Rate of MHSAA High Schools Charging Participation Fees Falls to Lowest in 22 Years
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
August 5, 2026
The annual Michigan High School Athletic Association participation fee survey completed for the 2025-26 school year continued to confirm the positive direction that has emerged this decade as the rate of member high schools charging student-athletes to play sports fell to its lowest in more than two decades.
Of the 703 MHSAA member schools (93 percent of membership) which responded to the most recent survey, only 38 percent (270 schools) charged participation fees in 2025-26 – a drop of two percent from the year prior and the lowest percentage since 34.5 percent of member schools reported charging a fee for the 2004-05 school year. Over the two decades between, the rate of high schools charging participation fees reached a high of 57 percent in 2013-14. Rates consistently have measured in the low 40s after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The MHSAA began conducting the participation fee survey with the 2003-04 school year. For the purposes of the survey, a participation fee is anything $20 or more regardless of what the school called the charge – registration fee, athletic fee, etc.
All four school-size classifications also saw rate decreases, with Class A schools leading the way with 46 percent charging fees – which was still a reduction of seven percent from 2024-25. Class B was down slightly to 39 percent charging for participation, while Class C schools were down six points to 28 percent charging and Class D schools were down four points also to 28 percent.
A standardized fee for each team on which a student-athlete participates – regardless of the number of teams – has remained the norm over the history of the MHSAA’s survey, and for the second-straight year 43 percent of schools charging a fee did so in this way during 2025-26. That was followed by 33 percent of responding schools charging a one-time standardized fee and 13 percent assessing fees based on tiers of the number of sports a student-athlete plays (for example, charging a larger fee for the first team and less for additional sports).
For 2025-26, the median maximum amount a school charged per student-athlete for the school year was $150, and the median annual maximum charged per family was $350. For schools charging student-athletes a one-time fee to cover all sports played, the median was $125. For schools charging a fee per sport, the median was $80 for each team.
The survey for 2025-26 and surveys from previous years can be found on the Pay-To-Play Survey page (direct link to this year’s results).
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.3 million spectators each year.
Nearly 100,000 Student-Athletes Set to Start MHSAA Fall Practices
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
August 9, 2024
Nearly 100,000 Michigan high school student-athletes are anticipated to begin Fall 2024 practices on Monday, Aug. 12, across nine sports for which the Michigan High School Athletic Association sponsors postseason tournaments.
The fall season includes the most played sports for both boys and girls; 35,174 football players and 19,119 girls volleyball players competed during the Fall 2023 season. Teams in those sports will be joined by competitors in girls and boys cross country, Lower Peninsula girls golf, boys soccer, Lower Peninsula girls swimming & diving, Upper Peninsula girls tennis and Lower Peninsula boys tennis in beginning practice next week.
Competition begins Aug. 16 for cross country, golf, soccer and tennis, Aug. 21 for swimming & diving and volleyball, and Aug. 29 for varsity football. Football teams at all levels must have 12 days of preseason practice – over a period of 16 calendar days – before their first game.
In girls volleyball this season, for the first time, the top two teams in each District bracket will be seeded based on Michigan Power Ratings (MPR) that take into account a team’s regular-season success and strength of schedule. Those two seeded teams will be determined the Sunday prior to the final week of the regular season and placed on opposite sides of their District brackets.
Boys soccer also will see a slight change to its seeding this fall, as the entire bracket will be seeded based on MPR, not just the top two teams as in previous seasons.
The 11-Player Football Finals schedule at Ford Field also will have a slightly different lineup and earlier start times. On both Friday, Nov. 29, and Saturday, Nov. 30, the first games of the day will begin at 9:30 a.m., with the final games of both days slated to start at 7 p.m. On Nov. 29, Division 8 at 9:30 a.m. will be followed by Division 4 at 12:30 p.m., Division 6 at 4 p.m. and Division 2 at 7 p.m. to conclude the day. On Nov. 30, Division 7 kicks off at 9:30 a.m., followed by Division 3 at 12:30 p.m., Division 5 at 4 p.m. and Division 1 at 7 p.m. to finish the weekend.
A few more game-action rules changes will be quickly noticeable to participants and spectators.
- In football, uniforms now must have clear contrast between the colors of the jersey and body of the numbers (excluding the border); for example, white numbers with blue outline on a white jersey are no longer allowed. The visiting teams must wear white uniforms, and home teams must wear dark jerseys that clearly contrast with white.
- In soccer, the eight-goal differential rule remains but with the addition of a running clock during the first half if the differential reaches eight.
- In volleyball, line judges beginning this fall will switch sides of the court between sets.
The 2024 Fall campaign culminates with postseason tournaments beginning with the Upper Peninsula Girls Tennis Finals during the week of Sept. 30 and wrapping up with the 11-Player Football Finals on Nov. 29 and 30. Here is a complete list of fall tournament dates:
Cross Country
U.P. Finals – Oct. 19
L.P. Regionals – Oct. 25 or 26
L.P. Finals – Nov. 2
11-Player Football
Selection Sunday – Oct. 27
Pre-Districts – Nov. 1 or 2
District Finals – Nov. 8 or 9
Regional Finals – Nov. 15 or 16
Semifinals – Nov. 23
Finals – Nov. 29-30
8-Player Football
Selection Sunday – Oct. 27
Regional Semifinals – Nov. 1 or 2
Regional Finals – Nov. 8 or 9
Semifinals – Nov. 16
Finals – Nov. 23
L.P. Girls Golf
Regionals – Oct. 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 or 12
Finals – Oct. 18-19
Boys Soccer
Districts – Oct. 9-19
Regionals – Oct. 22-26
Semifinals – Oct. 30
Finals – Nov. 2
L.P. Girls Swimming & Diving
Diving Regionals – Nov. 14
Swimming/Diving Finals – Nov. 22-23
Tennis
U.P. Girls Finals – Oct. 2, 3, 4 or 5
L.P. Boys Regionals – Oct. 9, 10, 11 or 12
L.P. Boys Finals – Oct. 17-19 or 21-22
Girls Volleyball
Districts – Nov. 4-9
Regionals – Nov. 12 & 14
Quarterfinals – Nov. 19
Semifinals – Nov. 21-22
Finals – Nov. 23
The MHSAA is a private, not-for-profit corporation of voluntary membership by more than 1,500 public and private senior high schools and junior high/middle schools which exists to develop common rules for athletic eligibility and competition. No government funds or tax dollars support the MHSAA, which was the first such association nationally to not accept membership dues or tournament entry fees from schools. Member schools which enforce these rules are permitted to participate in MHSAA tournaments, which attract more than 1.4 million spectators each year.