What Is Worlds in Cheerleading?

Quick answer: in All Star cheer, "Worlds" means The Cheerleading Worlds - the end-of-season championship for the most advanced All Star club teams, hosted by the U.S. All Star Federation (USASF) with the International All Star Federation (IASF) every spring at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Orlando, Florida. Teams can only enter by earning a bid.

What the Term Refers To

The Cheerleading Worlds was first held on 24 April 2004, with 14 teams in two divisions. It has since become the season-defining goal for top All Star programs from the US and around the world. The divisions are split into:

• USASF divisions for US teams, contested at Level 6, split by age, team size and all-girl or coed;
• IASF (international) divisions, which include Level 5, Level 6 and Level 7 and Non-Tumbling divisions. Level 5 international divisions are for teams from outside the US.

How Teams Get There

Teams don't enter Worlds directly - entry is by invitation only, earned as a bid at designated qualifying competitions during the season. Bids come in different types: a paid bid covers part of the team's costs of attending, a partial-paid bid covers less, and an at-large bid is an invitation where the team pays its own way. Because of this, reaching Worlds is treated as a season-defining achievement.

Not to Be Confused With the ICU World Championships

The International Cheer Union (ICU) runs its own World Cheerleading Championships, which are also often called "Worlds." The key difference is who competes:

• The Cheerleading Worlds (USASF/IASF): All Star club teams from private gyms, qualifying by bid.
• ICU World Championships: national teams - such as Team USA or Team Canada - selected by each country's national federation, competing for their country, in a format more like other international sports.

If someone at your gym says "Worlds," they almost always mean the club event.

Where Worlds Fits in a Season

Worlds comes at the very end of the All Star season, usually in late April, after a season of qualifying events - see What Is a Qualifier? for how that earlier stage works. Teams at Levels 1 to 5 typically aim for other end-of-season events instead, such as The Summit.

Details Change Each Season

Exact divisions, bid types and eligibility rules are set by the USASF and IASF and are updated every season. Check the current Worlds information published by the USASF before relying on any specific detail.