Sports Day/Athletics Festival: Crowd-Pleasing Cheer Battle Ideas and Performances
Speaking of school sports days, there’s an event that’s almost as big as the competitions themselves: the cheer battle! Each class or team usually puts on a performance, but many people find it hard to decide what to do.
So in this article, we’ll introduce ideas for skits and performances that really hype up a cheer battle! There’s plenty to choose from—dances and songs, of course, plus cheers using props and classic ideas from sports cheering.
Be sure to showcase a unique, original performance that’s just for your class or team!
- [Sports Day Cheer Songs] A roundup of classic cheer anthems and recommended parody-song picks [2026]
- Let's send our teammates a powerful cheer! A roundup of cheer calls for sports day.
- Top Songs to Hype Up Sports Day and Athletic Festivals [2026]
- [Dance Tracks] Perfect for School Sports Days! A Curated Selection of Fun, Popular Songs to Dance To [2026]
- Dances that elementary school kids can do! Recommended tracks to liven up a school sports day
- Cheer songs to hype up the sports day! A collection of motivational tracks recommended for kids
- [Boost Your Energy] A Collection of Cool and Funny Team Huddles
- [Sports Day] Get Fired Up! Cool Phrases Recommended for Cheer Squads
- Get hyped! A collection of Vocaloid songs to energize your sports day and athletic festival
- Get Fired Up! A Collection of Anime Songs to Hype Up Your Sports Day and Athletic Festival
- Songs that hype up Sports Day and Athletic Festivals: Japanese Music / J-Pop Artist Rankings [2026]
- Recommended Songs for Group Gymnastics: A Collection of Tracks to Elevate Your Routine [2026]
- [Sports Day] Entrance songs that will hype the crowd! A comprehensive roundup from classics to the latest hits
[Sports Day / Athletic Festival] Crowd-Pleasing Cheer Battle Ideas & Performances (31–40)
cheer dance
For boys, sports days and athletic festivals are a chance to show themselves off to the opposite sex—though that mostly applies to those who are good at sports (lol).
For such boys, cheers from the girls can be a big boost.
If your class wants to improve the team’s performance, how about doing a cheer dance during events where boys take the lead? Or it might be nice to perform a cheer dance in the middle of the boys’ group gymnastics.
This is fairly common in other countries, so give it a try!
Paint performance
The “paint performance,” in which a large painting is completed on the spot during a cheering routine, draws the audience’s attention in a different direction and has a refreshing effect for spectators who are tired from cheering.
Usually, we admire a finished artwork, but with this paint performance you get to watch the process of completion, making it enjoyable as a live experience.
Since it’s often painted with large brushes or rollers, it turns into a very dynamic act!
Flag dance
Flag dance is becoming a new standard for cheering at sports festivals.
It’s popular because performing with a large group makes for a very impressive piece.
All you need to prepare are matching flags.
The routine mainly involves spinning and waving the flags to the rhythm, so the choreography isn’t too difficult.
You can also buy instructional books and DVDs with detailed explanations of the moves, so they’re great resources when you’re trying it for the first time!
panel competition
Haven’t you seen this at high school baseball games and the like? It’s where people hold panels above their heads and, on a cue, flip them over or change their colors to make letters appear.
Try forming words like “Unity” or “Champions” using your team colors.
The moment the letters appear is crucial, so with practice and synchronized timing, it becomes a very satisfying and moving cheer performance for the audience!
Make a flag and cheer
Making a team flag really lifts everyone’s spirits, doesn’t it? It’s also fun to aim for originality in the design—writing everyone’s names from the class, featuring whatever’s trending right now, or even using the homeroom teacher’s face as a motif can be interesting.
On the day of the sports festival, let’s crank up the excitement by watching the team flags flutter in the wind!
[Sports Day / Athletic Festival] Exciting Cheer Battle Ideas and Performances (41–50)
Soran Bushi
Almost everyone in Japan encounters the Soran Bushi at least once during their elementary or junior high school years.
In terms of recognition, its numbers must be staggering.
Soran Bushi is a folk song that originated in Hokkaido and is now loved throughout the country.
Because it’s a highly dynamic and powerful folk song, performing it at events like school sports days will really fire up the crowd.
It would also be exciting to play Soran Bushi as background music for intense competitions where things are expected to get heated, such as cavalry battles.
Baseball-style jet balloon
Here’s an introduction to jet balloons, the dazzling highlight of baseball cheering that fans can’t get enough of.
They’re a famous tradition during the Hanshin Tigers’ turn at bat in the bottom of the seventh inning at Koshien Stadium! You inflate them with air, and when you let go, they shoot off like rockets—that’s the fun part.
The little “peep” whistle sound they make is delightful, too.
Sing the team cheer and launch your jet balloon at just the right moment, and the crowd will go wild.
It’s a visually striking and sure-fire way to boost the excitement.