Red out light-up pom pom glowing red, close up, red light shining through silver metallic streamers against a dark curtain

Red Out Game Ideas: Red Ribbon Week, Heart Health and School-Color Nights

For student councils, athletic directors and cheer coaches running a red out: picking the reason, Red Ribbon Week and heart health nights, a run of show for football and basketball, and one set of poms for both.

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Red out game ideas for cheer squads and student councils: a Red Ribbon Week football game in late October, a heart health basketball night in February, or a rivalry night in school red. Light-up poms switch to red by remote and back after. Team pricing is $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs.

Planning a red out: pick the reason first

Red outs happen for three different reasons, and the reason decides the month. A school whose color is red runs one for the rivalry game. A drug-prevention red out lands on Red Ribbon Week in late October. A heart health red out lands in February, in the middle of basketball season. Settle the reason with your student council and athletic director first; the run of show follows from it.

The poms are the easy part. Light-up poms run your school colors all season and switch to red by remote on the night, every pom that is on changing together. See color out game ideas for every color night and light-up pom poms for every kind of team for other squads.

How do you run a Red Ribbon Week red out?

Red Ribbon Week takes place each year from October 23 through 31, and the National Family Partnership sponsored the first National Red Ribbon Campaign in 1988 (source: National Family Partnership: Red Ribbon Week FAQ). The partnership calls it the nation’s largest and longest-running drug-use prevention campaign (source: National Family Partnership: About Red Ribbon Week). In 2027 the week runs from Saturday, October 23 to Sunday, October 31, so Friday, October 29 is the home-game night inside it.

  • Student council sets the red dress code and hands out red ribbons at the gate.
  • The announcer reads one short drug-free message at halftime.
  • The squad lines the field in red and raises the poms on the last line.

If it lands on homecoming week, these homecoming themes show how schools stack two themes in one week.

How do you run a heart health red out in February?

February is American Heart Month. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute invites organizations to join throughout February and on National Wear Red Day, which fell on Friday, February 6 in 2026, to bring attention to heart disease (source: NHLBI: National Wear Red Day and American Heart Month). That puts a heart health red out in the middle of basketball season.

A gym suits it. The athletic director drops the lights for starting lineups, the squad switches to red and the student section in red shirts does the rest. Invite the school nurse or a health teacher to say one line at halftime. Our basketball cheer season guide covers lineups and timeouts with the same set.

A red out run of show for football and basketball

Red out light-up pom poms lit white on a pom squad dancing in an end zone under red stadium lights at a night game
Cue Football (October) Basketball (February)
Entrance Squad lines the student gate on red Lights down for lineups, squad on red
First score Switch to school colors, then back to red Same, on the first basket after a timeout
Halftime Red Ribbon message, poms raised on the last line Heart health message, dance team pom feature in red
Final minutes All red, every pom up All red through the final timeout

If your stadium can wash the field in red light, keep a few poms on white: under red lights, white is what stands out, as the squad in this photo shows.

Video still: @braypartyof5

Red light, red streamers, or both?

Red out light-up pom poms split two ways: two silver poms held against a wood wall, one lit red and one lit blue

If red is your school color, order Red streamers, one of ten metallic colors in the team order, and the red light glows through red. If it is not, keep your color and switch the light to red for the night. White streamers, our best seller, take red as well as every other color. Of the 54 teams that applied to us this fall, 7 asked for red, the third most requested color after white and blue.

Red-and-white and red-and-blue schools can split each pair: raised pom one color, low pom the other. Set both poms to the first color, turn one off with its button, change the other with the remote, then turn the first back on; our setup videos show it step by step. Red pom poms for cheer teams covers sets by school color.

Can a red out raise money for a cause?

Yes, if you name the cause. The National Foundation for Cancer Research lists the red ribbon for blood cancers, with Blood Cancer Awareness Month in September (source: National Foundation for Cancer Research), so an early-season red out can support a blood cancer charity your school picks. For pink, gold and other ribbon nights see cancer awareness night ideas, and for the full October plan, pink out game ideas. Keep to one cause per night so the message stays clear.

Pricing a red out set that lasts all year

One pair per athlete at $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs. A 12-member squad is $1,440; 18 is $2,160; varsity and JV together at 26 is $3,120. The same set does the white out, blue nights and every regular home game.

Student councils and booster clubs often split it: the council funds the theme nights and the boosters fund the squad. Bring the student section themes to the planning meeting so the dress code and the pom cues match. Apply on our team pricing page.

Apply with your school, your squad size, your colors and the date of your red out game. We make the poms ourselves and will tell you plainly what fits your date. Team pricing is $120 a pair on 10 or more pairs.

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Frequently asked questions

When is Red Ribbon Week?

October 23 through 31 every year. In 2027 the Friday inside it is October 29.

When is the heart health red out?

February is American Heart Month, and National Wear Red Day is a Friday in early February (February 6 in 2026).

What is your team pricing for a red out?

$120 a pair on 10 or more pairs, one per athlete. Eighteen athletes is $2,160.

Can we get them in our team colors if red is not one of them?

Yes. Keep your school-color streamers and switch the light to red by remote for the night, then back.

How do they work?

The diodes are built into each pom; a USB-C battery pack runs 3 to 4 hours per charge; one remote with W, MODE and AUTO buttons switches every pom that is on.

Can we get them in time for Red Ribbon Week?

Send us the game date when you apply and we will tell you plainly what fits.

See also: light-up pom poms for every team and the cheer pom pom color guide.

Sources: National Family Partnership: Red Ribbon Week FAQ, National Family Partnership: About Red Ribbon Week, NHLBI: National Wear Red Day and American Heart Month, National Foundation for Cancer Research.

Red Ribbon Week (a campaign of the National Family Partnership), National Wear Red Day (as promoted by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute) and the National Foundation for Cancer Research are named here as facts only. None is affiliated with or endorses Neon Cowboys.

Questions: info@neoncowboys.com.

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