Cornhole has quietly exploded from a backyard pastime into one of the nation’s hottest sports. In fact, a 2023 Ipsos poll found that 20% of Americans played cornhole last year, making it the most-played sport in the country (even more than bowling and swimming). Major TV outlets have noticed too.
A recent CBS News report dubbed cornhole “America’s most popular sport,” noting it now rivals classics like swimming and bowling in participation. What was once just a tailgate or cookout game is suddenly a national sensation – played by toddlers and grandparents alike, casually at barbecues or seriously in pro leagues.
Interest is surging everywhere. You’ll find cornhole boards at family picnics and backyard parties, and also under bright arena lights on TV. People of all ages and skill levels are picking up the bean bag toss.
Families are teaching kids to play in the driveway, schools are running cornhole clubs, and even corporate team-building days now feature cornhole tournaments. Social media is full of amateur players sharing trick shots and outlandish goals. And local leagues are forming from coast to coast, making it easy for anyone to join in.
All this buzz means that the simple game of throwing bags at a board is now a fixture of American pop culture – and it’s only getting bigger each season.
The American Cornhole League Goes Big
Behind this rise is the American Cornhole League (ACL), founded in 2016 by entrepreneur Stacey Moore. Starting with just 10,000 registered players and $50,000 in total prize money, the ACL has rapidly grown into a huge organization.
Today it boasts over 100,000 players across roughly 25,000 tournaments each season. It has become a serious pro circuit with national sponsors and hefty cash prizes. For example, the ACL World Championships (the big summer finale held each year) offered over $700,000 in guaranteed prize money in 2025. (That’s more than many small pro sports events – one World champion walk-away check alone can be on the order of $40,000 or more!)
In all, the league now pays out around $500,000 annually in prize pools. Sponsors like Johnsonville, Bush Beans, and even DraftKings (with live lines for matches!) have come on board, fueling the prizes and production.
The ACL has also expanded its format in creative ways. It introduced “shootout” events and a pro-am SuperHole series that pairs ACL pros with NFL players – because, believe it or not, NFL stars love tossing bags too. Every summer the World Championships in Rock Hill, SC draw thousands of players and fans, and even players from other countries. One report notes “more people from more countries” are flocking to Rock Hill for the annual Worlds, with well over 10,000 people (from pros to celebrities to newcomers) expected to attend in 2025.
ACL tournaments now cover all ages and divisions – pros, co-ed teams, seniors, and even a growing junior division. Youth leagues are popping up, and ACL even holds High School and College championship finals.
In short, what started as a fringe tailgate league is now a legitimate sporting circuit, complete with drafts, rankings, coaches, and star players.
Cornhole on the Airwaves and Big Money
Broadcast partnerships have been key to cornhole’s boost. The ACL signed deals with ESPN to air matches, exposing the sport to millions of viewers. During the COVID-19 pandemic, ACL tournaments even filled in on ESPN when other sports were paused – they aired 28 hours of cornhole broadcasts over 7 weeks.
Since then, cornhole has become a regular part of ESPN’s quirky “Ocho” programming (the offbeat sports block inspired by Dodgeball). In August 2023, for example, ESPN2 (branded ESPN8: The Ocho) televised the ACL Pro Shootout Championship and Johnsonville SuperHole, and even showed the World Championship final live in primetime. ESPN has renewed its ACL deal through 2025, so expect to catch cornhole streams and highlights on ESPN+ and other channels.
These TV slots are both novelty and opportunity. Some media insiders point out that cornhole’s TV ratings are modest, but the audience is loyal and engaged. It’s also cheap to produce (no expensive stadiums needed), making it appealing content.
ACL Commissioner Stacey Moore notes that pro cornhole has “much higher” growth potential than outsiders think, and is using league analytics, creative formats, and digital clips to hook fans. In fact, he recently hinted that ACL needs a breakout superstar – a viral sensation – to truly catapult the league (think of a Daymon Dennis or Cash Chamness making highlight reels).
Still, the TV exposure has already brought attention. ESPN’s on-air personalities and SportsCenter segments have featured cornhole stories (even punny “Ocho” pieces during NFL coverage), giving the sport pop-culture credibility. And YouTube clips of dramatic cornhole shots and rivalries rack up tens of thousands of views.
All this coverage also feeds back into sponsorship and prize money. Higher visibility means more brands want in, which in turn means bigger purses at tournaments.
For example, ACL’s national team events and specialty tournaments now regularly award tens of thousands for first place (some larger ACL “Finale” events boast a $20K+ winner’s prize each for singles and doubles). It’s fair to say that a top ACL pro can now earn a five-figure salary each season from winnings and endorsements – a far cry from a mere backyard hobby.
Gear Up for Cornhole
One reason cornhole has spread is that it’s easy to get started – the gear is affordable and readily available. You don’t need a costly racket or helmet, just a set of boards and bags. Official ACL rules call for wooden boards (24″x48″) with a 6-inch hole, and eight cloth beanbags per match. Many companies sell complete cornhole boards and bag sets, from backyard styles to tournament-grade boards with regulation height and sanded surfaces. If you want help picking cornhole equipment, there are plenty of online resources.
Whether you’re a beginner or a budding competitor, the gear market is growing fast. Basic boards can run $50–$150 per pair, while professional setups cost a few hundred dollars (think CNC-machined surfaces and built-in leveling). Bag sets range widely too, with options from casual nylon sacks filled with ground corn or synthetic grains, up to pro-style bags that slide or stick on the board as needed.
Many local shops and big-box stores now carry cornhole sets, and online retailers often have deals – it’s never been easier to outfit a league of friends or a family reunion. Plus, league and tournament organizers happily accept backyard board donations, so you might even find second-hand gear.
Of course, cornhole is about more than equipment. It’s ultimately a social game, and the growing number of events and leagues means you can focus on playing, not just shopping. Even still, having a nice set of boards makes backyard games feel a bit more official – and it looks pretty cool, too. (Decorated boards have become a thing: some players paint custom designs, and you’ll see everything from team logos to pop culture themes.)
All of this gear excitement – and the ease of finding it – helps fuel the sport’s rise. New players feel encouraged when they see others hustling to get pro-level boards or watching instructional videos on bag technique. In short: if you’re thinking about joining the fun, you’ll find that gear and information are only a click away (tosscornhole.com is one helpful starting point, among others).
Players of All Ages: From Kids to Pros
Cornhole’s beauty is that anyone can play and enjoy it, and the boom is drawing players from all generations. On the casual end, schoolyards and parks often have impromptu cornhole set-ups. Younger players see older family members throwing bags, and leap right in. On the competitive side, the ACL even has a junior circuit – and its youngest stars are grabbing headlines.
One standout example is Cash Chamness of South Carolina. At just nine years old in 2025, Cash became the youngest professional cornhole player ever.
He stunned audiences by calmly sinking four-bag airmails on national broadcasts, and by year’s end he was ranked #14 in ACL Pro Singles. (He even and won the ACL Junior Doubles World Championship with partner Brayden Wilson.)
Cash’s rise has been a feel-good story of the season. Fans and commentators love how unfazed he is under pressure – one highlight reel shows him drilling four perfect airmails in a row to flip a big match.
Young phenom Cash Chamness (right) competes in an ACL event in 2025, showing off the skills that made him a viral cornhole star. Cash is proof that age doesn’t matter – “there’s no age limit on cornhole,” says ACL officials.
He’s become a fan favorite on social media and even outperformed ESPN hosts in a special SportsCenter segment. And he’s inspiring more kids to pick up bags: youth clinics and junior tournaments are seeing new energy and entries as parents recognize the game’s accessibility.
But it’s not just kids. Cornhole is literally for everyone: high school teams now compete for national titles; college clubs challenge rival schools; and senior players (even 70+) have their own championships at Worlds. One viral moment from a few years back featured Daymon “Cheese” Dennis, a former cheesemaker in his late 50s, confidently calling and making a trick shot on live TV, proving you’re never too old to get good (and viral).
Even athletes from other sports are jumping in – the ACL SuperHole series has NFL players paired with ACL pros for fun exhibition games, and it turns out NFL stars really “are crazy for cornhole”. In short, cornhole’s open, inclusive spirit is a big part of its charm. Whether you’re eight or eighty, a pro athlete or a weekend tailgate king, you can join the community and have fun.
Mainstream Momentum: What’s Next?
Today cornhole sits at an interesting crossroads of niche and mainstream. It’s still small enough that players jokingly call it “the real sport of the future,” but it’s big enough to fill arenas and TV slots. As more people discover it, stories of unlikely champions keep it charming: corporate CEOs competing in league finals, decorated war veterans turned cornhole vets, and even multi-generational families battling it out at reunions.
The ACL and its founder dream big – moreso than you might expect for a bean bag game. Stacey Moore has talked openly about aspirations to someday see cornhole in the Olympics, an idea that sounds far-fetched now but is a testament to how far the league has come. For that to happen, growth will need to continue – more players, more viewers, and maybe that one viral superstar to capture national attention. In the meantime, though, cornhole’s popularity looks solid. Year after year attendance and sign-ups keep climbing, and even other countries are taking notice (some Canadian and European clubs are forming).
For the casual fan, the takeaway is simple: cornhole is trending. If you’ve ever enjoyed tossing a bag at a board, you’re part of a big American moment right now. If you haven’t, you might want to give it a try – it’s cheap fun, you meet great people, and hey, the entertainment value of watching a thousand-pound championship tournament is nothing to sneeze at.
Bottom line? Cornhole’s “underdog” story isn’t done. From quirky TV segments to big cash prizes, the game is growing up without losing its friendly spirit. So grab some boards, call your buddies, and get in on the action – just maybe don’t tell everyone it’s technically America’s favorite sport now.
