Last updated: June 22, 2026
Quick answerA cheer squad apparel order calendar runs from June through spring competition, with the first deadline landing in mid-June for practice gear so squads are dressed before summer tryouts close. Miss the mid-July window for embroidered travel hoodies and sideline polos and you're scrambling the week of your first football game — that's the order that bites the most programs we see in the Treasure Valley. Eagle Ridge in Meridian, ID handles these orders with no minimums and free digitizing on the first run, so there's no reason to wait until August.
Most Treasure Valley cheer programs we work with start thinking about apparel in July, which is already late. By the time football season kicks off in late August, you want everything — practice gear, travel hoodies, game-day accessories — already in hand. We've run orders for several high school cheer squads across the Valley over the past seven years, and the ones that have the smoothest season are the ones who treat apparel like a calendar commitment, not a last-minute errand. This post lays out the full order schedule, season by season, so nothing gets stuck in production during a critical game week.
June — Practice Gear
June is the right window for summer practice apparel. Tryouts typically close in late August, but you'll want gear ready before then so incoming members show up to summer practice looking like a team. The standard order at this stage is practice tees and shorts in team colors (screen-printed squad logo, $16–$25 per piece), light warm-up jackets for cool morning practices ($30–$45), and squad backpacks for daily gear transport ($35–$55).
Get the order in by mid-June so production wraps before tryout week. That's not much buffer, honestly.
Mid-July — Football Season Travel and Sideline Apparel
Your competition uniforms for football season usually come from a dedicated cheer supplier, so we're not covering those here. What we do handle: the travel-day and sideline pieces that don't come from those catalogs. Embroidered hoodies and squad polos ($25–$45 each) are the main items. We can also coordinate with bow vendors for hair accessories — order in two squad colors if your squad rotates for game-day matchups.
Mid-July is the target order date. First football game is typically the last week of August, and embroidery production plus any size adjustments takes time. Don't wait until August on this one.
Need help with this order? Eagle Ridge prints and embroiders in Meridian, ID — no minimums, free digitizing on the first run. Get a free quote →
October — Basketball Season Prep
Basketball starts in November, which means October is when you figure out whether your squad shares a uniform kit with football season or runs a separate set. Some squads do, some don't. Either way, October is the window to refresh travel-day apparel if it's looking worn, and to launch a booster fundraiser store for the parent supporter crowd.
A team store window running through November works well here — parents and grandparents are already in game-night mode, and a store with squad-color tees and hoodies sells itself. (We set these up in 48 hours, no monthly fee, and you don't have to hold any inventory.)
December — Spring Competition Prep
Spring competition season opens in February. December is when you order everything that needs to arrive before then. Competition uniforms come from cheer-specific manufacturers like Varsity, but the surrounding kit is what we handle: embroidered travel warm-ups with squad name and competition logo ($35–$55), team travel bags for competition weekends ($45–$75), and comp-day squad tees for when athletes aren't in uniform ($14–$22).
Mid-December is your order deadline. February comes up fast, and you don't want to be tracking a shipment the week of your first competition.
Year-Round — Booster Supporter Merch
Booster club fundraisers don't follow a season, they follow momentum. The best setup is a team store you refresh quarterly rather than rebuilding from scratch each time. The consistent sellers we see across Treasure Valley cheer programs: squad-color tees for moms and dads ($14–$22), hoodies for grandparents ($28–$38), sibling youth tees ($10–$15), and bumper stickers or magnets ($3–$5). Low price points matter when you're selling to a crowd that already spent money on a ticket.
Mid-Season Replacements
Squads change. Tryouts, injuries, transfers — someone always needs a replacement piece mid-season. Order your initial run with a 2-piece buffer per item if the budget allows. For everything else, we can produce single replacement pieces in 5–10 business days for the rest of the season. It's not ideal timing, but it works.
Related
- Custom Cheer Apparel (landing page)
- Online Team Stores for Sports Teams
- Custom Apparel for High School Boosters
Ready to plan your squad's apparel calendar? We'll help you map out the full season — team store, practice gear, travel apparel, the whole thing. Get a free quote → or call us directly at contact us.
Frequently asked
How much does cheer squad apparel cost per piece?
Practice tees and shorts run $16–$25 per piece with a screen-printed squad logo; embroidered hoodies and travel polos typically land between $25 and $45 each. Squad backpacks add another $35–$55 per athlete.
When should cheer squads place their football season apparel order?
Mid-July is the target for travel-day and sideline pieces like embroidered hoodies and polos, since the first football game is usually the last week of August and embroidery production plus size adjustments takes time. June is the window for summer practice gear so it's ready before tryouts close.
Does Eagle Ridge handle cheer apparel orders for Treasure Valley schools?
Eagle Ridge prints and embroiders in Meridian, ID and has run orders for high school cheer squads across the Treasure Valley for seven years. Reach out or get a free quote online — no minimums, and digitizing is free on your first run.
How We Make This Stuff
Everything covered in this post is produced in our Meridian, Idaho shop at 2700 E Lanark St. Eagle Ridge Apparel is a family-run print shop serving the Treasure Valley since 2019 — we embroider, screen print, DTF, sublimate, laser-cut leather patches, laser-engrave drinkware, and UV-print promotional goods on equipment we operate ourselves. No outsourced decoration, no overseas fulfillment, no third-party middlemen.
Most custom apparel orders ship in 7–10 business days from approved mockup. Rush production in 3–5 business days is available on most decoration methods; embroidered hats are the tightest constraint. We hold no minimums on any decoration type — order one piece or one thousand — though pricing scales aggressively over 50, 100, and 250-piece tiers. Free digital mockups before production starts. We don't begin a run until you sign off on what it'll look like.
Two ways to order: design it yourself online in our designer tool (any quantity, any decoration method), or request a custom quote and we'll send back pricing within one business day. Talk to a real person — email info@eagleridgeapparel.com or send us a message, and most inquiries get a response within two hours during the business day.
