- The Dallas Cowboys intend to develop a sports and entertainment district on the land surrounding AT&T Stadium, mirroring the team’s $2 billion The Star campus in Frisco.
- Arlington owns the 3 million-square-foot stadium and approved $273 million in upgrades in April under a lease extension that keeps the team there through at least 2055.
- The plan would make four major sports-anchored mixed-use districts in the works across DFW, as team owners push to turn venues into year-round destinations.
The Dallas Cowboys plan a sports and entertainment district around AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Chief Operating Officer Stephen Jones told Sportico, according to Bisnow. The team wants the AT&T Stadium development to replicate what it built at The Star, its roughly $2 billion headquarters district in Frisco.
Jones said the team is close to moving forward, though no size, budget or timeline has been disclosed.
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The Star Set the Template
The Cowboys moved into AT&T Stadium in 2009 but chose to build their first real estate play about 40 miles northwest in Frisco. Jones said the team went there first because it was one of North Texas’ hottest real estate markets at the time.
The Star opened in 2016 on 91 acres and anchors the team’s world headquarters and practice facility, plus a 50-yard replica turf field open to the public. The district now holds more than 1.5 million square feet of office space, the 300-room Omni Frisco Hotel, a 170-unit luxury multifamily tower, a 300,000-square-foot medical office building and about 225,000 square feet of restaurants and retail.
The Details
The city of Arlington owns the 3 million-square-foot stadium. In April, city officials agreed to spend $273 million on facility improvements as part of a lease renewal that keeps the Cowboys, which Forbes ranks as the world’s most valuable sports franchise, in Arlington until at least 2055.
The stadium sits inside the Arlington Entertainment District alongside the Texas Rangers’ Globe Life Field, Choctaw Stadium, two high-end Loews hotels, museums, restaurants and apartments. The Rangers partnered with the Cordish Cos. in 2016 on the $250 million Texas Live fan venue next to Globe Life Field.
DFW’s Stadium District Arms Race
Sports-anchored mixed-use projects have spread nationally as team owners try to turn the areas around their venues into year-round destinations. The Green Bay Packers’ Titletown District next to Lambeau Field and the Atlanta Braves’ The Battery in Cobb County are the most cited success stories.
North Texas already has three large districts in motion. The Dallas Stars plan a $3 billion project at The Shops at Willow Bend mall in Plano, and earlier this month the Mavericks started the process of building a Valley View arena district at the former mall site in North Dallas. This week, Hunt Sports Development unveiled plans for a mixed-use district around the Frisco stadium used by Dallas’ Major League Soccer franchise.
Why It Matters
A Cowboys-led project would bring the region’s most valuable sports brand into direct competition with its peers for tenants, hotel guests and retail spending. Arlington’s existing cluster of venues and hotels gives the team a head start that greenfield projects lack.
Jones himself cautioned that placing a team on a site doesn’t automatically lift surrounding land values. That warning matters as DFW absorbs several of these districts at once, following the Stars relocation plan and the Mavericks’ move.
What’s Next
Watch for the Cowboys to reveal a site plan, development partners and any public financing request tied to the city-owned stadium land. With the lease secured through 2055, the team has a long runway to phase the project, but the pace of rival districts in Plano, Dallas and Frisco will shape how much tenant demand is left.
