New Dallas Cowboys stadium to host 2014 NCAA Final Four
ARLINGTON – The Dallas Cowboys’ fortunes have been up and down on the field this year, but their record is perfect at their new stadium in Arlington. The $1.1 billion stadium is now 3-for-3 in bids for mega-sporting events after the announcement Wednesday that it would host the 2014 NCAA men’s basketball Final Four. The stadium, which opens in 2009, is already home to the 2010 NBA All-Star Game and the 2011 Super Bowl. Team owner Jerry Jones initially said he intended the new stadium to be not just a football venue but a showplace for the entire region. He said he’d go after the nation’s biggest events, and he has — with great success. “Substantive events begat other events,” Mr. Jones said Wednesday at a news conference at the stadium. “You’re passing a lot of scrutiny and a lot of tests. It’s putting a very creditable stamp on the stadium before it even opens.” Mike Slive, chairman of the NCAA selection committee, said that North Texas made a great bid, but it helped that the stadium already landed two other giant sporting events ahead of the Final Four. “We’re delighted to let somebody else suffer through learning how to do it just right and getting it ready for us,” Mr. Slive said. New Orleans, Atlanta, Houston and Indianapolis also were awarded Final Fours. Cowboys officials have said from the beginning that their goal was to become regular hosts of these mega-events, including Final Fours and Super Bowls. The stadium will also host an NCAA regional tournament a year before the Final Four, in 2013. Houston is hosting a Final Four in 2011 in addition to the one in 2016 it was awarded Wednesday. The other three host cities also have had this event on a frequent basis. The Final Four games in Arlington — to be held on April 5 and 7 — also have the potential to accommodate 93,000 fans and shatter the NCAA’s attendance record. The current record of 64,959 was set in 1987 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans when Indiana defeated Syracuse with a now legendary last-second shot. This fits neatly with Mr. Jones’ stated goal of also breaking the Super Bowl attendance record. NBA Commissioner David Stern also said in recent weeks that there was a possibility that 100,000 tickets could be sold to his league’s All-Star Game in Arlington, which would be a record crowd to see a basketball game in the U.S. While the Cowboys’ new glass and steel home was the basis for the bid, it turned out to be just part of the appeal to the NCAA. Bill Lively, who worked on the region’s “Athletes and Arts” themed presentation, said the 10-member selection committee was told to think of the proposal as a barbell. At one end was the new Cowboys stadium, and at the other end was the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts. “Bring your basketball teams and their coaches and alumni and fans, and they will play in the greatest arena for the biggest audience ever to see a basketball game,” Mr. Lively said. That was the obvious part of the pitch. Besides that, Mr. Lively said, regional officials told the NCAA to have those teams bring their glee clubs, chorales, bands and orchestras to perform in Dallas’s expanding Arts District. The $338 million Dallas Center for the Performing Arts, which also opens in 2009, will include an opera house, theater, performance hall and performance park. Tim Allen, senior associate commissioner of the Big 12 Conference, said the downtown Dallas Arts District could be home for many of the tournament’s signature off-the-court events, such as the Big Dance and Hoop City. “The Jones family and the people that are building the performing arts center appreciate both areas,” Mr. Lively said. “We appreciate athletics and entertainment, and we appreciate the arts. When we made this extraordinary bid, we decided that one of the best ways to do it was to portray Dallas and region for all of what it represents.” John Scovell, who led the 1986 Final Four host committee, said that tournament was an important moment in Dallas history. Professional basketball was just starting to gain a toehold in an area steeped more in the traditions of the gridiron than the hardwood. “It’s always said our two biggest sports are football and spring football,” Mr. Scovell joked. He said that weekend at Reunion Arena stirred enthusiasm for basketball and signaled that North Texas would become a diverse sports region, eventually creating a fan base for all four major team sports. “It’s just the confirmation of the sports legacy that exists here in North Texas,” he said about the new Final Four. “That’s a reputation that we have been building, and it was the ’86 games that put us on the map.” Philip Jones, president and CEO of the Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau, said that landing the Final Four as well as the other events is pushing the region into a different category. “It puts us on a list of a select few key cities in America that host signature events of this size,” he said, specifically mentioning New Orleans, Atlanta and South Florida. “That’s not something that Dallas could have done in the past without the investment that’s been made in the stadium and the regional collaboration and cooperation.” He said the buzz generated by these announcements makes people look at his city with a fresh perspective and notice what he calls a “major renaissance.” “A lot of times, we talk to clients who haven’t been to Dallas in several years and they still think of Dallas from that 1970s, ’80s J.R. Ewing image,” he said. Now, Philip Jones said, the bureau has booked about a dozen groups that chose Dallas for a meeting at least partially because the region was hosting Super Bowl XLV. Also, he said that the 2007-08 fiscal year was the bureau’s best ever for future bookings, and the Super Bowl has been one of his best selling points. The timing of the Final Four announcement couldn’t be better for him, he said, noting that the bureau is hosting a two-day gathering for 40 major meeting and convention planners. He said he knows what his opening pitch will be at 8:30 a.m. Thursday: “We’ve got great news. Since you were last here, we booked the NBA All-Star Game and the men’s Final Four.” Staff writer Brandon George contributed to this report. Confirmed sporting events at the new Dallas Cowboys stadium in Arlington Oct. 3, 2009: Texas A&M vs. Arkansas football game (10-year contract with options of up to 20 more years) Dec. 5, 2009: Big 12 football championship Jan. 2, 2010: AT&T Cotton Bowl (10 year contract with options of up to 25 more years) Feb. 14, 2010: NBA All-Star game Dec. 4, 2010: Big 12 football championship Feb. 6, 2011: Super Bowl XLV Oct. 5, 2013: Notre Dame vs. Arizona State football April 5 and 7, 2014: NCAA Final Four Possible events at the new Dallas Cowboys stadium in Arlington Undetermined date: Texas Tech vs. Oklahoma State football Dec. 19, 2009: Texas vs. North Carolina basketball Undetermined date: NCAA Lacrosse Final Four 
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