Which NFL Team Was the First to Have Cheerleaders?

The first professional American football team to have cheerleaders was the New York Jets in 1968.

The Green Bay Packers

In order to understand how cheerleaders became such an integral part of American football culture, it is important to know which NFL team was the first to have cheerleaders. That team was the Green Bay Packers, who began using cheerleaders in 1931.

While the idea of having partially clad women on the sidelines of a sporting event might seem like a recent development, it actually has quite a long history. The first known instance of cheerleading occurred in 1869 at Princeton University, where students led cheers for the school’s football team. In 1897, the University of Minnesota became the first school to use female cheerleaders.

The first professional football game was played in 1892, but it wasn’t until 1931 that an NFL team decided to use cheerleaders. That team was the Green Bay Packers, who began using a group of women known as the “Golden Girls” to lead cheers at their games.

Since then, cheerleading has become an integral part of American football culture. It wasn’t until 1973 that another major professional sports league, Major League Baseball, decided to use cheerleaders. Today, nearly every professional and collegiate sporting organization in the United States uses cheerleaders in some capacity.

The New York Jets

In 1964, the New York Jets became the first professional football team to have cheerleaders. The group was originally called the “Jetsons” but was later changed to the “New Yorketing Whites.” The New York Times reported that the cheerleaders were “a huge success” and that they would be featured on future telecasts of Jets games.

The Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys were the first NFL team to have cheerleaders, debuting their now-famous squad during the 1960 season. The idea was originally conceived by then-Cowboys head coach Tom Landry and team general manager Tex Schramm, who both thought that adding a group of scantily-clad dancers would add a new level of excitement to the game experience for fans.

Since then, cheerleading squads have become a staple of almost every NFL team, with each squad spending countless hours practicing their routines and working to perfect their craft. Every year, cheerleaders from across the league compete in the annual NFL Cheerleader Playoffs, where they battle it out for the chance to be crowned the best in the business.