After a few years, participation in high school sports has surpassed pre-pandemic levels at a national level.

Last school year, 8.06 million U.S. student-athletes took part in one or more sanctioned sports, according to the 2023-2024 National Federation of State High School Association survey.

Boys top 5 HS sports in US (NJSIAA, Canva, Townsquare Media)
Boys top 5 HS sports in US (NJSIAA, Canva, Townsquare Media)
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Of that total, 280,798 were student-athletes in New Jerset — 161,692 boys and 119,106 girls, the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association said.

In the 2018-2019 school year, New Jersey had 281,058 athletes across the 440 accredited public and non-public high schools included in the NJSIAA.

Girls top 5 HS sports in US (NJSIAA, Canva, Townsquare Media)
Girls top 5 HS sports in US (NJSIAA, Canva, Townsquare Media)
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Some sports have seen growth among all genders (results do not include a category for nonbinary athletes), like volleyball, wrestling and golf.

Other sports have seen a slight decline in participants. Here's a look at 13 of the most popular sports statewide, compared to the 2018-2019 school year.

These are the most popular NJ school sports

Sports at New Jersey high schools are just about back at pre-pandemic levels. A few have been trending in popularity — while others have seen a slight dip in participation.

Gallery Credit: Erin Vogt

As one of the newer sports to gain popularity, girls' flag football has been going strong, with five football leagues and conferences across New Jersey, according to a spokesperson for the NJSIAA.

NJSIAA member schools are being asked to support officially sanctioning girls' flag football as the association's 34th sport.

These are the best NJ high schools for sports

Stacker put together a list of the best high schools for sports across New Jersey — using data from Niche that included sports championships, family surveys, student enrollment, athletic participation rate and sports options. Here's the top 25.

Gallery Credit: Stacker

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