The docuseries on Netflix featuring the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders (DCC) has become quite a phenomenon. After two seasons, it’s like watching ‘Friends’ again but in real life with real people going through life’s struggles.
I was recently engrossed in the tales and adventures of these cheerleaders for the new season and they have made my worldview slightly more optimistic. Their stories may be original, but they mirror the experiences of many who chase dreams.
The Proverbial Moonshot for Rookies
The show made it clear: DCC is sensationally popular. It incites intense competition to even qualify for final auditions, let alone the DCC training camp which is a probationary period where elimination occurs.
Even getting a chance at making the team is unlikely for most – a moonshot indeed.
The finalists would move across cities, some hit the dance floor 7 days a week, quit their jobs, cancel their subscriptions all for a shot at their dreams. Rejection is more common than acceptance.
But why? What reason could there be for them to push so hard? Most of them have full-time jobs, juggling their personal lives and professional careers alongside a steep commitment to DCC.
It is easy to see them on the field cheering and dancing, luring audiences into thinking that they are ‘just’ smiling cheerleaders. But these smiles don’t always come easily.
And I think that’s precisely what’s magnificent about the series – the perspective.
A refreshing perspective was given to these cheerleaders’ characters and their whole other life beyond their time on the field. Those who are married, those who have boyfriends, those who juggle college and DCC (who else other than Madie K) and those who continue to be part of the team because they are so tightly bonded with the team.
It’s fascinating to realise and understand the person behind the cheerleader. The person they are determines the impressions they make and in turn, almost directly determines their fate in the team.
Anyone can dance.
Not everyone is a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader.
Is Heaven A Place on Earth?
Training camp is as close to heaven on earth and to the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders team as some will get. Of those who make it into Training Camp, only 36 form the final team.
The toughest elimination comes when those who made it to the preliminary round of training get cut. Picking the best of the best led to choices made on instincts and gut feelings from trainers and vets in the interest of the team.
I doubt it felt good. And cutting great people from a team of outstanding people never would. The docuseries made that clear with the abundance of tears and turmoil.
Rejection is only made worse when it finds those who had mustered the courage to audition again for another shot at their dreams, only to be cut…again.
But it only makes for a more epic story as those who resist failure and rejection will try again and again.
Dayton, who was eventually cut and Kelly V, who made it as a rookie in the 2024 season, are prime examples.
Seeing them audition repeatedly, train rigorously and live to become part of DCC reminds me of Napoleon Hill’s book ‘Think and Grow Rich’.
‘Desire’ was the single most important principle described in creating a reality from a vision. Kelly V certainly desired the spot and worked relentlessly on it.
Seeing these girls who might have spent a lifetime preparing for a shot at becoming part of a legacy, something bigger than themselves, humbles those who strive for greatness.
It makes the stories of those who refuse to give up and accept failure all the more epic.
Bittersweet Still Feels Bitter
Kelli described the last cut as (she) ‘wanted to give you the best chance to make the team.’
That’s unsurprising when everyone on the field was competent. Subtly, Kelli was rooting for them – those who might barely qualify.
The decision Kelli made as the series progressed revealed just how talented and strong the rookies really are.
The gut-wrenching part of seeing rookies get cut is not when they failed to make the team, but rather, it’s knowing how close they came and how hard the decision was.
There has been no shortage of tears throughout the series, for joyous or demoralising occasions alike. But they never fail to hold each other in a tight embrace, crowd around the one who has received the heartbreaking news and pull through together.
I think it’s knowing that each spot among the 36 represents someone else’s unfulfilled dream lends not entitlement or prestige but privilege and honour to the spots.
And this drives them to be better.
The “P” Monster
Improvement is indeed the goal for rookies and vets before the season. Perfectionism is the common enemy. The standards are devilish, almost stratospheric.
And for good reason. Moving the goalpost to ease the process only pushes excellence closer to mediocrity – an exercise that tarnishes a brand.
From dance techniques to knowledge and behaviour, the finalists have something to prove – their worthiness of the coveted and time-honoured DCC uniform. Yet, striving for perfection doesn’t help.
Unfortunately, it comes at a price – sacrifice. Being part of this team meant sacrifice, as all great things worth doing do. It takes a toll on their families and romantic relationships. Responsibilities shift towards their significant other and time spent together dwindles.
When the chips fall and the game starts, however, there is that moment when everything clicks. With ‘Thunderstruck’ blasted over the stadium, lights shining only on the field and the gaze of some several thousand live fans fall upon the 36 uniformed cheerleaders, every single second of hard work and practice pays off.
Their families, friends and significant others scream wildly from the stands, extending their support to their beloved during the performance.
It is this surreal moment that they struggled for, and it is now a reality instead of a dream. It is this, together with the highly coveted spot, that inspires and motivates.
The Second Half of the Price
Apart from sacrifice, stress is part of the hefty price of being a DCC. From mother to daughter (victoria and her mum); leader to leader and rookie to veteran, the stakes are always high when training and cheering as a DCC, especially when there is legacy involved.
The stress weighs on the team – it is practically a rite of passage for all who don the uniform and strive to live up to the legacy.
But facing the odds and rising above despite the pressure is precisely what earns them a spot.
For their dreams born when they were 12, they lived a life that led them to the doorstep. Everyone entered as a rookie and left as a veteran, and their lives are forever changed because of it.
As the series progresses, it becomes evident that the rookies are always in contact with their mothers. Their biggest fans even before they are recognised. Their greatest supporters before they represent any team. Their support spans time and space, ready for their daughter to call.
It’s as if they were right there.
Yes, they had to sacrifice the time and distance between their families and friends, struggle with the stress of meeting expectations, but familial support for both rookies and veterans never waned.
Like Ava said:
Having each other, it really makes or breaks it.
The series only reveals this at the end of the final episode in the interview with Megan – they all recognise that the people they are with make the journey worthwhile.
It is exactly their genuine love for the people and the team that makes the team a team so bonded and committed.
They cheer not just for the Cowboys, but for each other as well.
In those tough moments, be it elimination or retirement, there are no vets or rookies. They were all just cheerleaders and friends rooting for each other, easing the heartbreak, holding on to hope and carrying on the dream.
A Legacy Redefined
Concerns were raised throughout the series about money and compensation expectations not being met. While a 400% raise was finally secured, long after the discussion started in 2024 during the show’s production, no one could deny that it came with much difficulty.
Some of the veterans, including Jada, Megan, and Armani, led the conversation in seeking more fair compensation, not solely for themselves but for those on the team whom they hold close and for those whom they might never meet.
It was a hard conversation, but one worth having.
Admirably, their unity in their decision to step up and fight for what they are worth shows an impetus for change. An impetus that perhaps has been intensifying over the years. The courage it took to put their lives’ dreams on the line for what they believe to be right and just probably redefined what it means to be a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader.
And again, they are better because of it.
Conclusion
I once read from a peer-written essay a line so ‘sticky’ it never left my head: yes, there is nobility in winning, but there is also nobility in those who keep trying.
What started out as innocent inspiration from past performances of Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders turns into dreams. These dreams fueled by a burning passion for dance evolve into a vision – one that compels them to challenge the odds and stake their futures on auditioning and making the cut.
What makes the endeavours of a DCC team special is the heart and soul behind each performance; the strength that comes from a united team, however diverse its members; the shared belonging they have to something bigger than each one of them; a legacy that they now have a hand in writing and living.
Part of the Journey is the End
The show reveals how many alumni feel nostalgic about their past as part of the team, and some stay on and return to give back to the team’s next generation.
Seeing them grow from rookies to vets to leaders feels greatly fulfilling as though I watched them experience the journey where they have come full circle.
Being a part of the team is more than just cheerleading. It is a belonging, and it is a part of who they are – the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders.

I hope this inspires you to strive for greatness. And to know, as I do now, that sometimes the heroes we look up to walk among us and were once ordinary people who fought battles and challenged odds.
They chose to fight. And they won.
Here’s to all the 36 who have ever been.
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