The Ford Center at The Star
A 12,000-seat indoor sports and events venue serving as the Dallas Cowboys' practice facility at The Star in Frisco, Texas.
Last updated August 24, 2026
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Overview
The Ford Center at The Star is a 12,000-seat indoor stadium and multipurpose events venue in Frisco, Texas. It forms part of The Star, the Dallas Cowboys' headquarters, training complex, and mixed-use development. The facility is primarily associated with the Cowboys' football operations and practice activities, but its design and programming support a much wider range of sports, entertainment, educational, and community events. The venue emerged from a partnership between the City of Frisco and the Dallas Cowboys announced in 2013. The project was developed within the large-scale Frisco Station area often promoted as the "$5 Billion Mile" and formed the central sports component of The Star's approximately 91-acre campus. The Cowboys moved their headquarters and training operations from Valley Ranch to Frisco, making the Ford Center an important part of the club's organizational identity as well as a public-facing venue. The stadium includes synthetic Hellas Matrix Helix Turf. Its playing surface can be configured for American football, regulation soccer, and lacrosse. The complex also includes practice fields and is connected with the Baylor Scott & White Sports Therapy & Research center, which provides sports medicine and training services. The wider campus contains the Cowboys Ring of Honor Walk, retail and restaurant space, and an Omni hotel, creating an integrated destination rather than a standalone arena. A prominent recurring use is Whataburger's Friday Night Stars, which presents Frisco Independent School District varsity football games on Friday evenings. The venue has also hosted high-school graduations, collegiate basketball tournaments, professional lacrosse, boxing, tennis, concerts, and other sporting events. Conference USA held its men's and women's basketball tournaments at The Star from 2018 through 2023 in collaboration with the University of North Texas, the Cowboys, and the City of Frisco. The Ford Center has periodically served as a home venue for professional teams. The Dallas Rattlers of Major League Lacrosse relocated from Rochester to Frisco for the 2018 season and became the first professional team to play its home games at the facility. The club played its first home game there in April 2018 but ceased operations after the 2019 season. The Texas Revolution also signed a three-year lease beginning in 2019, although the arrangement ended after three home games when the team was evicted amid financial problems and subsequently ceased operations. Ford Motor Company obtained naming rights through a ten-year agreement signed with the Cowboys in 2015. The naming relationship connects the stadium to Ford while the facility remains part of the broader Dallas Cowboys and The Star destination. The venue continues to operate as an active indoor sports and events facility, with its identity grounded in Cowboys football, youth and school sports, tournaments, and large-scale event hosting.
History
The Ford Center at The Star was developed as part of the Dallas Cowboys' relocation of their headquarters and training operations from Valley Ranch to Frisco, Texas. The City of Frisco and the Cowboys announced the project in 2013 as a major component of a broader mixed-use development associated with Frisco Station and the area marketed as the "$5 Billion Mile." The stadium became part of The Star, an approximately 91-acre campus combining professional sports facilities, hospitality, retail, restaurants, offices, and public attractions. The venue was conceived primarily as an indoor practice and football facility for the Cowboys, but its architecture and field systems allow it to operate as a multipurpose arena. It has a capacity of approximately 12,000 and uses Hellas Matrix Helix synthetic turf. The field can be marked for American football, regulation soccer, and lacrosse. In addition to the main stadium, The Star includes outdoor practice fields and the Baylor Scott & White Sports Therapy & Research center, integrating athletic training and sports medicine into the campus. In 2015, the Cowboys and Ford Motor Company entered a ten-year naming-rights agreement, giving the stadium its Ford Center at The Star name. The facility opened its programming to a broad range of users, including school athletics, graduations, tournaments, concerts, boxing, and professional sports. One of its best-known recurring programs is Whataburger's Friday Night Stars, which showcases Frisco Independent School District varsity football games. The Ford Center became a professional sports venue in 2018 when Major League Lacrosse moved the Rochester Rattlers to Frisco and rebranded the club as the Dallas Rattlers. The team's first home game at the stadium took place on April 29, 2018, against the Denver Outlaws. Dallas won in overtime, but the Rattlers ceased operations after the 2019 season. The venue also hosted the 2017 Major League Lacrosse Steinfeld Cup championship game before the permanent relocation was announced. The Texas Revolution of Champions Indoor Football announced a three-year lease in December 2018, with home games planned at the Ford Center beginning in 2019. The relationship was short-lived: after three home games, the club was evicted, and the team announced that it had ceased operations after ownership failed to meet financial obligations. The facility has hosted major events beyond football and lacrosse. Conference USA staged its men's and women's basketball tournaments at The Star from 2018 through 2023 through a partnership involving the conference, the University of North Texas, the Dallas Cowboys, and the City of Frisco. The stadium hosted a June 2018 IBF welterweight title defense by Errol Spence Jr. against Carlos Ocampo and a February 2019 WBO light-heavyweight title bout between Sergey Kovalev and Eleider Alvarez. Bob Seger performed at The Star in March 2019. The Alliance of American Football selected the venue for its planned 2019 championship game, but the event was cancelled when the league suspended operations before the scheduled date. The venue later gained additional college-football significance when the East–West Shrine Bowl announced in 2023 that its 2024 edition would move to Ford Center. After a 2025 edition at AT&T Stadium, the January 2026 game returned to Ford Center. The Dallas Open, an ATP Tour indoor hard-court tennis tournament formerly known as the New York Open, has also been associated with the venue after relocating from Uniondale, New York. Today, the Ford Center remains an active component of The Star and continues to function simultaneously as a Cowboys practice facility, school-sports venue, tournament site, entertainment space, and community destination. Its significance derives less from an independent consumer product line than from its role within the Dallas Cowboys' integrated sports, hospitality, and development platform.
- 2023
Shrine Bowl relocation announced
[1]Organizers announced that the East–West Shrine Bowl would move to Ford Center for its 2024 game.
- 2019
Texas Revolution tenure ends
[1]The Texas Revolution was evicted after three home games and later ceased operations.
- 2018
Dallas Rattlers begin play
[1]The relocated Dallas Rattlers played their first home game at Ford Center.
- 2018
Conference USA tournament residency begins
[1]The venue began hosting Conference USA men's and women's basketball tournaments through a partnership with UNT, the Cowboys, and Frisco.
- 2017
Steinfeld Cup hosted at The Star
[1]Major League Lacrosse held its 2017 championship game at the facility.
- 2015
Ford naming-rights agreement
[1]Ford Motor Company and the Cowboys signed a ten-year agreement covering the stadium's naming rights.
- 2013
Frisco–Dallas Cowboys project announced
[1]The City of Frisco and the Dallas Cowboys announced the project as part of the development that became The Star.
Products and positioning
A Cowboys-branded indoor sports and entertainment destination that combines elite football training infrastructure with public events, school athletics, collegiate tournaments, professional sports, and community programming.
Indoor sports and events venue
Ford Center at The Star stadium
The principal 12,000-seat indoor stadium at The Star. It is used for Dallas Cowboys practice activities and can be configured for football, soccer, lacrosse, basketball, boxing, concerts, graduations, and other large events. Its synthetic Hellas Matrix Helix Turf supports multiple field layouts.
School sports program
Friday Night Stars
A recurring Friday-night program associated with Whataburger that presents Frisco Independent School District varsity football games at the Ford Center. It gives the venue a regular community and high-school athletics role in addition to its professional sports functions.
Professional sports training facility
Dallas Cowboys practice facility
The Ford Center serves as the indoor practice venue within the Dallas Cowboys' headquarters and training campus. It is supported by additional practice fields and sports-performance infrastructure at The Star.
Marketing campaigns
- Whataburger Friday Night Stars
Frisco, Texas
A recurring branded community sports program showcasing Frisco Independent School District varsity football at the Ford Center.
Outcome. The program established a regular high-school football use for the venue.
Brand decisions
2023
Secure the East–West Shrine BowlStrategyBackground
The annual college football all-star game was seeking a new host after being held near Las Vegas.
Action taken
Organizers selected Ford Center at The Star for the 2024 edition, with the event later returning for January 2026 after a 2025 staging at AT&T Stadium.
Aftermath
The decision reinforced the venue's role in national football event programming.
2018
Host Conference USA basketball tournamentsStrategyBackground
Conference USA, the University of North Texas, the Dallas Cowboys, and the City of Frisco pursued a recurring tournament arrangement.
Action taken
The Ford Center and The Star hosted the conference's men's and women's basketball tournaments from 2018 through 2023.
Aftermath
The arrangement positioned the venue as a recurring collegiate championship site.
2018
Lease the venue to the Texas RevolutionStrategyBackground
The Texas Revolution sought a home venue for Champions Indoor Football competition.
Action taken
The team signed a three-year lease beginning with the 2019 season.
Aftermath
The lease ended after three home games when the team was evicted; the organization later ceased operations.
2017
Bring professional lacrosse to FriscoStrategyBackground
Major League Lacrosse sought a new home for the Rochester Rattlers.
Action taken
The league relocated the club to Frisco and rebranded it as the Dallas Rattlers.
Aftermath
The Rattlers played at Ford Center during the 2018 and 2019 seasons before ceasing operations.
2015
Grant Ford naming rightsOtherBackground
The Cowboys sought a commercial naming relationship for the indoor stadium at The Star.
Action taken
The Cowboys and Ford Motor Company signed a ten-year naming-rights agreement.
Aftermath
The facility became known as Ford Center at The Star.
2013
Develop a Cowboys headquarters and public venue in FriscoStrategyBackground
The Dallas Cowboys planned to move their headquarters and training operations from Valley Ranch as part of a wider Frisco development.
Action taken
The Cowboys partnered with the City of Frisco on The Star, including the indoor Ford Center and related training and sports facilities.
Aftermath
The project created an integrated Cowboys campus and a multipurpose venue for professional, collegiate, school, and entertainment events.
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