The Cowboys‘ home, AT&T Stadium, is scheduled to host the FIFA World Cup 2026, but the iconic arena will temporarily adopt a different name. The tournament protocol is set to rewrite the name displayed to billions of soccer fans worldwide.

“In keeping with FIFA’s strict rules on naming rights for competition venues,” wrote The Athletic’s Elias Burke recently. “It will be referred to as ‘Dallas Stadium’ for the duration of the tournament, despite being located in Arlington, a city near Dallas with a population of nearly 400,000.”

Although the stadium is branded as the five-time Super Bowl Champions’ home, it’s geographically located outside the city. The stadium’s distance from downtown Dallas is about 20 miles, which takes approximately 30 minutes to drive. It falls midway between Dallas and Fort Worth. Not just the location, these two cities also fall in different counties. While Dallas is in Dallas County, Arlington is in Tarrant County.

The stadium was built in 2009. As the home of the Jerry Jones-owned franchise, it was initially called Cowboys Stadium. However, the name changed to AT&T Stadium on July 25, 2013, after he sold the naming rights to the telecommunications company. The branding deal pays Jones between $17 to $19 million annually.

As mandated by FIFA’s official sponsorship regulations, it prohibits any brand linked to a stadium from publicly displaying the name unless it’s in the list of sponsors for the tournament. AT&T isn’t among the sponsors of the soccer competition.

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For all the control Jerry Jones wields in Arlington, the World Cup comes with rules even he cannot bend. When the FIFA World Cup 2026 arrives, AT&T Stadium will temporarily lose its iconic branding, undergoing a drastic change. It will be renamed simply to meet FIFA’s strict commercial regulations.

As a result, Jerry Jones will need to cover the enormous AT&T logo installed inside the stadium. This will further be implemented on the stadium’s roof alongside the outside section of the venue.

Moreover, any mention of the company will be hidden for the tournament, which is set to begin on June 11 and end on July 19, 2026.

AT& T stadium is scheduled to host nine games, including a semi-final in the FIFA World Cup 2026. But it’s not the first time a soccer game will be played at the Cowboys’ home.

In 2023, a high-voltage El Clásico between Real Madrid and Barcelona was hosted there, which was attended by 82,000 fans. Eventually, it successfully hosted other important soccer games, including the 2024 Nations League Finals between the United States and Mexico. Meanwhile, AT&T Stadium isn’t the only venue that is going to have a temporary name change in June and July.

Other NFL stadiums are adopting temporary names

The soccer World Cup will be hosted by three countries: the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Besides AT&T Stadium, several other NFL stadiums across the country will host games, and they have to adhere to the FIFA protocol if a brand name is attached to the stadium. The same process will be observed for the Mexican and Canadian stadiums.

The MetLife Stadium, located in New Jersey, is the home of both the New York Giants and the New York Jets. Due to the insurance company’s name associated with the stadium, it will be called New York or New Jersey Stadium, based on its location.

The Atlanta Falcons‘ franchise stadium is among the hosts of the soccer tournament, which is called the Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Hence, the car company’s name will not be advertised. Instead, it will be renamed to Atlanta Stadium.

Likewise, SoFi Stadium will carry the name Los Angeles Stadium, while Hard Rock Stadium will be identified as Miami Stadium, Gillette Stadium as Boston Stadium, Lumen Field as Seattle Stadium, Lincoln Financial Field as Philadelphia Stadium, NRG Stadium as Houston Stadium, and GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium as Kansas City Stadium.

As the tournament approaches, it is now official that FIFA’s strict sponsorship rules will strip AT&T Stadium of its corporate name, rebranding it “Dallas Stadium” for the 2026 World Cup, with other stadiums set to be renamed as well.