Two different governing bodies, two different approaches for the upcoming season. USA Cheer and NFHS have published nine updates for high school cheerleading that take effect for the 2026-27 school year — meaningful changes to stunt construction, dismounts, and safety requirements. On the all-star side, USASF surveyed over 2,000 members and confirmed that no rule or age-grid changes will be made for the 2026-27 all-star season.

If your program competes under high school rules, read this carefully before planning next season's routine. If you're all-star, use the stable year to drill execution rather than adapt to new requirements.

For High School Programs: 9 Changes That Matter

1. Tumbling Has a New Formal Definition

Tumbling is now officially defined as: any hip-over-head skill that is not supported by a base(s) and that begins and ends on the performing surface. This distinguishes tumbling from other ground skills — side rolls, seat rolls — that don't meet this definition. For coaches, this affects how you categorize and score skills in your routine, and which skills qualify under tumbling difficulty requirements.

2. Loading Position Gets Clearer Language

A new loading position definition clarifies: the top person is supported under their foot or feet, below the bases' shoulder level. This tightens the language for stunt progression and addresses edge cases in safety positioning. Review your stunt sequences against this definition, particularly for transitions that move through load.

3. Braced Flip Execution Opens Up

Two specific changes to braced flip rules (Rules 2.3.5.d and 2.3.5.k). First, bracers may now move to a load position as the top is descending in a horizontal position at or below prep level. Second, bracers can have a hand-to-foot connection with certain restrictions during braced flips. For programs with advanced stunt groups, this creates more flexibility in how braced flips are constructed — without compromising the safety standards that govern them.

4. Vertical-to-Vertical Releases: Single Twist Cap, With an Exception

Releases from extended position to extended position may not perform more than a single twist. The key exception: high-to-high tick tocks may include half and full twists. This combination wasn't allowed under previous language — so for coaches building tick tock sequences, this is new territory worth exploring. For any other vertical-to-vertical release, keep it to a single twist.

5. Two Catchers Now Required for Horizontal Releases

When a top person releases from a vertical position to a horizontal position, two catchers are now required. This was the intended standard in previous rules, but the language has been strengthened to remove any ambiguity — including single-based stunts performing horizontal dismounts. Audit your dismount sequences. If any transition goes from vertical to horizontal, confirm two-catcher coverage is built in.

6. Dismounts to New Bases: Skills After Release Are Restricted

After a release in a dismount to new bases, the top person may not execute any additional skill — no toe touch, straddle, full twist. The one exception is a quarter twist, which remains allowed. This eliminates multi-skill dismount combinations and simplifies the safety profile of the catch. If your routines included toe-touch baskets or twist-to-cradle sequences as dismounts to new bases, those need to be redesigned.

7. Stunting Surfaces: A Formal Requirement

The rulebook now explicitly states that stunts, pyramids, tosses, and tumbling cannot be performed on concrete, asphalt, wet surfaces, uneven surfaces, or surfaces with obstructions. This was always the expectation — it's now codified. More relevant for practice locations than competition, but worth reviewing if your team has been training in non-standard spaces.

For All-Star Programs: Stability for 2026-27

After the survey process, USASF confirmed no changes to the all-star rulebook or age grid for the 2026-27 season. Scoresheets from The Cheerleading Worlds 2025-2026 will carry forward unchanged. For programs that spent the current season adapting to the Flex divisions and terminology updates introduced in 2025-26, this gives a full season to compete with known rules.

Two all-star items worth tracking even with no rule changes:

  • Flex divisions (Youth Flex and Junior Flex) are still provisional. USASF will evaluate at the end of the current season before confirming their permanent status.
  • "Loss of Contact" replaces "Release" throughout the rulebook. Make sure your athletes and assistant coaches are using the updated terminology when discussing skills.

What This Means for Routine Planning

For high school coaches, the changes to braced flips and tick tocks create new difficulty options — particularly for programs already competing those skills. The two-catcher requirement and dismount restriction are safety-focused and affect how you construct stunt finishes. Neither is prohibitively restrictive if you audit now, before choreography is set.

The most important action: pull the full rule document from USA Cheer and go through your planned routine systematically against the new language. Reading the summary isn't the same as knowing the rule. Have your choreographer in the room when you do it.

All official rule documents are available at usacheer.org and usasf.net/rules. If there's any ambiguity about how a skill is classified under the new definitions, contact your organization directly before building it into a scored routine.