17 wild rules the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders have to follow

Obsessed with the cult-like phenomenon that is the DCC after watching Netflix's buzzy new docu-series America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders? Same. Like, memorising the 'Thunderstruck' routine at this very moment-levels of saaaame. But some things to consider before ordering pom-poms: (1) the DCC barely get paid and it's truly appalling, and (2) they have more rules than Dua Lipa circa 2017. And a lot of them are best described as 🙃🙃🙃.

While the Netflix doc covered some of the DCC's guidelines, we went ahead and did some additional sleuthing.

Presenting: All the Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders rules we could get our hands on

1. You have to look "well-proportioned" in dance wear.

2. You must "wear shades that complement your natural beauty" when it comes to makeup.
   

   
   

3. Glitter is a no. The DCC encourages rookies to "choose mostly mattes for eye shadows" and asks that they "avoid a very glittery look."

4. Dancers are told to "avoid false eyelashes that are very solid or very long, as they can make eyes appear heavy and too dark."

5. "Loud/bright" cheek and lip colours should be avoided in favour of "vibrant neutral tones."
   

6. Don't go overboard on your contour/highlighter and avoid spray tans with "orange tones."

7. Absolutely NO visible tattoos.

8. Dating NFL players is strictly prohibited. As one former cheerleader put it on Inside Edition, "no fraternising with the players — not dating the players, you couldn't even be around the players."

9. No doing sponsored content on Instagram. The Huffington Post confirmed this when they spoke to an anonymous former cheerleader from 2021, who said cheerleaders aren't allowed to supplement their income with spon-con or influencing.
   

10. You have to maintain your weight. And we saw the repercussions of this regressive/messed up policy on the docu-series. As former DCC Victoria Kalina put it, "You don't get a new uniform. Like, once you're fitted for that uniform, that size is the size that you get. You don't get to go up. If you go up, they're like, 'Why does this not fit you?'"

11. No going out in jeans. At least back in the early years of the squad!

12. No chewing gum, a rule which dates back to the days of director Suzanne Mitchell. Actually, Netflix got their hands on a rule book from her era, where it's written in all-caps: "NO GUM, CANDY, SOFT DRINKS, ETC. ARE ALLOWED IN THE STUDIO. CANDY IS FATTENING & GUM IS UNLADYLIKE!" Oh, and right under that it reads "excessive intake of water during any rehearsal is not permitted." Gonna hope/assume this rule is no longer part of the official book!
    

13. No pouting.

14. You need to be in full hair and makeup every day.

15. You can't be late to, or miss, rehearsal.

16. You have to eat a "proper diet." We saw this part of the rule book in Netflix's docu-series, and based on the fact that Kelli's name is at the top, it seems somewhat contemporary. Notes? Take vitamins, eat a healthy breakfast, drink 8 glasses of water a day, and don't eat after 6:00 p.m. The note at the bottom also gives some insight into the toxic beauty standards of the team's leaders.

17. You can't appear anywhere alcohol is served or attend parties. And shockingly this isn't even a throwback rule from the 1970s — the New York Times reported on it in 2018.

Welp. This has been a lot. Very much here for the DCC doing whatever they want in the future!

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