The 2025 National Cheerleaders Association All-Star National Championship has started at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas. The event runs through Sunday and is marking its 30th consecutive year in Dallas.
"Over 30 years, that event has grown from 100 teams to 1,700 teams," says Justin Carrier, vice president of competition experience at Varsity Spirit. "Now, instead of just the arena for eight hours, we are in seven venues here at the convention center across three days, a very, very different feel to a very long standing tradition."
Carrier says the event has grown each year. This year, the National Cheerleaders Association says 30,410 athletes are competing on 1,712 teams, representing 43 states and nine countries. The organization says 58,000 people are expected to attend.
The Dallas Sports Commission says the competition is the largest it hosts every year and expects this year's event to be the largest yet.
"That means hotel rooms, restaurants, jobs," says the commission's Ginger Lively Cade. "This is something our community in the hospitality area looks forward to every year because it is truly our largest event."
Cade says the competition's growth shows how Dallas has become a destination for major sporting events.
"Having the two airports here in Dallas, ease of transportation, centrally located from both coasts make it a really nice destination for all the clubs to travel to," says the Dallas Sports Commission's Ginger Lively Cade.
Competitors were practicing in exhibit halls Thursday.
"Cheerleading's an amazing sport because even if you're competing with somebody, you still have that bond knowing how much each other works for it," says All4Frisco cheerleader Kaitlyn Kramer.
Kramer says her group travels frequently for competitions, but having an event close to home gives family and friends a chance to see their work.
"We're in the gym every single day, we're coming in practicing, doing stunt reps, tumbling. I don't think people know even half of what we put into this," she says.
The Dallas Sports Commission says last year's event had a $64 million economic impact. Lively Cade says she expects a larger number this year with more teams participating. The NCA All-Star National Championship runs through Sunday.
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