Us Weekly

Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders Reveal 2026-2027 Team Roster After Surprise Exits

The Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' 2026-2027 roster is certainly something to cheer for.

The DCC team was announced early on Thursday, July 16, with the squad's official Instagram captioning the first pic, "Officially earned their stars ⭐️. Introducing your 2026-2027 Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders!"

The roster included many returning vets and eight rookies. Emily Awbrey and Savanna Dastrup, who were each cut last year during America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders season 3, both made the team this time around.

"This is an absolute dream come true!! I am so excited and am so so grateful for this opportunity!!! Go Cowboys!!" Savannah, 23, commented, while Emily, also 23, added, "I'm genuinely speechless. No words can describe this 💙."

Renowned DCC director Kelli Finglass and head choreographer Judy Trammell once again enlisted a panel of experts to help them choose the incoming class of NFL cheerleaders. The DCC vets and rookies underwent a rigorous training camp earlier this summer, where Marissa Phillips, Charly Barby, Sophia Laufer, Kennedy Ruff, Anna Kate Sundvold, McKenna Gehrke, Camille Sturdivant and Kylie Dickson were named the incoming group leaders.

Just months earlier, DCC fans saw the likes of Megan McElaney, Kleine Powell and Reece Weaver announce their respective retirements on the latest season of America's Sweethearts.

While Megan, 25, and Kleine, 26, had each completed five years with the iconic cheer squad, Reece, 24, left after three seasons.

"I think right now it's just trying to figure out what life is and being excited for all the things that are thrown at us," Reece exclusively told Us Weeklyin June, revealing she recently relocated to Alabama with husband Will Allman. "We're just soaking in this time right now. I don't want to say that we're empty nesters - because that's kind of where our parents are right now, they can just kind of pick up and go wherever - but we are kind of living in our empty nester season."

Reece, who noted her eventual "dream" to dance on Broadway, is currently content in her Alabama era.

"We are so busy. Events and appearances, we are in and we are out," she acknowledged to Us of the DCC schedule. "I think sometimes we get caught up in, ‘This is a job. We gotta execute.' Which, of course, we want to make sure that we keep our standards high and show the world who we are, but I often think that I missed out on maybe looking around the corner, soaking it in and taking a few deep breaths."

Reece added at the time, sharing advice for future DCC dancers, "There are some really cool twists and turns and fun things that you get to experience. You don't want to miss out on them, so soak it all in."

As for Kleine, she's gearing up for her first season on the DCC All-Stars alumni team.

"When y'all thought I was retiring," she wrote via Instagram on July 1. "I'm back for my first season as a DCC All-Star."

Copyright 2026 Us Weekly. All rights reserved

This story was originally published July 16, 2026 at 4:00 AM.

Get one year of unlimited digital access for $159.99
#ReadLocal

Only 44¢ per day

SUBSCRIBE NOW