The Minnesota Vikings are showing support for the team’s two male cheerleaders, Blaize Shiek and Louie Conn, who have faced homophobic and hateful backlash since being announced as members of the 2025 squad.

“While many fans may be seeing male cheerleaders for the first time at Vikings games, male cheerleaders have been part of previous Vikings teams and have long been associated with collegiate and professional cheerleading,” the team said in a statement to Today.com. “In 2025, approximately one-third of NFL teams have male cheerleaders.”