Dallas Cowboys

The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team.

They are members of the National Football League (NFL). Specifically, they compete within the National Football Conference (NFC) East division. The franchise is based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. Its headquarters are located in Frisco, Texas. Since 2009, the team has played its home games at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

The stadium received its current name before the 2013 season. This happened after the team sold the naming rights to the telecommunications company AT&T.

The team's history began through a complex series of negotiations.

Before the Cowboys, no NFL team existed south of Washington, D.C. This was because the Dallas Texans folded in 1952. Oilman Clint Murchison Jr. wanted to bring a team to Dallas. However, George Preston Marshall, the owner of the Washington Redskins, held a monopoly in the South. Marshall opposed any new franchise for Murchison in Dallas. At that time, NFL expansion required unanimous approval from all owners.

To gain leverage, Murchison purchased the rights to the song "Hail to the Redskins" for $2,500. He used this to secure the necessary votes in 1959. This allowed the Cowboys to join the league as an expansion team.

Early leadership established the team's football operations for three decades.

Murchison hired a triumvirate of key leaders. Tex Schramm served as the team president and general manager. Gil Brandt worked as the head of player personnel. Tom Landry became the head coach. Landry coached the team from 1960 to 1988. Like many expansion teams, the Cowboys struggled during their first season. They did not win a single game in their inaugural year. However, Landry eventually brought the team to a high level of success.

The Tom Landry era included several major milestones.

The Cowboys won two Super Bowls during his tenure. Their first victory was in 1971, where they defeated the Miami Dolphins 24–3. In that game, Roger Staubach earned Super Bowl MVP honors. Their second victory came in 1977 against the Denver Broncos. They won that game with a score of 27–10. In that specific Super Bowl, defensive linemen Randy White and Harvey Martin were named co-MVPs. This was the first and only time multiple players shared the award.

The team also holds a record for consistency. They are the only NFL team to record 20 straight winning seasons from 1966 to 1985.

Ownership changes brought a new era to the franchise.

In 1984, Murchison sold the team to H.R. "Bum" Bright. By 1989, Bright was forced to sell the team due to the savings and loan crisis. Jerry Jones purchased the Cowboys on February 25, 1989, for $150 million. Jones immediately made a major change by firing Tom Landry. He replaced Landry with Jimmy Johnson, who had been a coach at the University of Miami. This transition led to a new period in the team's history.

The Dallas Cowboys are also a massive financial powerhouse in the world of sports.

In 2015, Forbes named them the first sports team valued at $4 billion. This made them the most valuable sports team in the world at that time. They reached a $5 billion valuation in 2018. They were also the first NFL franchise to reach that specific value. Since then, their value has continued to grow significantly. As of late 2025, the team is valued at approximately $13 billion. In 2014, they generated $620 million in revenue, which was a record for a U.S. sports team.

Beyond finances, the Cowboys maintain a massive national following.

This popularity is evidenced by their impressive NFL record for consecutive sell-outs. A streak of 190 consecutive sold-out games began in 2002. This streak included both regular season and post-season games. It covered both home and away matches. The team has appeared in eight Super Bowls. This ties them with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Denver Broncos, and San Francisco 49ers. They also hold eight NFC championships, which ties for the most in the conference's history.