History of Competitive Cheerleading

The history of competitive cheerleading is rather young. It's only been within the last forty years that cheerleading has seriously branched into the fierce competitions that you see today. After all, the first cheerleaders were called "yell leaders" or were part of a "pep squad", but no one ever expected to see the types of stunts that are performed today.

Learn more about the history of cheerleading.

The earliest cheerleading competitions began in the late 1960s. The International Cheerleading Foundation, which is now known as the World Cheerleading Association, began ranking the top ten college cheerleading squads as well as handing out "Cheerleader All America" awards around 1968.

However, it wasn't until 1978 when CBS televised the Collegiate Cheerleading Championships that America got its first glimpse of cheerleading that went well beyond chanting and cheering on the sidelines.

Competitive cheerleading has gotten plenty of notoriety for daring routines that include tumbling, tossing, "flying" and stunting. Occasionally, a cheerleader gets seriously injured during competition and cheerleading gets some bad press. However, competitive cheerleading has helped launch an era businesses that are designed to meet the needs of the competitive cheerleader.

As the popularity of cheerleading grew, so did the stunts, tumbling and skill level of the cheerleaders participating. While those early competitions may have showcased cheerleaders dancing and doing their best pyramids, today's competitions feature high pyramids, advanced tumbling by most (if not all) members of the squad and complicated routines. To get to the level of competition that is displayed today, cheerleaders practice for years and start as early as five and six years old.

All Star gyms began cropping up in the late '90s to serve the competitive cheerleading circuit. Not only did elite teams need a place to practice and the services of qualified coaches, but soon high school squads were training exclusively to learn cheerleading stunts and tumbling that would rival their All Star squad counter parts.

Competitive cheerleading has had a domino effect. As routines became more complicated and advanced, organizations began to host more All Star competitions and All Star squads. As competition became a regular part of the cheerleading experience, the need grew for camps, properly trained coaches and special training in tumbling and stunts. Add in the expanding competition circuit, and All Star cheerleading launched into a multi-million dollar industry. Today, competitive cheerleading is one of the most popular sports in the United States.

As cheerleading has grown, so have opportunities to compete. Whereas it used to be that a cheerleader had the opportunity to participate in a high school and maybe a college squad, cheerleading is for male and female athletes who have gymnastics ability. There are numerous competitions held throughout the year at numerous venues, and while the ESPN televised world cheer and dance championships remain the competition to try to compete in, squads have ample opportunities to compete against other squads in their region. In addition, cheerleading has become safer by requiring and providing for coach safety certification as well as regulating routines and performances so that cheerleaders can perform stunts safely.

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