Featured image credit: Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas
The Dallas Wings are set to relocate from Arlington to a larger arena in downtown Dallas, amid the growth patterns reported by both the franchise and the WNBA women’s basketball league as a whole.
City of Dallas Council members have approved a 15-year, $19m (£15.2m/€17.8m) use agreement for the Wings to play in the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas Memorial Arena, beginning in 2026. The agreement is pending approval by the WNBA.
The Wings will play the 2024 and 2025 WNBA seasons in College Park Center in Arlington, the 6,251-seat facility where the club has played the last eight seasons. “The Dallas Wings would like to thank the City of Dallas and especially Mayor (Eric) Johnson for his strategic vision and commitment,” said Dallas Wings president and CEO, Greg Bibb.
“The City of Arlington, the University of Texas at Arlington, and College Park Center continue to be valued partners, and we look forward to playing in Arlington for the next two seasons.”
This proposed deal comes at a time when interest in women’s sports, the WNBA, and the Wings is at record levels. The Wings saw record attendance in 2023, and virtually every business metric record has been, or is expected to be, broken during the 2024 season.
The Wings have sold out of season ticket memberships for 2024, a first in the team’s history, and already experienced ticket sales growth in excess of 200%. Individual ticket sales are up more than 1,100%.
The City of Dallas is planning to renovate the near 10,000-seat Dallas Memorial Arena as part of a wider redevelopment project that will see a new convention centre replace the aging Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center.
Johnson said: “Dallas is the place to be right now – for residents, for businesses, and for professional sports teams and their fans. This deal has been a top priority for us because we know the Dallas Wings will soar in the city they represent.
“We will be thrilled to welcome the Wings to the heart of our city – and we are even more excited to see this franchise anchor our new convention centre district that will transform downtown Dallas for decades to come.”
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