Arlington Gets 2011 Super Bowl in New Cowboys' Stadium

It's official! The new Dallas Cowboys' stadium will be host to the February 6, 2011 Super Bowl in Arlington, Texas according to a report by The Dallas Morning News. Roger Staubach and Jerry Jones are elated. The announcement came Tuesday as Roger welcomed his 12^th grandchild into the world of football. The National Football League (NFL) never considered North Texas as a Super Bowl venue because it requires a stadium with a retractable roof in cities where inclement weather if probable in January and February. Jones said the gigantic size of the new Cowboy's stadium was a plus to the NFL owners since they share in the revenues of Super Bowl tickets.

The new Dallas Cowboys' stadium (click here for an interactive view) will seat 100,000 people. Jerry Jones expects that almost a quarter of a million people will descend on Arlington for Super Bowl XLV, generating hundreds of millions of dollars for the local economy. Super Bowl games are the 10 most-watched television shows of all time and according to Jones statement in The Dallas Morning News, "This is going to be a wonderful, wonderful event." The official banner unveiled at the announcement reads, "Arlington Welcomes Super Bowl XLV in 2011."

Roger Staubach, the hero of the Cowboys' rich history and member of the Hall of Fame led the North Texas Super Bowl XLV Bid Committee's presentation to the NFL. The voting was secret, but Arlington beat out Arizona and Indianapolis for the bid. Staubach vowed in The Dallas Morning News report to make Super Bowl XLV "the best Super Bowl that's taken place in 45 years. We're the bid committee, but now we're the host committee." Tickets for Super Bowl XLV are expected to cost $1,000.

Fun Facts About The New Arlington Stadium (not yet named)

It is 2.3 million square feet of football hurling heaven.
It has 80,000 seats, expandable to 100,000 seats.
The 600-ton scoreboard is 60 yards long and will hand from the 20-yard line to the 20-yard line.
The roof will retract in 12 minutes, using two pieces each weighing 2.1 million pounds.
Half a million square-feet of glass and limestone will be used on the exterior.
There are 30,000 parking spaces.
There will be 1,600 interchangeable toilets for men and women.
There will be 286 concession areas, 8 clubs, and 23 bars, not including mobile food stands.
It will have 200 suites, seating 22-44 people each, and 15,000 club seats.
Players will enter the field through the fan-filled Bunker Club.
The field will be synthetic turf.
The Dallas Cowboy Hall of Fame will be open year round.

The new Dallas Cowboy stadium will cost $1 billion by the time it is completed, which is $700 million more than projected. Arlington taxpayers will pay one-third of the cost. The stadium will be located off Interstate 30 at the 360 interchange. Construction is underway to build improvements to the streets and highways, including an $18 million improvement to the Center Street Bridge, estimated to be completed in summer 2008. The North Texas infrastructure, including abundant hotel accommodations and transportation, played an important role in the bid win. There are an estimated 21,000 hotel rooms under contract, 10,000 rental cars, and at least 750 buses, 500 limousines, and 1,000 taxis.