Chiefs’ cheerleaders took the stage during a Super Bowl LIVE pep rally hosted by play-by-play announcer Mitch Holthus in downtown Miami before Super Bowl LIV in 2020.
Tammy Ljungblad
The Kansas City Star
Photos from The Star’s archives show the legacy of the Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders and the Chiefettes since the early days of the NFL franchise in the 1960s.
Today’s Chiefs fans are accustom to seeing the high-kicking performances of the team’s cheerleaders, but those types of choreographed dance routines were left to the Chiefettes, a synchronized dance team, for about 20 years early in the Chiefs’ history.
The cheer squads on the the field for the Chiefs in those early years were much like the traditional cheer squads on the sidelines at college and high school football games. In fact, the earliest Chiefs cheers squads were sort of all-star cheerleader teams made of some of the area’s best college and high school cheerleaders. Women and men were on those early squads.
The Chiefs cheerleaders and the Chiefettes existed simultaneously on the field early on and eventually evolved into the single group fans know now as the Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders. Along with firing up the crowd, they are also a high-functioning dance team entertaining fans with their synchronized routines on the sidelines and on the field like their predecessors the Chiefettes.
From secretary to Chiefs cheerleader, Margaret Sprague cheers for the team on the sidelines. During the week in 1967, she and her sister were private secretaries to Jack Steadman, Chiefs general manager and executive vice-president for the team. Kansas City Star archives
The next time the crowd erupts at Arrowhead Stadium, look to the sidelines. There, in every leap, smile, and cheer, is the living legacy of six decades of cheerleaders.
Sydna Bunton models the uniforms that will be worn by the Arrowettes at Arrowhead Stadium, the new home of the Kansas City Chiefs. The Arrowettes were not cheerleaders but were the official hostesses and ushers at the newly opened stadium in 1972. Kansas City Star archives
From vintage uniforms to modern displays of athleticism, see these photos for a look at how these performers have inspired fans and added to the Chiefs’ legacy. A celebration of pride, energy, and tradition for anyone who loves the heart of Chiefs Kingdom.
Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders pose in formation in 1978. Kansas City Chiefs archives
Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders, men and women, at Municipal Stadium in 1967. Courtesy of Diane Euston
Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders Paula Avery, left, and Jennifer Horrell pose with a young fan during a preseason event in 1991. The Kansas City archives
Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders in 2014. Kansas City Star archives
The Chiefettes drill team cheers for the home team from the stands of Municipal Stadium in 1967. Kansas City Star archives
Larry Euston, a KC Chiefs cheerleader at Super Bowl I in 1967, helps with squad tryouts held at Ward Parkway shopping center. Diane Euston
Casey Eike, 17, left, Renata Rosga, 15, Betsy Roark, 16, Debbie Davis, 15, and Martha Jones, 15, were among more than 350 junior high and high school students who auditioned for the Chiefettes, a 50-member drill team which performed at all of the Kansas City Chiefs’ home games. Kansas City Star archives
More than 250 women attended the audition, but there are only 18 openings on the 36-member Chiefettes squad in 1981. Kansas City Star archives
Harriet Schaller auditioned for the Chiefettes in 1968. Kansas City Star archives
A member of the Kansas City Chiefs Chiefettes, left, has her outfitted adjusted before the start of a home football game at Arrowhead Stadium in 1970. Kansas City Star archives
Two innovations mark the 1978 Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders squad: new uniforms and new formations. Chiefs officials, adamant in their refusal to copy the cheesecake-style outfits made popular by the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, have chosen uniforms one official describes as “classy but showy.” Kansas City Star archives
The Kansas City Chiefs cheerleading squad in Los Angeles in January 1967 for Super Bowl I. Courtesy of Diane Euston
Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleader Angel Block leads girls ages 5-12 at the second cheerleading and dance clinic at the Chiefs’ indoor practice facility at Arrowhead Stadium in 1997. Kansas City Star archives
John Erskine suffers through a kiss from two Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders during a USO-style variety show for Marines and their families at Municipal Auditorium. Kansas City Star archives
Kansas City Chiefs’ cheerleaders cheered as the team faced the Minnesota Vikings in Super Bowl IV in 1970 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. Kansas City Chiefs archives
Kansas City Chiefs’ cheerleaders took the stage during a Super Bowl LIVE pep rally hosted by play-by-play announcer Mitch Holthus in downtown Miami before Super Bowl LIV in 2020. Tammy Ljungblad Kansas City Star archives
Natalie White, a former Kansas City Chiefs cheerleader, took a selfie with Neil Smith, the Chiefs defensive end, in 2023 at Pub Rock Live, a Chief’s bar in Scottsdale, Arizona. White was 17-years-old when she cheered for the Chiefs. White now lives in Las Vegas and traveled to Arizona for Super Bowl LVII. Tammy Ljungblad Kansas City Star archives
The Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders had reason to cheer in the team’s 33-19 win over the Denver Broncos in 2008 at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City. Kansas City Star archives
Susie Derouchey, Lindsay Freeman, and Mary Verbeck during the event at the Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleader calendar unveiling at McCoy’s Pub in 2009. Kansas City Star archives
Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders, Hayley, left, and Sara C., give some love to a kitten named Pineapple in 2015 at an animal shelter as part of National Animal Shelter and Rescue Appreciation Week. Kansas City Star archives
The Kansas City archives
Cheerleaders lead the Kansas City Chiefs players on to the field before the start of a game against the Seattle Seahawks on August 21, 2015 at Arrowhead Stadium. Kansas City Star archives
Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleader auditions, shown from 2023, typically draw applicants from nearby states. For most NFL teams, the minimum age for cheerleaders is 18. Courtesy the Kansas City Chiefs
Monty Davis is a video producer and has been with The Kansas City Star for 20 years. He specializes in telling human interest video stories using mobile gear such as his iPhone 13 Pro. Recently he took up an interest in deltiology which is the study and collection of postcards. From that came a new series for The Star called Past | Present. When he’s not working, he’s spending time with family, his pugs, kayaking and reading historical biographies about the American Revolution and the Civil War.
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