Wednesday (June 11, 2025) was a big day for soccer in Dallas, with two decisions made by the Dallas City Council that will impact pro soccer in the city and DFW. Dallas Trinity FC, Atletico Dallas, and – to a lesser extent – FC Dallas were part of it.
First, a disclaimer: I am not a City of Dallas politics reporter, nor a sports business reporter. I won’t be digging into those two areas. I’m just going to talk about the soccer side.
Dallas Trinity – Training Facility
In the morning, the City of Dallas approved a practice facility for the Dallas Wings, four soccer fields, and a trail in Phase I of a development plan for Joey Georgusis Park located in west Oak Cliff. The almost 200-acre site was donated by the Georgusis family in 2007 to honor their son.
While the measure does not specifically name the Phase 1 fields as a Dallas Trinity training location, the Mayor and Council named-dropped Dallas Trinity multiple times.
Phase II, currently in the planning stages but not yet approved, includes an official Dallas Trinity FC training facility, outdoor basketball facilities, and other associated park amenities.
Dallas Trinity already calls the Cotton Bowl home, having played there for season one of their two-season (with options) lease. Dallas Trinity plays in the USL Super League.
Atletico Dallas – Cotton Bowl and MoneyGram
In the evening, another measure was unanimously passed by the City Council agreeing to a three-year lease (with options) for Atletico Dallas to play their home matches at the Cotton Bowl. The measure included a three-year agreement (with options) for Atletico to take over management of the MoneyGram Soccer Complex.
The deal includes Atletico paying a usage fee of $12,500 per game at the Cotton Bowl and the City agreeing to buy $1 million worth of tickets for 20 games each season.
Atletico has partnered with Pioneer Sports & Entertainment out of California to run the MoneyGram facility. MoneyGram is currently being managed by FC Dallas, but the city is apparently terminating that contract to give it to Atletico instead, with a 6-month transition period.
The biggest controversy surrounding the new agreement is the transfer of control of MoneyGram from FC Dallas, who had four years left on their contract, to Atletico Dallas. Something FC Dallas hotly contested, arriving in force at the council meeting.
The arguments from each side dig deep into the city’s contracts and the Dallas Parks Department. For much better coverage of the MoneyGram situation, Devyani Chhetri at the Dallas Morning News seems to be well on top of things.
Atletico Dallas is also part of a $70 million project in Garland that will include training fields and offices for the club as part of the complex. The Garland City Council will vote to finalize the training facility and offices agreement on June 17.
Originally, when Atletico was only looking at the USL Championship, they were setting up a stadium at that same Garland location. But the announcement of USL’s division one league has thrown a massive curveball at everyone.
What Does it All Mean?
There were various versions of two phrases repeated by the City of Dallas yesterday that are quite telling in my eyes. “There are a lot of teams named Dallas that don’t play in Dallas,” and “We want to work with teams that want to play games in the city.”
And at the end of the day, that’s the key here.
Both Dallas Trinity and Atletico Dallas have a desire to develop stadiums of their own. Both teams are adamant that they want to be a team for Dallas, playing in Dallas.
These new deals approved by the city yesterday are clear signs that the City wants to work with both clubs. It seems quite likely that stadium deals are being worked on. These kinds of stadium deals are complicated and take time; it may take a couple of years to get approved and built.
So at launch, both teams need a 70-yard wide, grass, pro-capable soccer field in a stadium. The Cotton Bowl fits the bill. At least temporarily. There aren’t any other options to speak of, aside from perhaps Choctaw Stadium, which isn’t grass and isn’t in Dallas.
In the short run, both teams get a home at the Cotton Bowl, the city gets revenue for Fair Park, and the groundwork gets laid for something else to be built.
One complication moving forward is that the two clubs potentially have different stadium needs.
Dallas Trinity, by the Division One women’s rule, needs a stadium that will hold a minimum of 5,000 fans. Trinity averaged 3,546 fans in 2024-25 with peaks around 5k. NWSL, the other Division One ladies league, averaged 11k fans a game last season.
Atletico Dallas, which is after a spot in the new, as yet unnamed, USL Division One men’s league, needs, by rule, a venue that holds at a minimum 15,000 fans.
By contrast, Toyota Stadium in Frisco – home of FC Dallas – post remodel is slated to hold 22,500 fans.
So, is the City of Dallas looking to build one venue for both Dallas Trinity FC and Atletico Dallas? Or will the divergent needs mean two stadiums? The requirements for Atletico would mean a construction cost about three times as expensive as the stated needs for Dallas Trinity.
It might depend on Dallas ISD, the City, and perhaps even the county. Private investment would certainly be involved as well, I would think.
The most economical answer is almost certainly a shared venue, although that might complicate funding. With the two teams, as things stand now, playing opposite calendar seasons, it’s not as complicated as one might think to work out a schedule.
So stay tuned. These are only the first steps on the road to a potential permanent venue (or venues?) for the two clubs in the City of Dallas.
Brought to you by the same Parks Dept that installed The Standing Wave on the Trinity River.
City of Dallas could be on the hook for big $$$.