Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, Ricky Martin and Pedro Sampaio Electrify Brazil at NFL’s Rio Debut
“I can’t believe cheerleaders are actually real,” exclaimed a fan who had traveled to Maracanã Stadium to see the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders. Earlier, the squad performed the high kicks and synchronized jump splits of their signature “Thunderstruck” routine, opening the NFL’s first game in Rio de Janeiro.
The league is staging a record nine international games this season, each designed to feel like a mini Super Bowl. About 5,200 miles from their home base, the Dallas Cowboys were the designated home team against the Baltimore Ravens, bringing the smoke machines, rhinestones and other hallmarks of an AT&T Stadium experience.
The Cowboys have built their identity as “America’s Team,” and the cheerleaders are a central part of that brand. Netflix’s series *America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders*, now filming its fourth season in Brazil, offers viewers a look at the lives and intense training of the 36 women.
Over the loudspeaker, a voice announced: “Ladies and gentlemen, here they are…often imitated, never equaled. Internationally acclaimed, your Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders!” For fans who had watched the squad on television and tried the choreography on TikTok, the moment was tangible: the seemingly impossible jump splits, the hair flips that seemed to create their own wind, and the iconic uniforms now part of the Smithsonian’s collection.
For Charly Barby, whose comeback story is featured in the docuseries, Rio held special meaning. After being cut at the end of training camp the first year she auditioned, she spent the next year preparing for a second chance. “I just wanted to be on this team so bad,” she said. “So hearing ‘never equaled’ along with the words ‘internationally acclaimed’ before performing at my first out‑of‑country game… I had full‑body chills. I was in tears by the jump split.”
Cheerleader Kylie Dickson agreed that Brazil gave the loudest response to “Thunderstruck” she had ever heard, so loud that the squad could not hear the music cue for their next routine, “Welcome to the Jungle.” When asked what sets Brazilian fans apart, one word came up repeatedly: passion. The city that hosted the World Cup and the Olympics poured its Carioca hospitality into a game week that stretched far beyond Maracanã.
The spectacle included a massive Cowboys‑Ravens jersey sculpted from Copacabana sand and a helmet‑shaped hot‑air balloon rising over Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas. There was also heart: a summit examined sport’s role in advancing inclusion for women ahead of Brazil’s 2027 Women’s World Cup. Cheerleaders from both teams led flag‑football clinics encouraging women and youth to try the sport before its LA28 Olympic debut. The world premiere of *After the Impact: The Story of the Coritiba Crocodiles* chronicled a Brazilian football team’s rise to a national championship after losing three teammates in a bus accident.
Parties ranged from the U.S. Embassy’s Huddle Abroad Rio, which combined sports diplomacy with churrasco and bossa nova at Fogo de Chão, to an NFL soirée on the lagoon featuring caipirinhas, a samba band and private hot‑air balloon rides. Overhead, Christ the Redeemer was illuminated for the occasion, a gesture reserved for the country’s biggest cultural moments. At night, the statue displayed a projected green‑and‑yellow jersey bearing the message “O Rio também joga.” Rio plays, too.
The DCC visited the monument at sunrise, and, according to Sophia Brown, “absolutely worth the 4 a.m. wake‑up call.” The early visit grounded the team before a packed week of rehearsals; Rio marked the first time all 36 cheerleaders performed at a regular‑season NFL International game, and for many it was the longest flight of their lives. The squad also completed more than ten full run‑throughs at Maracanã with headliners Pedro Sampaio and Ricky Martin.
Sampaio noted the performance was the first NFL halftime show headlined by two openly LGBTQ+ men. “The intensity of the crowd in Brazil when it comes to sports and music… it’s explosive,” Martin added. “Listen, I love Germany, I love Australia, I love everybody, everything’s beautiful. But I’m sorry, this is going to be the best. I’m unapologetic about that!”
To choreograph the show, Sampaio enlisted Parris Goebel, whose credits include Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Rihanna, as well as artistic direction for Vogue World: Paris in 2024. In her first collaboration with a Brazilian artist, Goebel blended the DCC’s crisp formations with funk, samba, hip‑hop, twerking and the voguing of Brazil’s ballroom scene.
On game day the cheerleaders arrived five hours early for a full run‑through. In Dallas they perform on artificial turf in a climate‑controlled stadium; in Rio they had to shift their weight to their toes to dance on grass. The hot, humid, occasionally windy weather required beauty adjustments as well. “Less lip gloss!” Charly said, while Kylie layered extra liquid foundation over her usual combination of liquid and powder.
Their rotating spots along the sidelines give the cheerleaders a front‑row view of game‑day fashion, and they are always scouting new trends. In Rio they even spotted homemade DCC uniforms, Madie Krueger reported.
For her first NFL game, influencer and entrepreneur Virginia Fonseca—who has more than 55 million followers on Instagram—wore a custom corset made from deconstructed Nike soccer cleats, oversized jeans, a pink Hermès Kelly, mirrored wrap‑around sunglasses and bracelets by Cartier and Jacob & Co. “I love seeing people move beyond simply following what’s popular and start developing their own identity,” she said of game‑day style.
Watching teammate Jenna Waller provide sign‑language interpretation for the U.S. national anthem was another highlight for the DCC squad.