We are independent & ad-supported. We may earn a commission for purchases made through our links.
Advertiser Disclosure
Our website is an independent, advertising-supported platform. We provide our content free of charge to our readers, and to keep it that way, we rely on revenue generated through advertisements and affiliate partnerships. This means that when you click on certain links on our site and make a purchase, we may earn a commission. Learn more.
How We Make Money
We sustain our operations through affiliate commissions and advertising. If you click on an affiliate link and make a purchase, we may receive a commission from the merchant at no additional cost to you. We also display advertisements on our website, which help generate revenue to support our work and keep our content free for readers. Our editorial team operates independently of our advertising and affiliate partnerships to ensure that our content remains unbiased and focused on providing you with the best information and recommendations based on thorough research and honest evaluations. To remain transparent, we’ve provided a list of our current affiliate partners here.
Education

Our Promise to you

Founded in 2002, our company has been a trusted resource for readers seeking informative and engaging content. Our dedication to quality remains unwavering—and will never change. We follow a strict editorial policy, ensuring that our content is authored by highly qualified professionals and edited by subject matter experts. This guarantees that everything we publish is objective, accurate, and trustworthy.

Over the years, we've refined our approach to cover a wide range of topics, providing readers with reliable and practical advice to enhance their knowledge and skills. That's why millions of readers turn to us each year. Join us in celebrating the joy of learning, guided by standards you can trust.

What are College Athletics?

By Joe Dyton
Updated: May 17, 2024
Views: 1,644
Share

College athletics are sports competitions that are played between students at different universities or colleges. In the United States, most sports between four-year colleges are governed by either the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) or the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and sports for two-year colleges are governed by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). The most common intercollegiate sports in the U.S. include American football, basketball, track and field, soccer, wrestling, tennis, baseball, softball and swimming, and the participants in those sports are considered to be elite athletes in their respective sport. For students who are not elite athletes or who do not compete in intercollegiate athletics, most colleges also offer club sports and intramural sports.

Club teams compete at a less competitive level than those at the highest level. Although these clubs compete against other colleges, they aren’t sanctioned by their institutions and often don’t receive the same funding — if they get any — as the top-tier teams. The positive for joining club teams is that they are open to all students, regardless of athletic ability, and give more students a chance to participate in college athletics. Many colleges also offer intramural sports, in which students play in leagues within the institution. There can be a wider variety of sports offered at the club and intramural levels than those offered at the intercollegiate level.

In the U.S., college athletics that are governed by the NCAA are broken up into three divisions. Division I generally is the most competitive and most popular of the three divisions. College athletics at this level include a majority of the bigger, more well-known and competitive sports programs in the country. Smaller schools normally participate in college athletics at the intermediate Division II level or the smaller Division III level, which doesn’t offer athletic scholarships. The NAIA and NJCAA also have divisions to separate institutions, usually by their sizes.

The average college in the U.S. usually participates in about 20 intercollegiate sports during the school year. Some of the lesser known college sports include fencing, rifle, squash, skiing and water polo. Football and men’s basketball are the most popular college sports in the U.S. Both sports are heavily televised in the U.S. and other countries, especially during their respective postseasons.

Share
WiseGeek is dedicated to providing accurate and trustworthy information. We carefully select reputable sources and employ a rigorous fact-checking process to maintain the highest standards. To learn more about our commitment to accuracy, read our editorial process.

Editors' Picks

Discussion Comments
Share
https://www.wisegeek.net/what-are-college-athletics.htm
Copy this link
WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.

WiseGeek, in your inbox

Our latest articles, guides, and more, delivered daily.