Where is Cheer Going?
I think Cheerleading can arguably be one of the fastest growing sports in the world right now. The introduction of competitive cheerleading sparked a huge interest in hundreds of thousands of people and it is only growing every year.
The first Cheerleading Worlds was held in 2004, and back then, the number of divisions was very limited. Today, in 2021, the sport has grown to include tons of divisions that range by age, skill, team size, and gym location. There has even been news recently of having to change and expand venues that the Cheerleading Worlds and other competitions can be held at due to the amount of competitors and spectators that come to the event. Though it is great to see Cheerleading expanding, it makes you wonder where Cheerleading is heading. What’s going to happen when individuals in charge of the sport cannot handle the sheer size of competitors and spectators?
So far in the sport, there is somewhat of a monopoly on cheerleading apparel, venues, and competitions. Varsity is a huge business in the sport, and they have gotten in trouble many times for creating a sort of “monopoly” on it. With the growing of the sport, I can foresee other companies penetrating this market, and creating competition for Varsity. As of now, Varsity has a lot of control on prices, content, and branding related to the sport. Obviously, as the sport grows, companies will realize the monetary potential of the sport and engage in it. With this, the monopoly that Varsity has will be broken down and there will most likely be lots of lawsuits and legal battles to break it down. I think in this regard, the future of the sport will be better with more competition and less of a Varsity monopoly.
I can also see Competitive Cheerleading turning into a huge mainstream sport like football and other sports. With this, there will be much more rules and regulations on the sport. In this regard, I can see the sport being more negatively impacted. This might be personal preferences though. Currently, competitions are not monitored very strictly. You are able to talk with other competitors and spectators very freely, and you are able to walk anywhere throughout the venue with ease. I enjoy the sport in this way. Competitions feel like a very big social gathering with all of your friends and family across the country. If cheer was to become mainstream, competitions would become much more strict like other mainstream sports are. There will most likely be more restrictions on where you can go at the venues, you will not be able to talk to your kids that compete, and you will not be able to see and hangout with your other competitors. The schedules will be more tight, and overall everything will be more static.
So in all, there are some potential good and bad outcomes for the future of Cheerleading. Though it is growing, there will most likely be more restrictions on the sport. Venues will be stricter. Requirements will be tighter. Cheerleading will become very mainstream and there are positives and negatives associated with that. It will be exciting to see more companies partaking in the business of cheerleading. I think, in the future, we will see more creativity and innovation with the introduction of more companies. Funding will increase dramatically so hopefully the cost of cheerleading will decrease making it easier for people to join the sport. I think it can be said that whatever happens, I am excited to see the sport grow and become what it is meant to be.
