LAKE CHARLES, La. — Louisiana high school cheer and dance teams will return to an LHSAA championship event in 2026, ending a 13-year absence from the association’s championship calendar.
The Louisiana High School Cheer & Dance Championships will be held Nov. 30-Dec. 1 at the Lake Charles Event Center in Lake Charles. More than 100 cheer and dance teams from across the state are expected to compete.
The announcement restores a statewide event last held by the Louisiana High School Athletic Association in 2013.
“This has been a long time coming, and I am excited that we are finally able to bring Cheer & Dance back to the championship calendar,” LHSAA Executive Director Eddie Bonine said.
A New Championship for Today’s Athletes
Lake Charles hosted the previous LHSAA cheer and dance championships in 2011, 2012 and 2013. Following the 2013 event, the competition disappeared from the association’s championship schedule.
That history makes the 2026 championship more than the return of a former event. For nearly every athlete expected to compete, this will be their first opportunity to represent their school at an LHSAA cheer and dance championship.
The competition is expected to include game day, all-girl and coed cheer divisions, according to Louisiana High School Coaches Association Director Jessica Barber. Dance teams will compete in hip-hop, jazz and game day, with divisions also separated by school size.
The expanded structure gives Louisiana programs multiple paths to compete and reflects several of the formats already established within high school cheer and dance.
LHSAA Championship Recognition Without Full Sanctioning
The championship’s return does not mean cheer and dance have become fully sanctioned LHSAA sports.
Both will remain classified as non-sanctioned activities and will not operate under all of the eligibility requirements, scheduling regulations and competition rules applied to LHSAA-sanctioned sports. The event also will not carry the same official classification as an LHSAA-sanctioned state championship.
The distinction is significant as cheerleading continues to receive different levels of recognition from state athletic associations across the country.
For Louisiana programs, however, the return provides an association-backed statewide championship and renewed recognition after more than a decade without an LHSAA event.
Barber told Louisiana Radio Network that coaches have responded positively to the announcement. She said bringing the championship back under the LHSAA umbrella represents meaningful recognition for the state’s cheer and dance programs—and for the athletes who represent their schools throughout the year.
The event’s return followed years of interest from LHSAA member schools and members of Louisiana’s cheer and dance communities. The association worked with a steering committee led by Barber to develop the championship and create a path for its return.
Lake Charles Will Host Through 2027
The championship will return to the same city that hosted its final three editions before the hiatus.
Visit Lake Charles and the City of Lake Charles will host the event in both 2026 and 2027. Cheer competition will take place inside Sudduth Coliseum, while dance teams will compete in the Rosa Hart Theatre at the Lake Charles Event Center.
Louisiana cheer and dance have not yet received full LHSAA sanctioning, but the return of a statewide championship represents a meaningful step for programs that have waited 13 years to see the event restored.
On Nov. 30, Louisiana’s high school cheer and dance athletes will finally have an LHSAA championship stage again.
