Atlético Dallas

Did You Know?

• The crest is a black shield containing a rattlesnake, representing speed and danger, battling a Mexican wolf, representing cunning and teamwork.
• The club's colors are Blackland Crude, Texas Topaz, and Silver Ore.
• The club's name was inspired by La Liga club Atlético Madrid.

History

The USL granted Garland, Texas, an expansion franchise on November 19, 2024. The ownership team—Matt Valentine, Sam Morton, Luther Ott, and Dan McAlone—had previously tried and failed to buy the Las Vegas Lights FC and move it to Dallas. Kyle Martino became a co-owner on September 9, 2025. On April 10, 2025, the club partnered with local youth academy Renegades Soccer Club to launch its own youth system.

The team unveiled its name and crest on May 2, 2025, drawing inspiration from Spain’s Atlético Madrid. Its reserve side, Atlético Dallas II, competed in the UPSL during the 2025 fall season. Former Atlético Madrid player and FC Dallas head coach Peter Luccin was appointed the first head coach on February 11, 2026. On June 30, 2026, the club announced its purchase of USL Super League side Dallas Trinity FC.

Mexican striker Javier Hernández became the team’s first player on July 27, 2026, signing a two-year contract with a club option for a third season.

Stadium

Atlético Dallas will play its home matches at the Cotton Bowl, a 92,100-seat venue located on the grounds of the State Fair of Texas in Dallas. The club intends to share the stadium with Dallas Trinity FC, a women’s professional team in the USL Super League. They will become the third men’s professional soccer side to use the Cotton Bowl, after the NASL’s Dallas Tornado and MLS’s FC Dallas. Beginning with their first season, the team has a three-year lease on the stadium that runs through 2029. As part of the agreement, the City of Dallas also plans to lease the MoneyGram Soccer Complex in Northwest Dallas to Atlético Dallas, ending the city’s previous lease with FC Dallas ownership earlier than scheduled. The city council unanimously approved the move, citing that the earlier contract had cost the city millions due to low revenue and high utility expenses.

After the announcement, USL Dallas identified a site in Garland for a soccer complex that originally included a 10,000-seat stadium. Because the team will play in the Cotton Bowl, the planned stadium was scaled down to 2,000 seats, but the rest of the complex remains in development. That includes eight soccer fields and a multipurpose building, with potential for mixed-use development on the site. The complex will serve as the training facility for the men’s professional team and will also house the club’s youth academy. However, as of September 2025, Garland decided to abandon the stadium plans, concluding that the investment would not provide a sufficient return.