20 fun facts about Arlington and Cowboys Stadium
1. Arlington's population of 370,450 makes it the nation's 49th-largest city.
2. Cowboys Stadium is visible 5 miles away on Interstate 30 and can be seen from tall buildings in Dallas, about 18 miles away. It often is called the "Death Star" because of its enormity, a tribute to the planet-destroying space station in "Star Wars.''
3. Arlington was named after Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Arlington House in Virginia.
4. The stadium fills up 73 acres, or 3 million square feet.
5. Six Flags Over Texas and Hurricane Harbor water park are in the vicinity of Cowboys Stadium and Rangers Ballpark, making Arlington the fun capital of Texas.
6. Texans also call Cowboys Stadium the Jerry Dome in honor of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones.
7. The 2009 U.S. Census Bureau estimate put the population of the 12-county DFW Metroplex (Dallas, Fort Worth, Arlington and suburbs) at about 7 million, making it the nation's fourth-highest.
8. The Cowboys have added 15,000 limited-view seats for Super Bowl XLV, raising the capacity to more than 100,000.
9. Cowboys Stadium and Rangers Ballpark share parking lots.
10. Arlington is headquarters for the International Bowling Campus, which houses the United States Bowling Congress, International Bowling Museum and International Bowling Hall of Fame. It is also the headquarters for American Mensa.
11. Cowboys Stadium has the world's largest HD video screen. One of its 2,100-inch video screens has been hit by a punt.
12. Arlington is believed to be the largest city in the world without fixed-route public transportation.
13. Cowboys Stadium's retractable roof will be closed for the Super Bowl.
14. Arlington is approximately 1,600 driving miles from the Nassau/Suffolk border.
15. Four thousand people have paid $200 each to stand outside of the stadium and watch the game on big screen.
16. Fast-food restaurants you see all over Arlington that you don't see here: Jack in the Box, Whataburger, Sonic, Dairy Queen, Chick Fil-A
17. Words you hear in Arlington that you don't hear here: Howdy, y'all, pop (soda), Yankeeland, blinky (questionable, as in these eggs are blinky), galoot, nu-uh (no).
18. Cowboys Stadium concessions you won't find in New York ballparks: chicken-fried chicken sandwich, chicken-fried turkey sandwich, grilled pork tenderloin tacos, Texas Fritos Pie.
19. Cowboys Stadium regularly hosts children's birthday parties.
20. Thirteen days after the Super Bowl, it will host the PBR (Professional Bull Riders) and their rodeo clowns.
More football news
