The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders are the NFL’s most iconic cheer squad.
Not only are they representatives of the Texan team, but icons of Americana and beacons of pop culture as well. The troupe’s evolution, influence, successes and shortcomings are explored in a 2024 Netflix docuseries, America’s Sweethearts—the streamer’s series is by no means to thank for DCC’s fame.
The team’s popularity soared thanks to a single moment in 1976, when cheerleader Gwenda Swearingen looked directly into the camera during a game and winked. The frenzy never crashed, largely due to the Dallas Cowboys’ clever marketing strategies and, arguably, the rules enforced by choreographer Texie Waterman in 1972, director Suzanne Mitchell from 1976 to 1989, and current director Kelli Finglass.
A significant part of DCC’s branding is its iconic uniform, which has remained almost exactly the same since the 1950s. Scroll on to revisit the visual history of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (and their famous uniform) by way of striking vintage photos.
c. 1950s
The Dallas Cowboys in their famous kick line some time during the 1950s.
1974
Cheering from the side lines at a game in 1974, the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders wear a skivvy and fringes skirt instead of their now-iconic uniform.
1976
Four women cheer on their team at the 1976 Super Bowl in Miami, the same year they rose to fame.
1978
Cheerleaders Micheling Austin, Connie Dolan, Denise Doran, Michele Vaughn, Shannon Baker pose for a promotional photo for the ABC Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders TV special, The 36 Most Beautiful Girls in Texas.
1978
Cheering on the Cowboys during a game against the Baltimore Colts.
1984
The hair was certainly bigger back then but those iconic uniforms have mostly remained the same!
1985
Before the pom poms got an injection of glitter!
1993
The cheerleaders demonstrate their famous jump split during a performance prior to Super Bowl XXVII in California in 1993. The Dallas Cowboys defeated the Bills 52-17.
1996
The Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders perform on an episode of The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.
2000
Even with the turn of the millennium, that uniform stayed the same!
2004
The cheerleaders wait in the tunnel, preparing to take to the field before a game.
2007
The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders perform at a home game.
2010
Celebrating their team’s win against the Philadelphia Eagles in a NFC Wild-Card game.
2015
Members of the squad backstage with Steven Tyler at the 50th Country Music Awards.
2019
Victoria Kalina and Kelcey Wetterberg (centre and right), who would later both appear in Netflix’s America’s Sweethearts, perform at a game in 2019.
2024
The most recent version of the DCC uniform features extra diamantes and specially-made performance boots.
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