Newest Sports Continue to Grow Steadily in Colorado

AURORA – The Colorado High School Activities Association’s annual Participation Survey indicated that more than 70 percent of high school students in Colorado participated in a sport or activity throughout the 2024-25 school year, with CHSAA’s newest sport additions highlighting the increased participation numbers.

Among the sports with the largest growth were the four that CHSAA has most recently added, as flag football featured 1,972 participants in its first year as a sanctioned sport, unified bowling and girls wrestling grew by more than 200 participants each and boys volleyball increased participation by more than 260 student-athletes this past year.

The biggest growth among sports was in boys soccer, with an increase of almost 500 more students participating this year over last, bringing the sport to 9,572 participants, the most in its history. Girls tennis also featured a significant increase, with almost 250 more participants, while ice hockey was up almost 100 students marking the highest participation ever in that sport (1,454 participants).

“These participation numbers highlight the power of educationally based athletics and activities to bring students together across communities, backgrounds, and interests,” said CHSAA Commissioner Michael Krueger. “It is incredibly rewarding to see both long-standing traditions, as well as new opportunities, helping students find connection and purpose. We are reaching more schools, expanding access, and staying focused on serving students throughout Colorado. It is a clear reminder of why this work matters, both now and for the future.”

The largest number of participants in a single sport remains to be in football, which featured 16,048 student-athletes on last year’s rosters. Boys track broke 11,000 participants for the first-time ever, while girls volleyball held steady in the No. 3 spot with 10,870 participants.

Boys tennis, featuring 3,000 participants for just the fourth time, was two participants shy of setting an all-time high for participation, while boys golf broke 2,900 participants for the second time and girls golf cracked 2,000 for the first time.

Among activities, music took the top spot for both growth and participants, with more than 2,100 students adding music to account for the 29,062 participants this past year, while speech & debate also grew by almost 300 students.

“This was an exciting year for music in the state,” Krueger continued. “We awarded our first-ever CHSAA state championships in A cappella, Jazz and Show Choir to complement our already robust music festival season.”

Overall, CHSAA’s Participation Survey indicated that 143,907 students participated in athletics, while 40,236 were involved in activities. With 257,109 students enrolled in high school throughout the state, that accounts for 55.97 percent of students in the state participating in athletics and 15.65 percent in activities, totaling a 71.62 percent participation rate when using a duplicated measure of proportionality.

The CHSAA Participation Survey was started in 1973-74 but wasn’t tracked annually until the 1988-89 school year. Information is now gathered by an annual participation survey that is sent to schools so they can indicate how many students participated in each individual sport and activity throughout a particular school year. Information is compiled by the CHSAA office and shared on the Colorado High School Sports & Activities Participation Data website.