Class Action Alleges Varsity Brands Wields Monopoly Control Over All-Star Cheerleading Competition, Apparel Markets [UPDATE]

The official website for the $82.5 million Varsity Brands settlement detailed in the updates below is live and can be found at CheerAntitrustSettlement.com.

To receive a cash payment from the settlement, class members must file a valid claim by mail or on the official settlement website when the time comes.

According to the site, the deadline for submitting a claim will be determined after the final approval hearing, which is scheduled for November 22, 2024.

Are you owed unclaimed settlement money? Check out our class action rebates page full of open class action settlements.

A federal court has granted preliminary approval to the $82.5 million Varsity Brands settlement detailed below.

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The 31-page preliminary approval order was signed by U.S. District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman on June 18, 2024. A final approval hearing is scheduled for November 22, 2024.

Class members should expect to receive an emailed or mailed settlement notice no later than July 18, 2024, the order states.

Are you owed unclaimed settlement money? Check out our class action rebates page full of open class action settlements.

Varsity Brands and U.S. All Star Federation (USASF) have agreed to pay $82.5 million to settle another antitrust class action lawsuit, this time filed by the families of competitive cheer athletes who alleged the defendants’ scheme to maintain monopoly control over All Star Cheer and school cheer events caused them to overpay for Varsity cheer competitions, camps and apparel.

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The parties notified the court on April 1, 2024 that they had reached a proposed settlement agreement, which now awaits preliminary approval from the court.

If approved, the deal would cover all persons and entities in Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, 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 who, from December 10, 2016, through March 31, 2024, indirectly paid Varsity or any Varsity subsidiary or affiliate for Varsity cheer apparel, Varsity cheer camp fees, accommodations at one or more Varsity cheer competitions, or registration, entrance or other fees and expenses associated with participation in one or more Varsity cheer competitions.

According to court documents, the Varsity Brands cheerleading antitrust settlement will provide cash payments to class members who submit valid claims when the time comes. Covered individuals will be able to file a claim by mail or online when the official settlement website—CheerAntitrustSettlement.com—goes live.

The exact amount each class member will receive from the settlement fund has yet to be determined.

Also as part of the deal, the defendants have agreed to institute certain changes to mitigate some of their allegedly anticompetitive conduct for the next five years. To start, Varsity will not condition a competitive cheer athlete or team’s eligibility to compete at an end-of-season championship competition on prior participation at a Varsity-owned cheer camp.

“To the extent that Varsity continues to require completion of Varsity’s Squad Credentialing Program for attendance at such a competition, it will make such credentialing available without requiring attendance at a camp at a reasonable cost to teams or participants seeking Squad Credentialing,” court documents say.

In addition, Varsity will not offer or require exclusive purchasing arrangements as a condition for participation in the Varsity family plan, network program, or any rebate or discount program relating to cheer competitions, and the company will no longer require participants in 35 percent or more of its cheer competitions to stay at Varsity-approved accommodations as a prerequisite to participate in Varsity-owned cheer competitions.

Finally, USASF—the governing body for All Star Cheer— promises not to share event producers’ confidential information about cheer competition schedules or attendance records with other event producers if the information is identified as “confidential” and “not to be shared with any other USASF member” or other similar language.

A memo submitted in support of preliminary settlement approval states that approximately 340,000 individuals across 34 states will be eligible to receive cash payments from the deal, and millions of individuals nationwide will benefit from the defendants’ injunctive relief.

ClassAction.org will update this page if and when the deal receives preliminary approval from the court, and when the official settlement website goes live, so be sure to check back often.

Are you owed unclaimed settlement money? Check out our class action rebates page full of open class action settlements.

The claims detailed on this page have been resolved as part of a $43.5 million settlement. The official settlement website can be found at AllStarCheerAntitrustSettlement.com.

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Chief United States District Judge Sheryl H. Lipman granted the plaintiffs’ motion for preliminary approval of the settlement terms on April 25, 2023. The deal, which now awaits final approval from the court, will cover a gym class—any entities that paid registration or related fees and expenses directly to Varsity Brands to participate in Varsity All Star events between May 26, 2016 and March 15, 2023—and a spectator class, defined as anyone who paid entrance (admission) or other fees directly to Varsity Brands in order to watch Varsity All Star events during that time period.

According to the settlement website, Varsity Brands has agreed to pay $43,500,000 over two years to the aforementioned classes and make certain changes to its policies designed to curb its hold over the All Star competition and apparel market. For example, Varsity Brands will not directly or indirectly pay the salaries of or provide benefits to any U.S. All Star Federation, Inc. (USASF) employees or executives, nor will any person simultaneously serve on the Varsity Brands and USASF boards. Head to FAQ 6 on the official settlement website to read the full list of Varsity Brands’ policy changes.

In order to receive a share of the settlement fund, eligible class members must submit a valid claim when the time comes. If the court approves the deal, a claim form will be created and a deadline set for claim submission. Eligible class members will be able to file a claim through the website or by email or mail. Claim forms will be mailed or emailed to members of the gym class who have valid addresses on file, but members of the spectator class must retrieve a form through the settlement website or by calling the toll-free number 1-(888)-610-6050.

Though it is still unknown how much payments will be or when they will be distributed, the gym class is set to receive 85 percent of the net settlement fund, while the spectator class will get 15 percent.

Per the website, payments will be made to members of the gym class on a pro rata basis depending on how much they spent to register their All Star teams. Alternatively, members of the spectator class who submit valid claims will receive $10 for each Varsity All Star event admission ticket paid directly to Varsity Brands between May 26, 2016 and March 15, 2023, not to exceed $200 per claimant.

If you believe you are a class member covered by the deal, there is nothing you need to do now. However, if the settlement is approved, you must submit a claim form in order to receive a share of the $43.5 million fund. Head here to sign up for updates from the settlement website so you don’t miss an important deadline.

A final approval hearing is scheduled for September 26, 2023, at which time the court will approve a plan and schedule for distributing payments to eligible class members.

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Less than a week after voluntarily dropping its first lawsuit, California’s Fusion Elite All Stars, along with a Florida-based Fuel Athletics, has filed a new proposed class action alleging Varsity Brands and the U.S. All Star Federation have gained and maintained an illegal monopoly over the all-star cheerleading industry. 

The new antitrust case, filed July 10 in Pennsylvania, alleges Varsity Brands, Varsity Spirit, Varsity Spirit Fashion & Supplies and U.S. All Star Federation, Inc. have over the last 15 years artificially inflated prices for apparel and entry into all-star cheerleading events through a competition-suppressing series of “intentional and methodical business maneuvers.”

The complaint can be found here.

The proposed class action detailed on this page has been voluntarily dismissed without prejudice by the plaintiff, according to a July 7 notice submitted to the court. 

The plaintiff’s notice of dismissal came prior to a case management conference tentatively set for September.

The notice of dismissal can be found here.

A Clarkston, Michigan All-Star Cheer academy has filed at least the second proposed class action alleging Varsity Brands, Varsity Spirit, Varsity Spirit Fashion & Supplies and U.S. All Star Federation have engaged in unlawful conduct to suppress competition and charge inflated prices within the All-Star Cheer competition and apparel markets. 

Echoing the complaint detailed on this page, the 60-page lawsuit out of Pennsylvania federal court claims the defendants have over the last 15 years come to gain and maintain monopoly control over “every aspect” of All-Star competitive cheerleading—a “notoriously expensive sport”—by systematically buying up actual and potential rivals, weaponizing exclusionary contract terms, and utilizing their market leverage to relegate would-be challengers to “B-league status.”

“Varsity has used its dominant market power in the Relevant Markets to substantially foreclose competition in both markets and thereby maintain and enhance its dominance in both markets,” the lawsuit summarizes. “In so doing, Varsity’s Exclusionary Scheme has led to reduced output, supracompetitive prices, and reduced choice in both Relevant Markets.”

During the time period described in the suit, Varsity and its co-defendants have collectively controlled roughly 90 percent of the All-Star Cheer competition market—including all three national championship events—and approximately 80 percent of the sport’s apparel market, according to the lawsuit, which can be found here.