For a cheer team in 2026, the best picks are Cheer Team Medals ($4 each) for handing out to the whole squad, a Cheer Coach Tumbler ($26) for the coach, and a Competition Cheer Trophy ($26) for MVP or Spirit Award. Budget runs $4–$26 per piece.
This is for cheer parents, booster clubs, and coaches shopping end-of-season, competition, or banquet gifts for a squad. We engrave cheer awards all season long, and the pattern is always the same: you need a cheap-but-nice bulk item for every athlete, a couple of standout trophies for the callouts, and one nicer piece for the coach. Custom plaque and award projects and team or logo work that need a custom layout receive a digital proof for approval before engraving. Standard personalized items using an established listing design usually go straight to production; nameplate-only medals do not include a proof step.
| Pick | Best for | Price | Details |
| Cheer Team Medals | Every athlete on the squad | $4 | Medallion + neck ribbon, name-engraved |
| Cheerleading Award Trophy | Budget MVP/Spirit callout | $13 | Engraved name plate, small trophy |
| Cheer Broadcast Resin Trophy | Classic team award | $16 | 7" resin, engraved plate |
| Cheer Trophy (Name Plate) | End-of-season recognition | $20 | Custom engraved name plate |
| Cheer Christmas Ornament | Holiday keepsake gift | $23 | Engraved ornament for squad or coach |
| Cheer Coach Tumbler | The coach's gift | $26 | 20 oz insulated, personalized |
| Cheer Water Bottle | Practice + game hydration | $26 | 32 oz stainless, engraved |
| Competition Cheer Trophy | MVP / Spirit Award | $26 | Engraved, competition-grade |
Cheer Team Medals — Best for giving every athlete something
At $4 each, these are the workhorse of a cheer banquet: a medallion on a neck ribbon that every athlete and coach gets to take home. We personalize them with names, so nobody feels like they got a generic participation token. Because there's no minimum, you can order exactly your roster count. This is where most teams start — buy a medal for everyone, then add a few standout trophies on top. The neck ribbon makes for a great photo moment at the podium or banquet.
Cheerleading Award Trophy — Best budget MVP or Spirit callout
This $13 trophy is the affordable way to single out a Spirit Award, Team MVP, or Most Improved without jumping to a $26 piece. It ships with a custom-engraved name plate, so you can put the athlete's name and the award title right on the front. Coaches order a handful of these for the "special mention" callouts at the banquet. It's smaller than the flagship trophies but still reads as a real award on a shelf — a good middle rung between the medals and the top-tier competition trophy.
Cheer Broadcast Resin Trophy — Best classic team award
The 7" cheer broadcast-resin trophy at $16 is the traditional shelf trophy shape parents picture when they think "cheer award." It's a molded resin figure with an engraved plate for the name and title. At this price it's practical for handing out to a full line of athletes if you want everyone to get a trophy rather than a medal. Durable resin holds up to a kid's bedroom shelf. Pick this when you want the recognizable trophy silhouette without the competition-grade price.
Cheer Trophy (Name Plate) — Best for end-of-season recognition
This $20 cheer trophy centers on a custom-engraved name plate, making it a clean choice for end-of-season recognition where the athlete's name and season should stand out. It sits between the $16 resin and the $26 competition trophy in both size and presence. We engrave the plate with whatever you supply — name, squad, year, or award title. Good for the "every senior gets one" or "team captain" tier where you want something a notch nicer than the standard resin trophy but not the top piece.
Cheer Christmas Ornament — Best holiday keepsake
A $23 engraved cheerleading ornament is the off-season or holiday-banquet gift — something a cheerleader keeps and rehangs every December. We personalize it for a cheer team, squad, or coach with the name you give us. Unlike a trophy that lives on a shelf, an ornament becomes a yearly tradition on the tree, which is why parents love it as a keepsake. It's also a nice touch for a December competition or a holiday team party where a full trophy would be overkill.
Cheer Coach Tumbler — Best gift for the coach
When the team chips in for the coach, this $26 personalized 20 oz insulated tumbler is the safe, genuinely-used pick. We engrave the coach's name and a cheer design, and the insulation keeps their sideline coffee or water at temperature through a long competition day. Coaches get plenty of shelf trophies; a tumbler they carry to every practice tends to get more mileage. Booster clubs often pair this with a card signed by the whole squad for the end-of-season thank-you.
Cheer Water Bottle — Best for practice and game-day hydration
This $26 custom-engraved 32 oz stainless steel bottle is the practical team gift athletes use at every practice and competition. The laser engraving is permanent — names and team don't peel off in a gym bag like a sticker would. At 32 oz it holds a real amount of water for a long practice. Teams order these as a matching set so the whole squad has the same bottle on the sideline; add each cheerleader's name and it doubles as a way to keep bottles from getting mixed up.
Competition Cheer Trophy — Best for MVP and Spirit Award
The $26 competition cheer trophy is the top piece — the one you hand to the MVP, the Spirit Award winner, or the team captain at a competition. It's custom-engraved with the name and title and carries more visual weight than the $13 and $16 options, which is what you want for the headline callout of the night. If the banquet has one or two moments that deserve a real "trophy" reveal, this is the one. Made to order with a proof so the engraving is exactly right before it ships.
How to choose cheer team gifts
How do you gift a whole cheer squad without overspending?
Layer it: buy a $4 name-engraved medal for every athlete so no one is left out, then add two or three standout trophies ($13–$26) for the MVP, Spirit, and captain callouts. A full roster of medals plus a few trophies usually lands a banquet well under a per-trophy budget, and every athlete still goes home with something personalized.
Trophy or medal for cheerleaders — which is better?
Medals ($4) are better for handing out to everyone — they're cheap, they photograph great on a neck ribbon, and they store easily. Trophies ($13–$26) are better for the few named awards you want to stand out on a shelf. Most teams do both: medals for the squad, trophies for the callouts.
What's the best gift for a cheer coach specifically?
A personalized item they'll actually carry beats another shelf trophy. The $26 coach tumbler or the $26 water bottle get daily use at practice; the $23 ornament is the sentimental keepsake option. If the team is pooling money, the engraved tumbler is the reliable crowd-pleaser.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you engrave every athlete's name on the team medals?
Yes — each medal can carry a different name, so the whole roster gets personalized medallions. Send us the name list and we'll engrave each one. There's no minimum and no per-name upcharge for the engraving; email deals@woodunlimited.org if you're ordering a large squad and want the batch quoted.
How long before our end-of-season banquet should I order?
Most orders are made within 1–3 business days and we email a proof for approval first. For a full-squad order of medals and trophies, give yourself about a week of buffer before the banquet so there's time to approve the proof and ship. Tell us your banquet date and we'll confirm it's doable.
Do you offer bulk pricing for a full cheer team order?
Yes. With no minimum you can order one item or the whole roster. For team-wide medal and trophy orders, or matching water bottles for the squad, email deals@woodunlimited.org and we'll put together volume pricing for the group.
Can I put our team name and the season year on the trophies?
Absolutely. The trophies and name-plate awards are engraved with whatever text you provide — athlete name, team name, season year, and award title all fit. You'll see the exact layout on the emailed proof before we engrave, so you can confirm the spelling and the year are right.
Is free shipping available on a team order?
US orders over $99 ship free, and a full-squad order of medals, trophies, or bottles clears that easily. Smaller single-gift orders ship at standard rates. Everything is made to order in Prattville, Alabama, so your team gifts are engraved fresh, not pulled from a shelf.
Written by Louie Hartley, founder of Wood Unlimited — a personalized laser-engraving shop in Prattville, Alabama with 14,000+ verified reviews averaging 4.9 stars. Published: September 2026. Outfitting a cheer squad? See the full lineup at woodunlimited.org.