TV shows we love: America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

What does the world’s most famous cheerleading team have in common with Cyprus? Nothing right? That’s what I thought too – until I sat down to watch Netflix’ newest series…

America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders was meant to be escapism for me. I grew playing sports, and have always admired cheerleaders. So many people dismiss the sport as a sideline diversion: porn with pom poms! But at an elite level, the dedication and athleticism are unrivalled.

Done right, cheerleading requires immense strength and flexibility, not to mention non-stop practice, teamwork and precise execution under intense pressure. It’s like ballet: the effortless grace we see belies the blood, sweat and tears that go into the final performance.

But that’s not the bit that made me think of our island. What reminded me so strongly of Cyprus were the absurd salaries. Despite making millions for their franchise owners, the elite level ladies of the DCC (each year thousands apply; just 36 make the team) are wildly underpaid.

Most of them work two jobs: the head cheerleader is a nurse; others struggle to make ends meet in teaching, sales, and IT. Evenings are spent at practice, weekends are performances. As Christmas rolls around, they’re expected to work 21 days in a row.

And, for all this, they make what one DCC veteran describes as the same wage as a “full-time Chick-fil-A worker”.

Like all of director Greg Whitley’s previous documentaries (Wrestlers, Cheer and Last Chance U), America’s Sweethearts attracts two distinct audiences…

There are those who will marvel at the ease, the beauty, and – in this case – the overt sex appeal of the routines (the ‘Thunderstruck’ sequence will live rent free in your head for months!).

And then there are those who will see their own lives in the overworked, underpaid, and effectively voiceless cheerleaders.

Glitz and glam, or grit and grind. Where do you fall?