All eyes were on DCC during the Season 1 premiere of America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, bringing more attention to the recruitment, training, and gameday procedures than ever before. But what really had people talking? The shocking truth about how little the Cowboys cheerleaders make.
Fans of the team – and newcomers tuning into the show – were stunned to discover just how little one of America’s most elite cheer squads paid its members. Considering the Dallas Cowboys consistently rank as the most valuable sports team globally, it’s no surprise that viewers were so shocked.
According to intel from Season 1, DCCs were paid between $15-$20 per hour. When asked directly about how much DCCs make, veteran member Kat famously compared her professional cheerleading salary to that of a “Chick-fil-A worker that works full time.” In a later TikTok, Kat added that, alongside an hourly wage, the cheerleaders receive a flat fee of $500 for game days as well as yearly raises.
Tenure also plays a role in determining how much these women get paid, especially when attending voluntary appearances. But, even with raises, tenure, and pay increases, pursuing DCC without several other streams of income can be really difficult.
According to NBC Sports Boston in 2022, DCCs would typically receive a yearly salary of about $75,000. For comparison, at the same time, NFL waterboys were making around $53,000 per year. Not sure the math is mathing there.
Spoiler alert: Spoilers for Season 2 of America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders follow. Season 2 dug into the pay debate further, with Jada, Armani, Amanda, and Megan spearheading the movement for fair pay amongst the team. After meeting with the Dallas Cowboys legal team and Human Resources department, it was revealed at the end of Season 2 that the squad was eventually given a 400% wage increase.
Although an exact figure has been confirmed, we can estimate that this raise would boost their hourly pay from $15-$20 to $75-$100. While this is a major win for future generations of DCCs, some members of the 2024-25 squad left frustrated with how it all went down.
Amanda, for example, decided to hang up her uniform for the last time and opted not to re-audition, sharing that the battle for contractual changes shifted the team’s dynamic in a way she couldn’t stand behind. Other retiring DDCs, like Jada, expressed pride in helping spark change within the organization, even if they wouldn’t be around to benefit from it.
With these new changes in place, fans are hopeful that cheerleaders across the NFL will feel empowered to push for fair wages as well. Season 2 helped shine a much-needed spotlight on the hardworking and talented women of DCC, raising awareness about the long-overlooked issue of underpaid athletes.