open pocket which is disposed between the footwear containers and defines the lower end of the carrying space receives, supports and retains a lower end of a sports playing device therein. An adjustable retaining strap assembly extends across the rear of the footwear containers in bridging relation to the carrying space for drawing the footwear containers toward each other and into gripping engagement with a portion of a sports playing device disposed in a carrying position within the carrying space and releasably retains the playing device on the backpack. An adjustable holding strap assembly mounted on the pack above the retaining strap assembly serves to releasably hold a portion of a playing device in engagement with one of the footwear containers. Shoulder straps permit the backpack to be worn in a conventional manner. A handle is provided for hand carrying.