Photo © Roman Starchenko | Dreamstime.com
National Girls and Women in Sports Day isn’t until February but NCAA is ahead of the game, if you go by the news coming out of its annual convention, held recently in Washington, DC. Not yet convinced? Consider these announcements:
New Championships Coming
STUNT, a cheer-based team sport for women, received a successful vote from all three divisions to become an NCAA championship sport, with its first championship projected for spring 2027.
STUNT's growth has been rapid across the NCAA, crossing the benchmark of 40 schools meeting minimum contest and participant requirements in its first year as an emerging sport in all three divisions.
It joined the Emerging Sports for Women program in 2023 in Divisions I and II, while Division III added it in 2024. The sport is governed at the collegiate level by USA Cheer and continues to grow through robust high school and club pipelines.
SDM has carried news about STUNT; for an article discussing the skills it entails, how it is scored and other information, click here.
Acrobatics & Tumbling likewise received a successful vote from all three divisions, elevating it to a championship sport. The NCAA's first acrobatics and tumbling championship is projected to take place in spring 2027.
The sport is currently governed by the National Collegiate Acrobatics & Tumbling Association and draws participants from gymnastics, cheerleading, diving, dance and other strength-based sports.
For a full description of Acrobatics and& Tumbling, how it is scored and the skills it requires, click here.
Women’s Bowling became a championship sport in Division II. The Division II schools that sponsor bowling held a strong preference for competing in and winning a Division II championship, as opposed to a National Collegiate championship. As of the 2023-24 academic year, 38 Division II schools sponsored bowling, which triggered the review that resulted in the vote for a separate championship.
Women’s Wrestling will be able to contest a DIII championship, effective Spring 2028.
According to NCAA, Division III accounts for more than half of all NCAA schools sponsoring women's wrestling, with 55 Division III schools sponsoring the sport. A separate championship will provide an avenue for Division III student-athletes to compete against those in similar programs, consistent with the division's philosophy.
Until the inaugural Division III championship is held, however, DIII schools will compete against Division I and II schools. The inaugural NCAA women's wrestling championship will be held this spring.
New on the Emerging Sport List
And if you guessed it’ll fast-track through the process, you’re not alone; a lot of people think the same way. Here are the stats:
- As of summer 2025, NCAA sports sponsorship data showed that at least 40 NCAA schools planned to sponsor Flag Football at the varsity level in the 2025-26 academic year.
- Additional tracking from sport leaders anticipates as many as 60 schools could participate this spring. The NCAA expects sponsorship to continue to increase.
To become a championship sport, Flag Football must reach a minimum of 40 schools sponsoring the sport at the varsity level — and meet minimum contest and participation requirements (as reflected in the NCAA Sports Sponsorship and Participation Rates Database) — to be considered for championship status.
Flag football's immediate addition to the program means schools sponsoring the sport this spring can count toward the 40-school threshold required to establish a National Collegiate Championship.
TLDR: Flag Football is gaining yardage.
The Emerging Sports for Women program is intended to help schools provide more athletic opportunities for women and more sport-sponsorship options for schools, while helping that sport achieve NCAA championship status.
Since the program was created in 1994, eight sports (in addition to the championships mentioned above) have successfully become NCAA championship sports, including rowing (1996), ice hockey (2000), water polo (2000), bowling (2003), beach volleyball (2015) and women's wrestling (2025).
Sports still remaining on the NCAA’s Emerging Sports list are:
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