A Super Bowl First: No Cheerleaders

Six teams have no squads, and two of those teams play Sunday
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Suggested by anothernewsjunkie
Posted Feb 2, 2011 11:19 AM CST
Updated Feb 5, 2011 7:00 PM CST
A Super Bowl First: No Cheerleaders
San Francisco 49ers cheerleaders perform before the NFL Football match between the Denver Broncos and San Francisco 49ers at Wembley Stadium in London, Sunday Oct. 31, 2010.   (AP Photo/Tom Hevezi)

Not in the Super Bowl this year: the Chicago Bears, the New York Jets … and the cheerleaders. For the first time in the game’s 45-year history, there will be no sideline supporters in attendance, because the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers just so happen to be two of the six NFL teams without pom-pom squads. And though, as an NFL rep tells Fox News, the league feels cheerleaders “enhance the overall game day experience,” neither team will be bringing in substitutes.

Market research convinced the Packers to get rid of their cheerleaders in 1988 because, apparently, the fans didn’t care. The Steelerettes were dissolved even earlier, in 1970, due to an “organizational decision.” Some are sad at the loss of, as one sports host calls it, “the tradition of beautiful and talented women cheering on their men in a game of athletic skill and grace.” But another sports expert says cheerleaders are just “entertainment for people who [aren’t] really there for the game,” and it’s very likely no one will even notice their absence.
(More Super Bowl stories.)

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