Here’s the thing. I’m a Cowboys fan – born and raised in Dallas – so the fact that the Cowboys are known as America’s Team is just a way for me to smugly talk about why everyone else should be a fan too. But I always get the question…why is America’s team the one that hasn’t won a Super Bowl in over two decades? Fair question. It is a mixture of history and loyalty. Let me explain.
The history of the nickname ‘America’s Team’
The nickname America’s Team was actually first coined in 1978 in the blockbuster film Dallas Cowboys by narrator John Facenda, who noted that the team appeared so often on television that they were as recognizable as movie stars and American presidents. To see also : Lewis County, Lincoln high schools to represent Region II in the West Virginia cheerleading championship. That’s how they are “America’s Team”. The name stuck and is used today by media outlets and sports announcers.
While it may have been coined the year the Cowboys went to the Super Bowl (compared to today in 2023, 27 years after their last Super Bowl title), the name still holds up and the Cowboys are still one of the richest, most famous teams in the NFL that are being talked about. But why?
The Cowboys have been around since 1960 and still hold the record for most home and away games sold out. They have reached the Super Bowl eight times, the second most in NFL history. Out of eight appearances, the boys won five. Only the New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers have more Super Bowl wins than the Cowboys. They were the first team in NFL history to win three Super Bowls in four years. While it may have happened a long time ago, Dallas has had a long streak of back-to-back winning seasons, which builds a loyalty that remains.
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Emmitt Smith, Hall of Fame running back for the Dallas Cowboys (and namesake of my childhood cat), said, “When I was a kid, all you heard about was the Cowboys. I wanted to be like Tony Dorsett. To see also : Security guards surprise American football fans and steal spotlight from cheerleaders with shock routine. The Cowboys were like Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls – they always won.”
The meaning of the star logo
What about a star? Why is it blue and not red, white and blue if this is indeed the US team? Well, the star is less about America and more about Texas, but if you ask a Texan, they might tell you they’re one and the same. Texas is known as the Lone Star State because of its former status as an independent republic and as a reminder of its struggle for independence from Mexico. The state flag of Texas also has one star, and Dallas also has a hockey team known as the Dallas Stars. This may interest you : In 2022, Greensville County Public Schools lost a “…. The star is supposed to be a symbol of unity, and the blue color was chosen to represent calmness and peace, a kind of reminder of good sportsmanship. Do they always do this? Well, that’s another story.
The popularity persists
Still don’t understand the staying power of this team’s glory after 27 years of pain and disappointment? Well, the team’s popularity success didn’t happen overnight. It’s not just about their wins – it’s about the brand. Roger Staubach, a war veteran as a quarterback, America’s first darlings, Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, an iconic logo that evokes patriotism, and the team’s very name, Cowboys, played a role in the glory.
We can’t talk about the Cowboys without talking about Cowboys owner Jerry Jones who keeps the drama going and feeds the news cycle with his antics. From firing Tom Landry to comments like “I want some celebrity hole” to building a giant stadium with Victoria’s Secret inside, Jerry Jones knows how to get publicity – good or bad, it doesn’t matter. And drama attracts attention and gets people talking.
Obviously, fans want their teams to win, and there are always those fans we like to call “bandwagoners” who jump on the bandwagon just because the team won. Not so much cowboy fans, but just really loyal. Being a Cowboys fan isn’t about winning (though we wouldn’t complain about that). It’s more than an identity. That’s why we hold tightly to the successes of the 90s and the memories of past Super Bowl victories, and year after year we say (and some truly believe), “this is our year!”
