Dallas, TX
'Women's Sports Aren't a Trend': How Two Dallas Teams Are Navigating the Industry's Boom
“I don’t know what it feels like to be on a rocket ship, but this has got to be as close as what it feels like.”
The comment, made from a stage at Arlington Hall, came from Dallas Wings COO Amber Cox at a panel discussion hosted by the Dallas Friday Group in late June. While the phrase was in reference to the rise of Dallas’ WNBA team, it could easily have been attributed to the larger story of women’s sports, and especially women’s sports in North Texas.
When she first came on board with the Wings in 2022, Cox said, there was no way she could have forecasted what all would happen in the field of women’s sports, and specifically for the Wings. “But we saw the interest,” she said. “There was a ton of interest in the Wings, and the building was filling up consistently, and I just knew that we were on the cusp of something really, really special.”
The discussion一moderated by Monica Paul, executive director of the Dallas Sports Commission一focused on the future of professional women’s sports in DFW and featured commentary from Cox and from Dori Neil Araiza, founder and principal with Dallas’ newly announced women’s soccer team, Dallas Trinity FC.
Dallas has celebrated a number of recent key wins in the arena of women’s sports. In early May, WNBA phenom Caitlin Clark made her pro debut in a preseason game against the Dallas Wings in Arlington. In 2023, the American Airlines Center hosted the 2023 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Final Four—the championship game boasted a record 9.9 million viewers. Dallas will host the event again in 2031.
In April, the city of Dallas and the Wings reached a 15-year, $19 million agreement that will bring the team to the Dallas Memorial Auditorium by 2026. The team currently plays at College Park Center at UTA. “Our partners in Arlington, the College Park Center, have been phenomenal to us. It is a wonderful venue,” Cox said. “But the reality is, we’re busting at the seams. We’re selling out consistently now. We need more space.”
Also in April, the team celebrated a sellout of season ticket sales for the first time in history. At the time, the Wings were also up by 222 percent in total ticket revenue and up 1,221 percent on individual ticket sales.
“As you look at the growth of women’s sports and you look at the growth of the WNBA, one thing that’s shifted rapidly is facilities,” Cox said. “When the league started, everyone was sharing facilities with colleges, with YMCAs. Now, you’re seeing more and more teams having their own buildings, their own places to practice. These women deserve that.”
In April, Wings President and CEO Greg Bibb told D CEO that the move is expected to bring about $1.5 million in additional ticket revenue annually. Redevelopment of the stadium—originally constructed in 1957 and last renovated in 2002—is underway. “We get to be a part of the conversations as we go through the renovations to really make it a world-class entertainment experience for our fans,” Cox said. “And again, it’s truly what our athletes deserve.”
It’s not the only Dallas facility getting an upgrade ahead of welcoming a women’s pro sports team. Dallas Trinity FC will play its first home game at the Cotton Bowl against DC Power FC on Sept. 7, marking the inaugural season home opener for the team whose name, team colors, and leadership were formally announced in May. The team is one of eight to launch as part of the USL Super League, which was approved for Division 1 status in February.
The move comes as Dallas pursues a two-year, $140 million project to upgrade the Cotton Bowl, the largest financial investment in Fair Park in its 137-year history. The project一which includes adding escalators, expanding concourses, and adding art deco artwork一broke ground in March.
When the Neil family began workshopping a Dallas women’s soccer team about two years ago, they considered a number of venues before landing on the historic Fair Park icon. Dori Neil Araiza, founder and principal, noted that when they floated the idea of a women’s professional soccer team in Dallas, they’d usually get the same immediate reaction: “But are you in Dallas?”
“Because people that are in Dallas and from Dallas, that matters to them, so it matters to us too,” she said, “and it’s something that was sort of integral and vital to us being able to be a team for Dallas, in Dallas, accessible right off the Dart rail, and bring to life this amazing venue that’s currently partly under construction, but we’ll be able to showcase that in a way that’s amazing for these soccer players.”
For Paul, the team’s establishment一combined with Dallas’ nine 2026 World Cup matches一spell massive opportunity for a few years down the road.
“If you don’t know me, I’m very competitive. I like to win,” said Paul, who is credited with being the mastermind behind DFW’s 2026 FIFA World Cup bid. For her, the region’s next big event target is the 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cup. “I think having a professional women’s soccer team here, along with the support of our other professional teams, men and women across the board, it gives us a really good runway to put our arms around the teams一Dallas Trinity FC, for sure一and really help to elevate and lift and properly position Dallas for being named a host city for 2031 as our next opportunity,” Paul said.
The teams see the potential for a local impact, too. Cox noted that the Wings have been ramping up staffing in the youth basketball sector and that programming for clinics and camps has been built up. She also highlighted the team’s partnership with the Dallas Mavericks through the Girls Empowered by Mavericks (GEM) initiative.
“It was the first of its kind, there had never been an NBA team under a different ownership come aboard as a major sponsor of a WNBA team,” Cox said. “They saw the value; they saw where women’s basketball is going and really wanted to authenticate that GEM programming with our athletes and with our coaches.”
Dallas Trinity FC also sees the potential—the team website says the Dallas area has more girls soccer players than anywhere else in the country, citing the U.S. Youth Soccer Association. “When we look at the youth, it’s certainly an integral part of what we are going to be a part of,” Araiza said. “And obviously being new, we’re trying to figure out what is the best way to navigate that. Who are our best partners to bring in and do that? But I will say it’s certainly something that gives these youth players to aspire to be, and we’re in their backyard.”
The discussion served as a snapshot look at what is proving to be a game-changing era for women’s sports. A Deloitte report shared in November 2023 predicts that revenue generated this year by women’s elite sports will surpass $1 billion. As Cox puts it, the key to sustaining that energy for the Wings starts with the right people. “There’s been an incredible investment by our ownership group in our front office staff to grow that group, to invest in experienced sports professionals, specifically women and men who have experience in the women’s sports space,” Cox said, “and that has allowed us to grow very, very quickly and do a lot more.”
“I think even though we’re growing rapidly, there are tried and true processes that we need to stick to,” Cox added. “We have to keep the foot on the gas, and we need to keep using this momentum to our advantage as we grow our fan base and continue to get more people into the pipeline and interested and talking about all of our sports and women’s sports.”
Araiza sums it up: “Women’s sports aren’t a trend. It’s here to stay, and it’s only going to grow.”
Dallas, TX
Former Dallas Cowboys DE, Robert Quinn, arrested in South Carolina
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. – Former Dallas Cowboys defensive end Robert Quinn was arrested in South Carolina Friday morning after police said he tried to leave the scene of an accident.
Quinn, 34, was charged with leaving the scene of an accident with property damage and reckless driving, jail records show.
What we know:
Police in North Charleston, South Carolina responded to a car dealership just after 2 a.m. Friday because of a collision involving a red truck.
The North Charleston Fire Department arrived first on the scene and told police that the suspect might be attempting to leave the scene of the crash in another car.
When police arrived, they found Quinn in the passenger seat of a white Dodge Challenger that had its reverse lights on. The vehicle’s driver placed the car in park and told police she had been called by Quinn to “pick him up,” according to a police report.
Police said Quinn had visible injuries to his head and face, had slurred speech and was uncooperative with officers who asked for his identification.
Quinn eventually provided his identification to officers, but asked himself “where is my wallet” while his wallet was in his hand before dropping it in his lap.
The police report states a maroon Ford F-150 registered to Quinn was on the other side of the parking lot and looked to be the vehicle that started the collision.
Police said Quinn’s truck hit the passenger side of a Honda Element, which was pushed into a blue Ford F-150 that hit another car.
Officers asked Quinn to get out of the Challenger, but Quinn resisted by holding the door to the car, the report states. Police removed Quinn from the vehicle, and he was “escorted to the ground” by officers because he was trying to pull away from them.
Officers interviewed the woman with Quinn, who said she had met him at G-Club, a gentleman’s club, where she works, earlier that night.
Another employee of the club came to the scene and said Quinn had left alone about an hour before the collision happened.
Timeline:
Police said they used city cameras to build a timeline of the crash.
The police report states Quinn’s truck was seen driving down the road around 2 a.m. Friday and was veering left, crossed an intersection, a median and then onto dealership property.
City cameras did not pick up the collision, but it can be heard, the police report states.
Police said around 2:03 a.m. a single person is seen walking through the parking lot and a few minutes later that person walked to a Valero gas station.
At 2:07 a.m., the person is seen walking back to the dealership parking lot while stumbling and falling several times, the police report states.
About a minute later, a white Dodge Challenger is seen entering the parking lot around the same time that the fire department arrived, according to the report.
Dallas Cowboys Defensive End
Quinn played the 2019 season with the Dallas Cowboys after being traded from the Miami Dolphins for a sixth-round pick.
Quinn was suspended for the first two games of the season after violating the league’s policy on performance-enhancing substances. He was named the team’s starting right defensive end when he was reinstated.
Quinn finished the season with 25 tackles, 11.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.
Quinn signed a five-year, $70 million contract with the Chicago Bears the following season.
Quinn was drafted 14th overall by the St. Louis Rams in 2011 and spent six years with the team before going to Miami, Dallas, Chicago and ending his career in 2022 with the Philadelphia Eagles.
Quinn was born in North Charleston, South Carolina, where he played high school football before playing college football for the University of North Carolina.
The backstory:
This isn’t Quinn’s first tangle with law enforcement.
July 2012 – Florissant, Mo.
Quinn was arrested for driving while intoxicated in July 2012 in Florissant, Missouri, while a member of the St. Louis Rams.
Florissant police said Quinn was involved in a single-car accident on an exit ramp of Interstate 270 on July 10, 2012. Police said he was cooperative with them during the arrest.
Quinn was also charged with failure to exercise a high degree of care and having no insurance.
August 2023 – Summerville, S.C.
In August 2023, Quinn was arrested in Summerville, South Carolina after police found four unoccupied vehicles in a subdivision had been damaged.
At some point, Quinn allegedly exited his vehicle and got into a physical altercation with a woman before leaving the scene.
According to an accident report, a Ford F-150 truck crashed into multiple vehicles. Responding officers proceeded to search the vehicle and found an empty whiskey bottle on the passenger side floorboard.
Per the police report, the unidentified woman was sitting in her driveway when the suspect hit two parked vehicles. The driver then exited the truck and offered to buy her beer, the woman told investigators.
Quinn was charged with third-degree assault and battery, hit-and-run of an attended vehicle, four counts of hit-and-run property damage and striking fixtures on or adjacent to the highway.
What’s next:
Quinn was booked into the Charleston County, South Carolina jail.
Jail records show Quinn has a preliminary court date set for Feb. 27, 2025.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the North Charleston police department and previous FOX reporting.
Dallas, TX
Dallas Snowfall Totals: How much snow fell on Thursday and Friday?
DALLAS – North Texas got less snow than expected overnight.
FOX 4 Weather Meteorologist Evan Andrews said it was one of those crazy forecasts where some people got exactly what they expected, and others got the opposite.
“Some of you got that heavier precipitation [on Thursday]. Others were waiting for some overnight, and the precip overnight really never got going. We got a little bit of light snow on the backend but not a ton,” he said.
For snow lovers, the snow that was on the ground from Thursday is still there. However, the total accumulation did not increase much overnight.
Snowfall Totals (as of 4 a.m. Friday)
Overall, the areas of highest accumulation were north of Highway 182 in Cooke and Grayson counties. Areas like Gainesville, Sherman, and Bonham got more than 6 inches of snow.
A lot of people in Wise, Denton, and Collin counties got between 3 and 6 inches.
Fort Worth and North Dallas saw between 1 and 3 inches.
People south of Dallas got less than an inch of snow.
Thursday Snowfall (as of 9 p.m.)
Future Snowfall
No additional accumulation is expected on Friday, with the exception of maybe a few light flakes early Friday morning.
The Source: The information in this story comes from the FOX 4 Weather team.
Dallas, TX
Addison's WaterTower Theatre finds new stage for its summer musicals
For its 2025 season, Second Thought Theatre is going all-in on world premieres written by Dallas-Fort Worth playwrights.
While exploring the question of “What space does STT provide in DFW?” executive director Parker Davis Gray says, “STT is a place where audiences intentionally attend to be challenged by and wrestle with sharp new stories and an electric take on reimagined classics.”
The company likens this perspective to the work produced by the independent TV and film production company A24, and says that has inspired this upcoming season.
Opening Second Thought’s 21st season is Blake Hackler’s Healed, which follows Gail, who has been sick for 25 years.
Every doctor, every test, every treatment — none of it has worked. Now, with nothing left to lose, she sells everything and heads to a radical health center in the Texas Hill Country, run by the enigmatic and controversial Dr. T. Will this be her cure, her salvation, or something else entirely? It runs April 25-May 10, 2025.
Hackler’s previous work at STT includes the premieres of What We Were, The Necessities, and the 2018 Ibsen adaptation Enemies/ People.
Ringing in the summer is the sci-fi experiment Your Wife’s Dead Body, written by STT artistic associate Jenny Ledel in her playwriting premiere.
While Ledel is remembered for her performances in Belleville, Grounded, and What We Were, this shift to the other side of the table has been years in the making.
“Over the past few years, I’ve been reading Jenny’s plays and attending readings of her work,” says Gray, “she has such an accessible, inviting, and exciting voice that will resonate with Dallas as we begin to navigate the unknown landscape the next few years will bring us.”
Your Wife’s Dead Body takes place in the near future, as Jane takes advantage of a new AI technology that would extend her lifespan … even if she’s not around to see it for herself. A play about relationships, the nature of self, and what may or may not remain of us when we leave this life behind, this story asks us to consider the new and difficult questions humans may face as new technologies emerge.
Ledel’s world premiere will be directed by former STT artistic director (and Ledel’s husband) Alex Organ. It runs July 11-26, 2025.
To close out the 2025 season, STT will dive into a new genre with INCARNATE by STT’s own Parker Davis Gray.
Trapped in her cell, Rosamund is hellbent on escaping her fate while the Man who kidnapped her struggles with the consequences of what grief can do, and how far he will go to escape it. Can they live with themselves? Or more importantly, who else is living with them?
A horror/thriller that follows two artists over the course of a year in their seemingly pointless pursuit of creation while suffering under great grief. Directed by Jenna Burnett, who also directed the original reading at Undermain Theatre, it runs October 17-November 1, 2025.
In addition to a world premiere-packed season, STT will continue its year-long playwriting incubator program, Thought Process, andadd another development program to the docket.
2025 will be the inaugural year of Second Thought Theatre’s Associate Director Program, a year-long cohort aimed at providing professional development through education, exposure, and opportunity. Three early-career professionals will have the opportunity to assist on one production of the 2025 season, gain training and receive feedback from professional directors, spend the year working on scene study with STT artistic director Carson McCain, and then end their year with each director taking the lead on one to three readings.
“The purpose of this cohort is to fill a gap we currently see in the DFW arts community,” says McCain. “We want to offer early career directors a safe place to develop their craft and seek feedback from their peers and other professionals. We want this to be a group that allows directors to grow without the pressures of impressing a professional theater in order to be hired again. STT will serve as facilitators and educators, giving feedback, training, and a place to ask questions.”
Season subscriptions and individual tickets are now on sale at SecondThoughtTheatre.com. All productions will take place at Bryant Hall.
Second Thought Theatre Announces their new season centered around cost and consequence as they showcase the sharp and bold voices of local DFW playwrights.
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