Led by Girls Flag Football and Girls Wrestling, High School Sports Participation Increases for Fifth Consecutive Year

Led by the continual growth of girls flag football and girls wrestling, participation in high school sports increased for the fifth consecutive year in 2025-26 and set another all-time record.

The annual NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey indicated that 8,415,684 participants were involved in high school sports in 2025-26 – up 149,440 from the previous year. The total includes 4,761,095 boys and 3,654,589 girls – both record highs – according to figures obtained from the 51 NFHS member state associations, which includes the District of Columbia.

The continual spike in the number of girls participating in flag football and wrestling since the pandemic has been nothing short of phenomenal. In the first post-pandemic survey in 2021-22, there were 15,716 girls participating in flag football nationally. That number has now ballooned to 102,360 – an increase of 87,000 participants in just four years. 

Amazingly, participation in girls flag football increased 48.7 percent last year – 68,847 to 102,360 – and the sport cracked the Top 10 list for most popular girls sports. The number of schools reporting girls flag football participation increased from 2,736 to 3,990 in the past year, and a total of 37 states will be either sanctioning the sport or conducting independent/pilot programs by next year.

The popularity of wrestling for girls is not far behind flag football. Participation in girls wrestling increased 19.9 percent from the previous year – from 74,064 to 88,771 – and the number of schools sponsoring the sport for girls now rests at 8,853.

Since the return to activities from the pandemic, the number of schools offering the sport has jumped from 4,802 to 8,853, and the number of participants has increased from 31,654 to 88,771. In addition, all states are now reporting some participation in girls wrestling, and 40 state associations are now conducting state championships.

There was also good news on the girls basketball front. Participation in girls basketball was up 6,142 from the previous year to halt a downward trend that has seen numbers decline 100,000 during the past 20 years. A total of 362,382 were reported in girls basketball in 2025-26, up from 356,240 the previous year.

Overall, girls participation in high school sports increased by 114,993 – a 3.2 percent jump. Girls volleyball continued its annual climb with another 9,257 participants and topped 500,000 for the first time. At 502,056 participants, volleyball is No. 2 in popularity for girls, trailing track and field now by only 7,014 participants. In addition, girls golf participation increased 6.3 percent to 90,176.   

“We are pleased to see the number of students involved in high school sports continuing to rise every year,” said Davis Whitfield, NFHS executive director. “Education-based sports within our nation’s schools is a privilege not available in most other countries, and we are thankful these opportunities continue to expand.

“We salute the coaches, athletic directors and school administrators for making these experiences happen, especially with some of the recent growth in several emerging sports. It is great to see new sport opportunities created to involve as many students as possible in high school sports.” 

Five of the top 10 boys sports registered increases in 2025-26, including 11-player football, outdoor track and field, soccer, golf and tennis. Eleven-player football registered a 1.4 percent increase with another 14,128 participants and now stands at 1,043,716 – by far the most popular sport for boys or girls. The sport is continuing to rebound from the pandemic and posted its highest mark since the 2016-17 season.

In addition to 11-player football, a total of 33,191 boys were involved with 6-, 8- and 9-player football, and 4,334 girls were involved in all four versions of the sport, bringing the overall participation in high school football to 1,081,241 – up 11,597 from the previous year.

Golf had the largest percentage increase among boys sports with an 8.3 percent rise to 175,757 participants, while outdoor track and field was up about 4,000 participants, and tennis and soccer each gained about 3,000 participants.

Texas (911,405) and California (859,022) remained atop the list of state participation – by a wide margin. Ohio (347,994) ranked third, followed by Illinois (326,756), Pennsylvania (315,647), New York (312,563), Florida (311,233), Michigan (295,634), New Jersey (273,711) and Minnesota (241,536).

The NFHS High School Athletics Participation Survey was started in 1971 and provides the most comprehensive national view of participation in high school sports. The first survey in 1971 indicated 3.6 million boys and 294,015 girls involved in high school sports. Thanks to the passage of Title IX in 1972, the number of girls in high school sports jumped to two million by the end of the decade and now has exceeded 3.6 million.