Soccer is returning to the Cotton Bowl – the historic site of 1994 World Cup action – in the form of the new Dallas Trinity FC.
The professional women’s soccer team, part of the fledgling USL W Super League starting up this August, announced its name and colors at a ceremony this week at Klyde Warren park in Dallas. The Trinity will be one of eight teams playing in the league.
The only other top-tier women’s soccer team in Texas, the Houston Dash, is affiliated with Major League Soccer’s Houston Dynamo and plays in the National Women’s Soccer League.
USL W Super Will Be Second Women’s Professional League In US
Unfortunately, any betting on the Trinity will have to occur outside the Lone Star State. Texas sports betting remains illegal.
USL W Super League President Amanda Vandervort is a sports business executive with two decades of experience, including nearly a decade with the MLS as its vice president of fan engagement.
According to the league site:
“The USL Super League has committed to U.S. Soccer’s Division One standards, reflecting its collective vision to be a global leader on and off the field while providing more opportunities for more women in more communities.”
It will be in direct competition with the NWSL. That league is the current top-tier US women’s soccer league, featuring some of the top players in the world, including a number of US women’s national team players and standouts from competing international teams.
Dallas Trinity FC Will Play Inaugural Season At Cotton Bowl
At the team announcement, Trinity CEO Jim Neil said he was excited to bring a team to “Big D.”
“We are excited to add to Dallas’s commitment to women’s sports with our new soccer team. You don’t have a successful sports league in this country without a team in Dallas.”
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson echoed Neil’s statement: “We welcome Dallas’s first pro women’s soccer team. Professional sports is a robust industry Dallas is committed to supporting.”
The Trinity will join two other pro soccer teams in the Dallas Fort-Worth Metroplex. MLS’s FC Dallas, which started life as the Dallas Burn in 1996, played its first matches in the Cotton Bowl. It now plays its home games in Frisco’s Toyota Stadium. Its MLS Next Pro affiliate North Texas SC plays at Arlington’s Choctaw Stadium. That stadium was originally The Ballpark in Arlington, built for the Texas Rangers.
The Trinity will play in the Cotton Bowl for its inaugural season, which is currently in a $140 million renovation expected to be completed next year.
Dallas City Councilman Chad West spoke with NCSharp, welcoming the new team and providing an overview of what we can expect from the caliber of play.
“The directors of the league told us that this new league will be the top tier of US women’s soccer, equivalent to a super league atop the MLS. They ultimately want a 15,000-person occupancy stadium, and the Cotton Bowl is a happy accident solution for the time being.”
Team’s Colors Will Be Maroon, Gold, and Green
The team will use “sunrise maroon, prairie gold, and live oak green” as its colors. The league site notes,
“The colors draw inspiration from the city skyline and the Trinity River, which reflects the vibrant nature of Dallas, as well as local pride and excellence.”
Dallas Trinity FC will join the Dallas Wings of the WNBA, which recently relocated to Dallas, as professional women’s sports teams based out of Dallas.
The locations of the other seven teams starting play this August in the USL W Super League are:
- Brooklyn
- Charlotte
- Fort Lauderdale
- Lexington
- Spokane
- Tampa
- Washington, D.C
Only Brooklyn and DC have NWSL competitors in their markets.
