The number of student-athletes competing in NCAA championship sports in 2021-22 jumped to over 520,000, an all-time high, according to the latest data in theNCAA Sports Sponsorship and Participation Rates Report. The total number of championship teams sponsored across all divisions rose to 19,769 in 2021-22, nearly three-quarters of a percent more than the previous year.
The participation data represents a one-year increase of nearly 30,000 student-athletes. Division III saw the largest growth, with 17,515 additional student-athletes, followed by Division II (7,212) and Division I (4,488).
The uptick in 2021-22 more than recouped the 2.5% drop in championship sports participation reported from the previous year. This drop was the result of a combination of factors, including programs being cut due to budget impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic and schools closing or leaving the NCAA. Possible factors contributing to the latest increase include athletics department budgets returning to pre-pandemic levels, as well as an additional season-of-competition eligibility being provided to student-athletes.
In the 2021-22 academic year, student-athletes in NCAA men's championship sports made up 57% of the total participation. In 1981-82, when the NCAA began tracking participation rates annually, men's sports participants accounted for 72% of the student-athlete population.
Among sports with the most student-athletes in 2021-22, those with the largest increases from the previous year were in football (up 6,377, 9%), men's soccer (up 2,792, 11%), men's indoor track and field (up 2,136, 8%), women's soccer (up 2,030, 7%), women's indoor track and field (up 1,562, 6%), and women's volleyball (up 1,107, 6%).