Vikings face backlash after male cheerleaders announced for football season

The male cheerleaders, Blaize Shiek and Louie Conn, were selected among 54 finalists.

By
Hayley Feland
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Minnesota Vikings male cheerleaders
Two Minnesota Vikings male cheerleaders: Louie Conn (left) and Blaize Shiek (right). (Minnesota Vikings Cheerleaders/Facebook)

The Minnesota Vikings are facing backlash after announcing two male cheerleaders for the upcoming football season.

“I’ve been a Vikings fan all my life… sigh. I need a new team now,” said Minnesota native Kevin Sorbo in a social media post that featured one of the new male cheerleaders, Blaize.

Another video gaining attention online shows Louie, the Vikings’ other male cheerleader, dancing with pom-poms alongside several female cheerleaders. In total, the Vikings have 35 cheerleaders listed on their 2025-26 cheerleading roster.

The male cheerleaders, Blaize Shiek and Louie Conn, tried out for the cheerleading squad and were selected among 54 finalists.

“I chose to try out for the Minnesota Vikings cheerleaders because I love the way they incorporate technique and style into their dancing,” said Conn in a video about this year’s Vikings cheerleader tryouts.

“I went to a lot of Vikings games with my family, mainly my dad,” said Shiek.”Was definitely watching the cheerleaders, thinking like, I wish I could do that. Being that role model for other little kids who don’t know that this is an option.”

In a video posted to Shiek’s Instagram account, he and Conn are shown in Vikings outfits.

According to MLFootball, the Minnesota Vikings are one of 12 NFL teams that will have male cheerleaders for the 2025-26 season. Others reportedly include the Los Angeles Rams, the Kansas City Chiefs, and the Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.

As videos of the male Vikings cheerleaders went viral, observers began expressing their thoughts on social media.

Some pointed out that males traditionally have been part of cheerleading squads, but those male cheerleaders had roles which were distinctly different from their female counterparts.

Other commentators expressed pointed outrage at the Vikings.

“As much as I love my Minnesota Vikings, I will not be supporting them any longer after I found out they have a male cheerleader,” said one social media user. “I’m so done with this woke, bulls–t!”

“I will not watch any Vikings games this coming NFL season,” said another. “BOYCOTT the VIKINGS.”

Alpha News reached out to the the Minnesota Vikings regarding the controversy. However, the team did not respond to a request for comment.

 

Hayley Feland

Hayley Feland previously worked as a journalist with The Minnesota Sun, The Wisconsin Daily Star, and The College Fix. She is a Minnesota native with a passion for politics and journalism.

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