The Shocking Truth: Is Cheerleading A Sport? 5 Key Facts That Settle The Debate In 2025

The question of whether cheerleading is a sport has been one of the most hotly debated topics in the athletic world for decades, but the answer in early 2025 is more complex and nuanced than a simple yes or no. The reality is that the term "cheerleading" now encompasses two dramatically different activities—one that is primarily a crowd-leading activity and another that is a highly specialized, demanding athletic competition—with the latter making a powerful case for full sports recognition based on physical demands, objective scoring, and the rise of new, officially recognized athletic formats. The key to understanding the current classification lies in distinguishing between traditional sideline cheer and the rigorous, skill-based world of competitive cheerleading, which is now evolving into distinct, NCAA-recognized athletic programs. The governing bodies, including the NCAA and USA Cheer, have established clear lines, and the latest data on injury rates and the rise of new sports like STUNT and Acrobatics and Tumbling (A&T) are finally providing the definitive answers the athletic community has been waiting for.

The Definitive Split: Sideline vs. Competitive Cheerleading

The fundamental reason for the ongoing debate is the conflation of two very different activities under a single name: cheerleading. To settle the question, one must first recognize the dramatic differences between the two primary forms.

Sideline Cheer: The Traditional Role

Sideline cheerleading, also known as traditional cheer, is the activity most people associate with the term. Its primary function is to support other sports teams, engage the crowd, and promote school spirit. This form is typically performed on the sidelines of football and basketball games, and while it requires athleticism for basic tumbling and stunting, its focus is on performance and crowd-leading rather than direct competition against an opponent.

• Primary Goal: Crowd engagement and school spirit.
• Competition: Minimal or none; focus is on game-day performance.
• Governing: Often governed by school activity rules rather than strict athletic guidelines.

Competitive Cheerleading: A High-Stakes Athletic Event

Competitive cheerleading, particularly All-Star cheer and school-based competitive teams, operates under a completely different framework. These athletes train year-round to perform a single, two-and-a-half-minute routine judged on a complex scoring system that evaluates difficulty and execution in five core areas: tumbling, stunting, pyramids, jumps, and choreography. The physical demands are intense, requiring the strength of a weightlifter, the flexibility of a gymnast, and the endurance of a track athlete.

• Primary Goal: Outscore an opponent based on technical skill and execution.
• Training: Highly structured, year-round practice schedule.
• Governing: Governed by strict national and international rules (e.g., USA Cheer, IASF) with clear safety and competition guidelines.

Fact 1: The NCAA Has Not Recognized Competitive Cheer as a Sport

Despite the undeniable athleticism of competitive cheer, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)—the gold standard for college sports recognition—has historically not classified it as an official sport.

This lack of sanctioning is the single biggest hurdle in the "is cheer a sport" debate at the collegiate level. The NCAA requires a sport to meet specific criteria, including:

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• Standardized Rules: A clear, consistent set of rules across all competing institutions.
• Defined Season: A distinct competitive season with a set number of contests.
• Coaching and Administration: Dedicated coaching staff and administrative oversight consistent with other sports.

While competitive cheer meets many of these benchmarks, the NCAA has not yet granted it official status. This means that college cheerleaders generally do not receive the same benefits as official student-athletes, such as access to specific athletic scholarships, Title IX protection, and NCAA championship opportunities. The debate, however, is being bypassed by two emerging sports that are directly derived from the core skills of cheerleading.

Fact 2: The Rise of STUNT and A&T as NCAA Emerging Sports

The most significant and current development in the cheer-as-a-sport debate is the rapid advancement of two entirely new sports: STUNT and Acrobatics and Tumbling (A&T). These disciplines have been explicitly created to meet the strict requirements of an NCAA sport, effectively separating the competitive elements from the crowd-leading aspects of traditional cheerleading.

STUNT: The Sport of Cheer's Core Skills

STUNT is a head-to-head competition that removes the performance and crowd-leading elements of cheerleading, focusing solely on the technical and athletic execution of partner stunts, pyramids, basket tosses, group jumps, and tumbling. It is a four-quarter game where two teams perform the same predetermined routines simultaneously, scoring points based on execution and difficulty, much like a volleyball or basketball game.

• NCAA Status Update (2025): STUNT has achieved approval as an NCAA Emerging Sport for Women in all three divisions (Division I, II, and III), with Division III adding it in 2024. This is a crucial step toward becoming a fully sanctioned NCAA championship sport.

Acrobatics and Tumbling (A&T)

A&T is another distinct sport that originated from the skills of cheerleading and gymnastics. It features six events: Compulsory, Acro, Pyramid, Toss, Tumbling, and Team Event. It is governed by the National Collegiate Acrobatics and Tumbling Association (NCATA) and is also on the fast track for full NCAA recognition.

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• NCAA Status Update (2025): A&T is also an NCAA Emerging Sport for Women and is trending alongside STUNT toward achieving official championship status.

The emergence of STUNT and A&T is the athletic community's answer to the "is cheer a sport" question: the competitive, athletic components have been formalized into new, recognized sports, while traditional cheer remains a spirit activity.

Fact 3: Cheerleading Injury Rates Are Lower Than Most Sports

A common argument against classifying cheerleading as a sport has been the perceived high risk of injury, particularly catastrophic injuries. However, the most recent data indicates that this perception is outdated and misleading, especially in the context of increasing safety standards.

According to data from the 2023–2024 school year, cheerleading ranked 17th out of 20 high school sports in overall injury rates. The injury rate for cheerleading was 1.05 injuries per 1,000 athletic exposures (AE), which is nearly half the average rate of 2.03 per 1,000 AE across all sports surveyed.

This dramatic reduction is a testament to the effectiveness of modern safety protocols, including mandatory coaching certifications, spotters, and rule changes implemented by governing bodies like USA Cheer. While catastrophic injuries (such as head, neck, and spinal cord injuries) remain a concern, the overall risk is significantly lower than many widely accepted sports, including girls’ soccer and basketball.

Fact 4: The Complex Relationship with Title IX

Title IX is the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or education program that receives federal funding. It requires equal athletic opportunities for male and female students, and the classification of cheerleading under Title IX has been a major legal battleground.

In 2010, a landmark federal court ruling determined that competitive cheerleading did not count as a sport for the purpose of Title IX compliance, primarily because it lacked the necessary program structure, defined season, and clear competitive rules at the time. Since then, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has stated that it evaluates the status of competitive cheer on a case-by-case basis.

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The key takeaway is that traditional and competitive cheerleading, as defined by USA Cheer, still generally do not count toward a school’s Title IX compliance. This is why the creation and promotion of STUNT and A&T have been so critical: they are designed to be Title IX compliant sports that provide new athletic opportunities for women.

Fact 5: The Global and Olympic Recognition

On an international level, the status of cheerleading is far more settled. The International Cheer Union (ICU), the recognized world governing body for cheerleading, has been granted full recognition by the International Olympic Committee (IOC).

This recognition is a massive endorsement of cheerleading as a legitimate sport. While full Olympic inclusion is a long and complex process, the IOC's decision acknowledges that competitive cheerleading—with its objective judging, athleticism, and global participation—meets the highest standards of international sport. This global perspective provides a strong counter-argument to the NCAA's current stance, suggesting that full domestic recognition is a matter of administrative process rather than athletic legitimacy.

Conclusion: The Future of Cheer as a Sport

The debate over “is cheer a sport” is, for all practical purposes, over. The answer is not a single classification, but a clear distinction:

• Sideline Cheer is a valued, demanding Spirit Activity.
• Competitive Cheerleading is a highly athletic, skill-based Competition.
• The core athletic components of cheerleading have successfully transitioned into the new, fully recognized NCAA Emerging Sports of STUNT and Acrobatics and Tumbling.

As STUNT and A&T continue their progression toward NCAA championship status, they will solidify the place of cheer-based athleticism in the collegiate sports landscape. The athletes who perform these incredible feats of strength, precision, and agility have always been sportspeople; now, the administrative structures are finally catching up to recognize their efforts officially.