Embattled Cheerleading Giant Launches First-Ever Pro Cheer League

Private-equity-backed cheerleading giant Varsity Brands wants to turn the page after a litany of legal headaches—including antitrust battles that have resulted in at least $126 million worth of settlements over the past two years—with the “world’s first” pro cheerleading league.

Varsity, backed by PE giant KKR, announced Wednesday that its subsidiary Varsity Spirit will launch the Pro Cheer League next year, with initial teams in Atlanta, Dallas, Miami, and San Diego. The league is being billed as a “long-overdue” opportunity for cheerleaders to “continue their careers beyond high school and college.”

The first season will debut in 2026 with five events in Indianapolis, Houston, Atlanta, Anaheim, and Nashville. Each of the four founding teams will be composed of 30 total athletes ages 18 and older. The rosters will be selected via a “competitive” process this fall. Athletes will receive “elite training and part-time compensation, including wages, travel and lodging, uniforms, bonuses, and prize incentives.”

Varsity Brands spokesperson Brian Bianco tells Front Office Sports that each of the 120 athletes who are selected for the inaugural season will “be an employee of Varsity Spirit,” and that their compensation will include “an hourly pay rate, season completion bonus, uniforms, events, and travel.”

The league intends to have its competitions shown on television, with Bianco saying, ”we are currently in active discussions for a media rights deal.”

Staff and coaches will be required to undergo significant training, and the league says it’s focused on ensuring compliance under standards set by USA Cheer, the U.S. governing body for the sport. Expectations are that the league will expand in future years.

USA Cheer executive director Lauri Harris tells Front Office Sports the announcement is an “exciting development for the entire cheer community,” and says “we are encouraged to see continued investment in cheer and applaud efforts to provide structured, compensated, and competitive outlets for adult athletes.”

The new league comes after a turbulent few years for Varsity, which has been embroiled in multiple lawsuits, including an antitrust class action in Tennessee federal court that settled for $82.5 million last year. That suit, brought by parents of cheerleaders, named as defendants Varsity and its former private-equity backers, Bain Capital and Charlesbank Capital, among others. It alleged the defendants held a monopoly over cheerleading events and overcharged for apparel, in violation of antitrust laws. 

Before that, in 2023, Varsity agreed to pay $43.5 million to settle a suit led by Fusion Elite All Stars, a California-based operator of cheerleading gyms. That suit was originally filed in 2020, and it featured similar allegations to the one that settled for $82.5 million.

Those are significant settlements, but they haven’t completely quashed criticism of Varsity. It is still fighting an antitrust lawsuit in Texas federal court that was filed in 2023 by cheer competition producer Open Cheer. 

KKR purchased Varsity last summer for a reported price of $4.75 billion, including debt.

Bianco says KKR has been a “fully engaged partner as we’ve worked to continuously improve safety, helping us further invest in programs, tools, and resources that empower everyone in our ecosystem.” He points to an open letter Varsity published in March detailing its commitment to ensuring a safe environment and supporting its athletes, and says Varsity remains “committed to operating with high ethical standards by respecting human rights, promoting inclusion, upholding equity, and acting with integrity.”

Founded in the early 1970s, Varsity puts on more than 600 regional and national competitions each year, including some that are televised on ESPN and CBS Sports. It also hosts camps each summer that are attended by more than 350,000 people annually, and “supports athletic programs and schools” with apparel, training, education, and more.

Representatives for KKR did not immediately respond to requests for comment.