Today is the official birthday of AT&T Stadium. No, there wasn’t a new stadium built while you were sleeping and no there hasn’t been a 33rd addition to the NFL. AT&T Stadium is the jumbo, outdoor masterpiece formerly known as Cowboys Stadium.
The team officially announced the deal with AT&T Thursday, according to NFL.com.
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones spoke to the media at the team’s training camp facility in Oxnard, California. Jones said the deal was a “very special day in the history of our organization.”
According to ESPN Sports Business Reporter Darren Rovell, citing sources, the naming right agreement is worth between $17 million and $19 million a year.
The stadium, worth $1.2 billion, opened in 2009. The “Cowboys Stadium” name was not something Jones wanted to keep. The only reason it stuck for nearly four years was because he could not find a sufficient naming rights deal. If Jones’ is getting $17 million to $19 million per year, it sounds like he found the right deal.
The AT&T Stadium name may not be the only change coming to the NFL in the near future. Jones said Monday the league is “closer than ever” to having a team in L.A.
"I feel more imminent about a team being in here, that it's more imminent than any time since we haven't had a team in Los Angeles," said Jones on NFL Network Wednesday, elaborating on the subject. "And yes, this market is a huge market, it's a little bit of a black eye for all of us to have had this many years and not had an NFL team in Los Angeles.
"The owners don't mess much up ... but we haven't gotten this one right,” he explained. “There's people, there's locations, there are people that are interested, a lot of people that can help us put this thing together. And as it turns out that we have at least two teams ... that could move to this area."
Jones added that there would be no expansion teams. The L.A. squads would have to come from a move done by an existing organization. There is no word on what teams are moving and how soon the move would happen.
However, when it comes to the NFL and business, believing a guy who just completed a deal for $17 million to $19 million per year, sounds like a good idea.
