$82.5M Varsity Brands Made Cheer Unaffordable. A Federal Judge Just Made Them Pay

If you spent years writing checks to Varsity Brands for cheer competitions, camps, or uniforms — and you lived in one of 35 eligible states — a federal court says you may be owed money back. Families filed a lawsuit in 2020 claiming Varsity rigged the cheer market to overcharge them. Varsity settled for $82.5 million without admitting wrongdoing. The claims window closed May 5, 2025, and payments are expected by October 2025.

Field	Detail
Settlement Amount	$82,500,000
Claim Deadline	May 5, 2025 (closed)
Who Qualifies	Families in 35 states who indirectly paid Varsity for competitions, camps, or apparel from Dec. 10, 2016 – Mar. 31, 2024
Payout Per Person	Approx. $8,181 average (varies by purchases and pool allocation)
Proof Required	Yes — documentation of All Star Gym or school cheer participation
Settlement Status	Finally approved Dec. 6, 2024; payments authorized Feb. 12, 2026
Administrator	Angeion Group
Official Website	CheerAntitrustSettlement.com

Where things stand now:

• A federal judge approved the final distribution on Feb. 12, after Chief U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman granted the plaintiffs’ unopposed motion to authorize payments to eligible class members.
• Angeion Group reviewed 8,875 total claims, approved 5,831 of them, and rejected 3,044 — mostly for missing documentation, duplicate submissions, or purchases outside the eligible period.
• Payments are expected to go out around October 2025, pending any remaining appeals.

How Varsity Allegedly Turned Youth Cheerleading Into a Monopoly

Cheerleading in America is dominated by one company in a way that few youth sports are. The plaintiffs first filed the Jones lawsuit in 2020, claiming Varsity Brands violated federal antitrust laws and state consumer protection laws by monopolizing cheer competitions, cheer camps, and cheer apparel markets.

The mechanics of that alleged monopoly were specific. Varsity allegedly bought up competitors and locked gyms into exclusive dealing agreements — if a gym wanted access to Varsity’s top championships, it had to send athletes almost exclusively to Varsity events. They also allegedly worked with the U.S. All Star Federation, the governing body for competitive cheer, to lock out rivals at the organizational level.

The lawsuit alleged Varsity maintained more than 75% of each of the cheer competition, camp, and apparel markets, then used that dominance to charge families higher prices than a competitive market would allow. Families had no real alternative — if their child wanted to compete at the highest level, Varsity was essentially the only game in town.

Why Your State Determines Whether You Got Paid

This is the detail that tripped up a lot of families: not every state qualified. Recovery was limited to residents of 33 states and the District of Columbia that allow indirect purchaser claims under state antitrust or consumer protection laws.

Eligible states included Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, D.C., Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

That list excluded Texas, Georgia, and Alabama — states with some of the nation’s largest cheerleader populations — because those states don’t extend antitrust protections to indirect purchasers (meaning people who paid a gym or school, who then paid Varsity, rather than paying Varsity directly).

Illinois was a late addition with its own story. Under the original proposed settlement plan, Illinois purchasers would have received nothing. After intervention by Attorney General Kwame Raoul’s office, the court approved a revised allocation that made Illinois families eligible to recover funds.

$82.5 Million Split Three Ways — Here’s How the Math Worked

The settlement fund was divided into three pools based on the type of purchase: 53% for competition payments, 26% for camp payments, and 21% for apparel payments. Your share of each pool depended on how many years you made qualifying purchases in that category — not just how much you spent.

With interest earned through August 2025 and estimated additional interest through October 2025, the gross available funds came to approximately $83.85 million. After attorneys’ fees — capped at up to $27,500,000 — plus administrative costs and service payments to class representatives, the remainder flows to approved claimants.

Only 5,831 valid claims were approved, which pushed average payouts to approximately $8,181 per claimant — significantly higher than most class action settlements, precisely because so few people filed. Many eligible families either didn’t know about the settlement or missed the deadline.

The Claims Window Is Closed — What Happens Now

The May 5, 2025 deadline has passed. If you submitted a claim before that date, here’s what to expect:

Payouts will be made after all claims are processed and any appeals are resolved. This process may take more than a year. Based on the court’s February 2026 authorization of final distribution, payments are targeted for around October 2025 — though that timeline may shift if legal challenges arise.

If you filed a claim and it was rejected, the administrator should have notified you with a reason. Common rejection grounds included missing gym participation documentation, living in an ineligible state, or purchases falling outside the December 10, 2016 – March 31, 2024 window.

If you missed the deadline entirely, no additional claims are being accepted for this settlement.

From Lawsuit Filed to Checks in the Mail — The Full Timeline

Milestone	Date
Lawsuit filed (Jones et al.)	2020
Preliminary settlement approval	2024
Opt-out / objection deadline	September 26, 2024
Final approval hearing	November 22, 2024
Final approval granted	December 6, 2024
Claim filing deadline	May 5, 2025
Final distribution authorized	February 12, 2026
Expected payment date	~October 2025 (TBD pending appeals)

Questions Cheer Families Are Actually Asking

The claim deadline passed. Can I still get money?

 No. The May 5, 2025 deadline is firm. The Angeion Group has closed the claims window and is processing approved submissions. No late claims are being accepted under the current settlement terms.

Do I need a lawyer to participate in this settlement? 

You did not need a lawyer to file a claim — the process was designed for families to complete themselves. If you had questions about eligibility, the settlement administrator handled those directly. Now that the deadline has passed, a lawyer cannot help you file a new claim in this case.

Is this $82.5 million settlement legitimate?

 Yes. On December 6, 2024, the court granted final approval of the settlement, noting the case required “courage and strength of character” and calling the class representatives a model for future class actions. The settlement administrator, Angeion Group, is a nationally recognized firm with experience in large consumer class actions.

Why did some states not qualify at all? 

Federal antitrust law generally protects direct buyers — the gyms and schools that paid Varsity. Most states passed laws extending that protection to indirect buyers (the families who paid gyms). States like Texas, Georgia, and Alabama have not passed equivalent state laws, so families there had no legal standing in this settlement structure.

When will approved claimants actually receive their money? 

The court authorized final distribution in February 2026. Payments are expected around October 2025, though that timeline depends on whether any appeals are filed. Claimants should monitor CheerAntitrustSettlement.com for updates.

Does this settlement payment count as taxable income?

 Possibly. The IRS generally treats lawsuit settlements as taxable unless the payment compensates for physical injury. Because this settlement compensates for financial overcharges, a portion may be taxable. Consult a tax professional for guidance specific to your situation.

What did Varsity agree to change going forward? 

Beyond the cash payout, Varsity agreed to stop some of its allegedly anticompetitive practices, including conditioning athletes’ eligibility to compete in championships on their participation in other Varsity events. These conduct changes were part of the settlement terms negotiated alongside the monetary relief.

This is the second Varsity settlement — what was the first one? 

A separate $43.5 million settlement resolved claims by All Star Gyms and spectators who paid Varsity directly, covering the period from May 2016 through March 2023. Payments in that earlier case were sent on May 2, 2025. The $82.5 million Jones settlement covered families who paid indirectly — through their gym or school.

Sources & References

• Official settlement website: CheerAntitrustSettlement.com
• Court docket: Jones et al. v. Varsity Brands LLC et al., Case No. 2:20-cv-02892, U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee
• Illinois Attorney General announcement: illinoisattorneygeneral.gov
• Final approval coverage: Law360 (December 2024)

Last Updated: April 1, 2026

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Legal claims and outcomes depend on specific facts and applicable law. For advice regarding a particular situation, consult a qualified attorney.