THE Dallas Cowboys might just have ended a huge controversy over their ever-popular cheerleaders – with a “life-changing” decision.
Fans were shocked to hear on Netflix series America’s Sweethearts that the dedicated dancers were poorly paid by the world’s richest sports team.
Even Charlotte Jones, the daughter of franchise owner Jerry Jones, admitted their low salary was an issue.
She told the first series of the documentary: “There’s a lot of cynicism around pay for NFL cheerleaders — as it should be. They’re not paid a lot.”
But she also defended the situation by suggesting many dancers saw their status with the Cowboys as the perfect stage to confirm their talent and develop their skills.
However, when the second series of America’s Sweethearts was launched on Wednesday one cheerleader revealed the franchise have had a radical re-think over pay.
A previous settlement in 2019 led to wages being doubled from $200 a week to $400.
But that followed the Cowboys settling a lawsuit with a former cheerleader.
The dancers have continued to push for more money since then.
And now the Cowboys have reportedly increased pay by FOUR times – taking it up to around $1,600.
Four-year veteran cheerleader Megan McElaney said: “Our efforts were heard and they wanted to give us a raise.
“And we ended up getting a 400 percent increase, which is like, life-changing.”
And former Cowboys dancer Jada McLean added; “Happy isn’t even the right word for it.
“I think I was just … kind of felt, like, a relief, like everything had paid off. And it was, you know, finally, we were done fighting.”
America’s Sweethearts opened the eyes of football lovers to just how hard the cheerleaders need to work to fulfil their dazzling and energetic role entertaining crowds.
Many even take second jobs while practicing dancing 30 to 40 hours a week.
However, Charlotte Jones told the Netflix show the cheerleaders “don’t come here for the money”.
She claimed: “They come here for something that’s actually bigger than that to them.
‘They have a passion for dance. There are not a lot of opportunities in the field of dance to get to perform at an elite level. It is about being a part of something bigger than themselves.
‘It is about a sisterhood that they are able to form, about relationships that they have for the rest of their life.
“They have a chance to feel like they are valued, they are special, and they are making a difference.
“When the women come here, they find their passion and they find their purpose.”
Nonetheless, many fans might reckon it’s poor form to have paid the cheerleaders so modestly for so long – especially as the Cowboys top Forbes’ sporting wealth list with a valuation of $10.1billion.
