SACRAMENTO, CALIF. – The increase in high school sports participation in California is an encouraging trend, up by 5.6% since the 2022-23 survey, 806,979 student-athletes competed in education-based athletic programs during the 2023-24 school year. Overall, girls’ participation increased by 7.4% from the previous year, while boys’ participation increased by 4.3%.

“The CIF is motivated by the continued growth in education-based athletics as we provide more experiences and opportunities through our member schools,” states CIF Executive Director Ron Nocetti. “We are optimistic that students will continue to become further involved in the coming years.”

For girls, soccer remains the top sport with 47,631 participants, a 4.6% increase. Volleyball came in second (46,851), followed by track & field with 44,774 participants, a 10.7% increase. Softball (29,930) and basketball (28,950) rounded out the top five girls’ sports. Additionally, girls' flag football (10,832) ranks as the 11^th most popular sport after its first season as a CIF-sanctioned sport.

Football (11-player) continues to lead the top 10 boys’ sports and increased by 0.5% with 89,667 participants. Track & Field (57,088), a 9.4% increase, is the second most popular sport, followed by soccer (56,124), basketball (46,883), and baseball (43,015).

The CIF’s 1,615-member schools participated in the survey as part of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) nationwide survey that measures the number of students competing in sports in the country.

Click Here for the complete release, including a chart indicating results from the previous nine participation surveys. Only CIF-approved sports are listed individually. Also, a summary of the top 10 sports by gender, based on participation numbers, can be located on subsequent pages.

Participation Census Data Files (2012-current)