Updated

Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jun 29

Netflix's Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Season 3 Fuels Fame and Scrutiny for 36-Member Squad

Updated

Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jun 29

Netflix's Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Season 3 Fuels Fame and Scrutiny for 36-Member Squad

Q: With salaries now reaching $150,000, will the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders finally secure health insurance and full-time employee status?

No. Even with top Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders now able to earn as much as $150,000 a year, they still are not being treated as full-time employees and do not receive health insurance. The big change was pay. After the squad’s widely publicized push for better compensation, rehearsal pay reportedly rose from $15 to $75 an hour and game-day pay from $500 to $2,500, with elite “Show Group” members able to reach the highest annual totals. Cheerleaders such as Megan McElaney have described the raise as life-changing, and teammates including Kleine Powell have said they intend to keep advocating for future members. But the raise did not change employment classification. The available reporting says the role remains part-time, with no health insurance benefits attached. That means the salary increase, while substantial, does not by itself bring the legal or workplace status that would typically come with full-time employment. That gap matters because the job is physically demanding and time-intensive. Many cheerleaders still balance outside full-time jobs with late-night training and performances, even as the Netflix series has increased the squad’s visibility, commercial opportunities and public scrutiny. So the answer, based on current reporting, is that higher pay has improved compensation dramatically, but it has not yet delivered health coverage or full-time status.

3 articles · Updated · bbc.co.uk · Jun 29

Season 3 of Netflix's "America's Sweethearts" follows the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders as viral attention turns team members into public figures beyond the NFL sidelines.
Kleine Powell and Megan McElaney said the exposure has boosted the squad's profile and even shaped tryouts, with this year the first to include applicants who had already seen the series.
That visibility also brings pressure: fans now film pre-game routines, performances spread online instantly, and cheerleaders juggle the attention with full-time jobs and training that can run until midnight.
Last season's pay fight remains part of the backdrop, with Powell and McElaney saying the squad's collective voice already won better compensation and could keep pushing change for future cheerleaders.
The series has widened the group's reach beyond football, helping build a fanbase through appearances at World Cup games in Dallas even as members insist they still see the role as mainly about dance and teamwork.