What Is a Division in Cheerleading?

Quick answer: a division is a category teams are grouped into for competition - usually a combination of level, age group and sometimes team size or type - so that teams only compete against others in a genuinely comparable category.

What the Term Means

A single competition typically includes many divisions running throughout the day, each combining a numbered level, an age group, and sometimes other factors like team size (small or large) or team type (all-girl or coed). A team only competes against other teams in the exact same division.

Why Divisions Exist

Without divisions, a Level 5 team of 18-year-olds and a Level 1 team of 8-year-olds would be judged by the same standard, which wouldn't reflect a fair or meaningful comparison. Dividing teams by level, age and other factors keeps competition meaningful.

How Divisions Are Structured

Age groupings are usually defined by an "age grid" - a chart mapping the ages of individual athletes to an overall team age division - alongside the team's numbered level or named division (such as Novice, Prep or Elite).

Scoring-System Differences

The exact structure of divisions - how age is calculated, what size categories exist, and how many total divisions there are - varies significantly between governing bodies and competition providers.

Related Terms

See Cheer Levels Explained for the skill-based part of a division, and What Happens at a Cheer Competition? for how divisions are used across a competition day.