SACRAMENTO – Education-based athletics participation in California has reached a historic all-time high, surpassing the previous record set in 2020, according to the latest California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Sports Participation Survey.
Participation increased by 1.8% since the 2024 survey, with 821,586 student-athletes competing in education-based athletic programs during the 2024-25 school year.
Overall, girls’ participation increased by 3.1% from the previous year, while boys’ participation increased by 0.8%. Most impressive was girls’ flag football with an 84% increase (19,921 participants) in its second season as a CIF-sanctioned sport, ranking seventh overall in girls’ sports participation.
“With more than 821,000 student-athletes participating in education-based athletics in California, it’s clear that the value of high school sports is stronger than ever,” states CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti. “The surge in girls’ flag football participation is particularly inspiring and reflects our commitment to expanding opportunities for all students to belong, connect, and compete through education-based programs.”
For girls, soccer remains the top sport with 47,918 participants, a 0.6% increase. Volleyball came in second (46,716), followed by track & field with 45,652 participants, a 2.0% increase. Softball (29,672) and basketball (28,544) rounded out the top five girls’ sports.
Football (11-player) continues to lead the top 10 boys’ sports and increased by 1.9% with 91,411 participants. Track & Field (58,457), a 2.4% increase, is the second most popular sport, followed by soccer (56,884), basketball (46,402), and baseball (42,972).
More than 1,600 CIF member schools participated in the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) nationwide survey, which tracks student participation in sports across the country.
A chart indicating results from the last seven participation surveys follows, including a summary of the top 10 sports by gender, based on participation numbers. Only CIF-approved sports are listed individually.
2024-25 CIF Participation on Census
SPORT BOYS 2018 BOYS 2019 BOYS 2020 BOYS 2022 BOYS 2023 BOYS 2024 BOYS 2025 Badminton 3,964 3,830 4,100 3,925 3,931 4,268 4,702 Baseball 44,477 44,347 45,132 44,179 43,367 43,051 42,972 Basketball 47,584 48,111 47,675 47,091 45,836 46,883 46,402 Cheer-Trad.Com. 639 766 606 313 1,120 906 1,003 Cheer-Com. Sport 272 264 281 169 510 516 448 Cross Country 32,951 31,880 31,902 24,764 25,249 27,045 27,460 Field Hockey 0 150 38 1 8 0 0 Flag Football — — — — 1,099 760 689 Football 11-player 94,286 91,305 89,756 84,626 89,178 89,667 91,411 Football 8-player 2,088 2,068 2,264 2,232 2,611 2,539 2,558 Golf 10,672 11,023 10,579 10,945 10,860 11,755 12,300 Gymnastics 1 5 7 2 18 44 31 Lacrosse 9,684 10,189 10,669 9,844 9,949 10,259 10,060 Skiing/Snowboarding 503 576 511 605 636 596 604 Soccer 53,262 54,996 55,036 53,677 53,368 56,124 56,884 Softball 99 1,712 1,396 216 175 88 54 Swimming & Diving 22,872 21,822 22,214 18,902 17,840 18,461 18,051 Tennis 18,737 19,230 18,956 17,558 17,031 17,630 17,639 Track and Field 56,606 55,335 57,302 48,452 52,164 57,088 58,457 Volleyball 20,790 22,224 23,556 24,980 26,533 27,982 27,731 Volleyball – Beach — — — 708 792 987 967 Water Polo 17,143 17,304 16,584 15,404 14,637 14,834 14,641 Wrestling 22,441 22,602 22,623 19,900 21,982 26,327 26,457 Other** 12,919 10,989 9,780 6,290 6,133 8,242 6,527 Total 459,171 459,739 461,187 428,493 438,894 457,810 461,521
**Note: As part of the NFHS survey, the CIF measures participation in all sports and activities. The above list does not comprise all sports/activities sponsored by schools and required in the NFHS survey.
Top 10 Boys Sports
Sport, Number of Participants, Increase or Decrease Since 2024
1. Football 91,411 +1.9%
2. Track & Field 58,457 +2.4%
3. Soccer 56,884 +1.4%
4. Basketball 46,402 -1.0%
5. Baseball 42,972 -0.2%
6. Volleyball 27,731 -0.9%
7. Cross Country 27,460 +1.5%
8. Wrestling 26,457 +0.5%
9. Swimming & Diving 18,051 -2.2%
10. Tennis 17,639 +0.1%
2024-25 CIF Participation for Girls Sports
| SPORT | GIRLS 2018 | GIRLS 2019 | GIRLS 2020 | GIRLS 2022 | GIRLS 2023 | GIRLS 2024 | GIRLS 2025 |
| Badminton | 5,302 | 5,026 | 5,311 | 4,701 | 4,696 | 5,518 | 5,474 |
| Baseball | 367 | 418 | 257 | 363 | 220 | 198 | 243 |
| Basketball | 34,631 | 35,902 | 34,368 | 30,142 | 29,007 | 28,950 | 28,544 |
| Cheer-Trad.Com. | 9,212 | 10,342 | 9,920 | 11,233 | 13,119 | 13,904 | 14,096 |
| Cheer-Com. Sport | 3,847 | 5,362 | 5,777 | 6,922 | 7,823 | 8,278 | 8,499 |
| Cross Country | 25,377 | 24,208 | 24,010 | 19,117 | 18,577 | 19,080 | 19,135 |
| Field Hockey | 3,692 | 4,058 | 4,097 | 3,937 | 3,579 | 3,567 | 3,677 |
| Flag Football | — | — | — | — | 689 | 10,832 | 19,921 |
| Football 11-player | 469 | 593 | 534 | 568 | 435 | 359 | 200 |
| Football 8 -player | 27 | 17 | 30 | 25 | 54 | 33 | 10 |
| Golf | 8,506 | 8,862 | 8,749 | 8,376 | 8,421 | 8,913 | 9,157 |
| Gymnastics | 760 | 772 | 744 | 530 | 579 | 540 | 490 |
| Lacrosse | 8,880 | 9,840 | 10,737 | 9,961 | 9,664 | 10,162 | 9,956 |
| Skiing/Snowboarding | 304 | 354 | 301 | 446 | 479 | 457 | 451 |
| Soccer | 47,186 | 49,342 | 48,647 | 47,044 | 45,544 | 47,631 | 47,918 |
| Softball | 33,400 | 32,233 | 32,502 | 30,338 | 29,483 | 29,930 | 29,672 |
| Swimming & Diving | 31,161 | 29,576 | 29,736 | 23,153 | 21,941 | 21,525 | 20,934 |
| Tennis | 23,428 | 23,546 | 23,910 | 21,742 | 21,124 | 21,864 | 22,865 |
| Track and Field | 46,327 | 45,235 | 45,318 | 38,399 | 40,434 | 44,774 | 45,652 |
| Volleyball | 45,139 | 45,997 | 46,495 | 45,534 | 45,429 | 46,851 | 46,716 |
| Volleyball – Beach | — | — | — | 2,923 | 4,457 | 5,323 | 5,662 |
| Water Polo | 16,085 | 16,568 | 16,237 | 14,081 | 12,821 | 12,559 | 11,968 |
| Wrestling | 5,286 | 6,014 | 6,446 | 5,578 | 6,398 | 7,921 | 8,825 |
| Other** | 35,383 | 36,152 | 34,655 | 21,239 | 30,882 | 33,847 | 38,193 |
| Total | 349,386 | 354,265 | 354,126 | 325,113 | 324,973 | 349,169 | 360,065 |
**Note: As part of the NFHS survey, the CIF measures participation in all sports and activities. The above list does not comprise all sports/activities sponsored by schools and required in the NFHS survey.
Top 10 Girls Sports
1. Soccer 47,918 +0.6%
2. Volleyball 46,716 -0.3%
3. Track & Field 45,652 +2.0%
4. Softball 29,672 -0.9%
5. Basketball 28,544 -1.4%
6. Tennis 22,865 +4.6%
7. Swimming & Diving 20,934 -2.7%
8. Flag Football 19,921 +84.0%
9. Cross Country 19,135 +0.3%
10. Traditional Competitive Cheer 14,096 +1.4%
