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Choctaw Stadium, formerly Globe Life Park, is a
multi-purpose stadium A multi-purpose stadium is a type of stadium designed to be easily used for multiple types of events. While any stadium could potentially host more than one type of sport or event, this concept usually refers to a design philosophy that stres ...
in
Arlington, Texas Arlington is a city in Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, Texas, United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan statistical area, and is a principal c ...
, United States. The venue opened in April 1994 as a
baseball stadium A ballpark, or baseball park, is a type of sports venue where baseball is played. The playing field is divided into two field sections called the infield and the outfield. The infield is an area whose dimensions are rigidly defined in part ba ...
with the name The Ballpark in Arlington, serving as the home for the Texas Rangers of
Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
from
1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...
through
2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...
. It replaced the nearby
Arlington Stadium Arlington Stadium was a baseball stadium located in Arlington, Texas, United States, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It served as the home of the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1972 until 1993, after which the ...
, and was succeeded by
Globe Life Field Globe Life Field is a retractable roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It is the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. It is located just south of the Rangers' former home ballpark, Globe ...
. In 2020, the stadium was retrofitted for
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
and
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 Football player, players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a Ball (association football), ball around a rectangular f ...
. It is the current home of the
North Texas SC North Texas Soccer Club is a professional soccer club that competes in MLS Next Pro, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of the Major League Soccer club FC Dallas. North Texas SC currently ...
of
MLS Next Pro MLS Next Pro (MLSNP) is a men's professional association football, soccer league in the United States and Canada that is affiliated with Major League Soccer (MLS). It launched in 2022 with 21 teams and now comprises 27 reserve sides of MLS clu ...
(
FC Dallas FC Dallas is an American professional Association football, soccer club based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The club competes in Major League Soccer (MLS) as a member of the Western Conference (MLS), Western Conference. The franchise be ...
's reserve team), and the
Arlington Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The Renegades compete in the United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded as the Dallas Renegades by Vince McMah ...
of the UFL. On August 25, 2021,
Choctaw Casinos & Resorts Choctaw Casinos & Resorts is a chain of seven Native American gaming, Native American casinos and hotels located in Oklahoma, owned and operated by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. The original location in Durant, Oklahoma, Durant has of gaming ...
bought the naming rights to the stadium.


History

In April 1989, Rangers owner
Eddie Chiles Harrell Edmonds "Eddie" Chiles (May 11, 1910 – August 22, 1993) was the founder of the Western Company of North America and an owner of the Texas Rangers. He was also the paternal uncle of actress Lois Chiles. Eddie Chiles was born in ...
sold the team to an investment group headed by
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
. The aging
Arlington Stadium Arlington Stadium was a baseball stadium located in Arlington, Texas, United States, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It served as the home of the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1972 until 1993, after which the ...
was outdated and did not have amenities that helped make other baseball franchises more profitable. As a result, the team could not compete with other big-city teams for good players. In an effort to fund the project through public money instead of private financing, the Rangers threatened to leave Arlington. The city of Arlington spent $150,000 on an advertising campaign to persuade voters to approve the funding through a
referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...
by printing brochures, placing
telemarketing Telemarketing (sometimes known as inside sales, or telesales in the UK and Ireland) is a method of direct marketing in which a salesperson solicits prospective customers to buy products, subscriptions or services, either over the phone or throu ...
calls, and planning a "Hands Around Arlington Day." On January 19, 1991, over 65% of voters approved the deal, allowing the city government to cover 71% of the costs ($135 million out of $191 million) of building the new ballpark. The deal called for the city to raise the sales tax by half a cent to go toward construction. Both houses of the
Texas Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a p ...
unanimously approved the public purpose of the ballpark, and
Texas Governor The governor of Texas is the head of state of the U.S. state of Texas. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the government of Texas and is the commander-in-chief of the Texas Military Forces. Established in the Constitut ...
Ann Richards Dorothy Ann Richards (née Willis; September 1, 1933 – September 13, 2006) was an American politician who served as the 45th governor of Texas from 1991 to 1995. A Democrat, she first came to national attention as the Texas State Treasurer, ...
signed it all into law. As part of the deal, the city created a separate corporation, the Arlington Sports Facilities Development Authority (ASFDA), to manage construction. Using authority granted to it by the city, the ASFDA seized several tracts of land around the stadium site using
eminent domain Eminent domain, also known as land acquisition, compulsory purchase, resumption, resumption/compulsory acquisition, or expropriation, is the compulsory acquisition of private property for public use. It does not include the power to take and t ...
for parking and future development. Construction on the stadium, which was dubbed The Ballpark in Arlington, began on April 2, 1992, a short distance away from Arlington Stadium, the stadium it would replace, and the new Ballpark in Arlington opened on April 1, 1994, in an exhibition contest between the Rangers and the
New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National ...
. The first official game was on April 11 against the
Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...
.
Ameriquest Ameriquest was one of the largest United States sub-prime mortgage lenders until its dissolution in September 2007. Among the first mortgage companies employing computers to solicit prospective borrowers and hasten the loan application process, ...
bought the
naming rights Naming rights are a financial transaction and form of advertising or memorialization where a corporation, person, or other entity purchases the right to name a facility, object, location, program, or event (most often sports venues), typical ...
to the ballpark on May 7, 2004, and renamed it Ameriquest Field in Arlington. The Rangers severed their relationship with Ameriquest on March 19, 2007, and announced the park would be renamed Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. The largest crowd to watch a Rangers baseball game was on October 30, 2010, when 52,419 fans watched Game 3 of the
2010 World Series The 2010 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2010 Major League Baseball season, 2010 season. The 106th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American L ...
against the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
.
Globe Life and Accident Insurance Company Globe Life, based in McKinney, Texas, provides life and health insurance coverage nationwide, and has earned the A (Excellent) Financial Strength Rating as of June 2020. Globe Life and Accident Insurance Company has executive offices in Oklahoma C ...
, a subsidiary of
McKinney McKinney is a city in and the county seat of Collin County, Texas, United States. It is Collin County's third-largest city, after Plano, Texas, Plano and Frisco, Texas, Frisco. A suburb of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, McKinney is about ...
-based Globe Life, bought the naming rights for the facility on February 5, 2014, naming it Globe Life Park in Arlington. On May 20, 2016, the Rangers announced that they intended to move from Globe Life Park to the new
Globe Life Field Globe Life Field is a retractable roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It is the home ballpark of Major League Baseball's Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers. It is located just south of the Rangers' former home ballpark, Globe ...
, beginning with the 2020 season. The new air conditioned stadium was slated to feature a retractable roof, which many argued could increase stadium revenue from those who would otherwise not want to sit in the heat during games as the season progresses throughout the hot Texas summer, in particular those that occur in the afternoon. Voting for the new ballpark began on November 8 (the same day as the 2016 presidential election) for residents in the city limits of Arlington. The ballpark was passed with a 60% favorable vote. The stadium opened in the 2020 season. The new stadium was built south of Globe Life Park, on the site of a surface parking lot between Randol Mill Road and Cowboys Way. Space between the new stadium and Globe Life Park was constructed into an entertainment complex called Texas Live!, developed by
The Cordish Companies The Cordish Companies (previously The Cordish Company) is a U.S.-based real estate development and entertainment operating company with its headquarters on the 6th floor of the Pratt Street Power Plant in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded ...
, which, when finished, is slated to include sports bars, restaurants, and a 300-room hotel to be developed in three phases. The first phase, dubbed "Rangers Republic", is a two-level venue with multiple restaurants and providing interactive games and authentic memorabilia; the second phase is the Live! Arena, a multi-level venue providing restaurants, a performance stage for concerts, and an outdoor
beer garden A beer garden (German: ''Biergarten'') is an outdoor area in which beer and food are served, typically at shared tables shaded by trees. Beer gardens originated in Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital city, in the 19th century, and remain co ...
; Arlington Backyard, the third venue to anchor the entertainment district calls for a large, covered venue that could host concerts, charitable functions, and community events. Unlike Arlington Stadium, Choctaw Stadium was not demolished. Originally, city officials announced that they would redevelop the structure as part of the Texas Live! complex. The redevelopment would have retained the ballpark's outfield office complex and facade, and most of the concourse would have been re-purposed. Potential uses included redeveloping the concourse for condos and retail, as well as turning the current field into an
amphitheater An amphitheatre ( U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meaning "place for vie ...
. On December 5, 2018, city officials announced that the stadium would become the home of the
Dallas Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The Renegades compete in the United Football League (2024), United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded as the D ...
of the new XFL, beginning with the league's debut in 2020.
North Texas SC North Texas Soccer Club is a professional soccer club that competes in MLS Next Pro, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of the Major League Soccer club FC Dallas. North Texas SC currently ...
, a USL League 1 team also announced they would play at the renovated stadium. Many of the park's lower sections, mostly on the third base side, were removed to make room for the rectangular field which sits horizontally when viewed from behind the home plate. New seats were then added to where the ballpark's outfield once lay. On September 29, 2019, after the Rangers' last home game against the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
, home plate was removed and transferred to the new park. The renovation project of the stadium from a baseball facility into a football and soccer facility began in October. In December 2019,
Six Flags Six Flags Entertainment Corporation is an American amusement park company headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States. It was formed on July 2, 2024, following a merger between longtime rivals Cedar Fair and the former Six Flags ...
Entertainment Corp. announced the company would move its corporate headquarters the following year to the Centerfield Office Building formerly occupied by the Rangers.


Features


Design

The stadium was designed by the
Driehaus Prize The Driehaus Architecture Prize, fully named The Richard H. Driehaus Prize at the University of Notre Dame, is a global award to honor a major contributor in the field of contemporary traditional and classical architecture. The Driehaus Prize was ...
winner and
New Classical New classical macroeconomics, sometimes simply called new classical economics, is a school of thought in macroeconomics that builds its analysis entirely on a neoclassical economics, neoclassical framework. Specifically, it emphasizes the import ...
architect David M. Schwarz of Washington, D.C. The Rangers chose to build a retro-style ballpark ( Retro-classic, or Retro-modern), incorporating many features of baseball's
Jewel Box Jewel box or Jewel Box may refer to: * Jewelry box, a container for gemstones Places or architecture * Jewel Box (St. Louis), listed on the NRHP in Missouri * Jewel Boxes, a name for eight banks designed by architect Louis Sullivan *Jewel Box ...
parks. A roofed home run porch in right field is reminiscent of Tiger Stadium, while the white steel frieze that surrounds the upper deck was copied from the pre-1973
Yankee Stadium Yankee Stadium is a baseball stadium located in the Bronx in New York City. It is the home field of Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and New York City FC of Major League Soccer. The stadium opened in April 2009, replacing the Yankee S ...
. The out-of-town scoreboard (removed in 2009 and replaced with a state-of-the-art video board) was built into the left-field wall—a nod to
Fenway Park Fenway Park is a ballpark located in Boston, Massachusetts, less than one mile from Kenmore Square. Since 1912, it has been the home field of Major League Baseball's (MLB) Boston Red Sox. While the stadium was built in 1912, it was substantia ...
. The numerous nooks and crannies in the outfield fence are a reminder of
Ebbets Field Ebbets Field was a Major League Baseball stadium in the Flatbush, Brooklyn, Flatbush section of Brooklyn, New York City, New York. It is mainly known for having been the home of the History of the Brooklyn Dodgers, Brooklyn Dodgers baseball tea ...
. The arched windows are a reminder of
Comiskey Park Comiskey Park was a ballpark in Chicago, Illinois, located in the Armour Square neighborhood on the near-south side of the city. The stadium served as the home of the Chicago White Sox of the American League from 1910 through 1990. Built by Wh ...
. However, it has a few distinct features of its own. Several traditional Texas-style stone carvings are visible throughout. A four-story office building encloses center field with a white steel multilevel facade similar to the facade on the roof. As the stadium was built on one of the former Arlington Stadium parking lots, the irregular dimensions of the outfield were planned independently, rather than being forced by neighboring structures. The home plate, foul poles (replaced prior to the 2016 season), and bleachers were originally at
Arlington Stadium Arlington Stadium was a baseball stadium located in Arlington, Texas, United States, located between Dallas and Fort Worth, Texas. It served as the home of the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1972 until 1993, after which the ...
. The Home Plate was inserted into place by Richard Greene (then Mayor of Arlington), Elzie Odom (Head of Arlington Home Run Committee and later Mayor of Arlington), and
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
(former part Rangers owner, later
Texas Governor The governor of Texas is the head of state of the U.S. state of Texas. The governor is the head of the executive branch of the government of Texas and is the commander-in-chief of the Texas Military Forces. Established in the Constitut ...
and
President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
). The stadium's -long facades are made of brick and Texas Sunset Red granite. Bas-relief friezes depict significant scenes from the history of both Texas and baseball. The calculus of seating arrangements represented a new economic model for the sport: a critical mass of high-dollar seats close to the infield boost ticket revenue. The stadium has three basic seating tiers: lower, club and upper deck. Two levels of luxury suites occupy spaces behind sliding glass doors above and below the club tier. The stadium has a large number of obstructed-view seats. In some cases, the view is cut off by an overhang or underhang, and others are directly in front of support poles. Also, the design of the upper deck left it one of the highest in baseball. The view from the grandstand reserved sections in left is particularly obstructed. Prior to the 2012 season, the visitor bullpen was reconfigured to be parallel to the field after the previous visitor bullpen configuration had an excessive amount of heat during hot weather games. To allow construction, a few rows of bleacher sections were removed.


Greene's Hill

''Greene's Hill'' is a sloped section of turf located beyond the former center field fence. The Hill served as a
batter's eye The batter's eye or batter's eye screen is a solid-colored, usually dark area beyond the center field wall of a baseball stadium, that is the visual backdrop directly in the line of sight of a baseball batter, while facing the pitcher and awai ...
, providing a contrasting background behind the pitchers which enabled hitters to more easily see the baseball after the pitcher's release. It was originally designed as a picnic area for fans but the Rangers never initiated that policy. It was named after former Arlington mayor Richard Greene in November 1997. For a couple of years in the 2000s, the Rangers had the "T" from the Texas Rangers logo mowed into the grass. In 2010, the Rangers started a tradition where they had four girls run around on it with giant Texas state flags when the Rangers scored, similar to what many football teams do when their teams score. Unlike most batter's eyes, fans were allowed to run onto the hill to catch a home run.


Seating capacity

The stadium contains 5,704 club seats and 126
luxury suite The luxury box (or skybox) and club seating constitute the most expensive class of seating in arenas and stadiums, and generate much higher revenues than regular seating. Club ticketholders often receive exclusive access to an indoor part of th ...
s.


Field dimensions

During the stadium's existence as a baseball park, it was one of baseball's most notoriously hitter-friendly parks, due to the high temperatures, relatively short fences, and the design of the stadium which allowed the area's high winds to swirl and lift balls that would not normally make it out. In truth, the park would have given up even more home runs if not for the office building in center and the field being below street level. With a combination of the park's design and the many good hitters who played for the Rangers during the team's tenure in the park, the Rangers recorded fairly high home run totals. In
1996 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
, the
Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...
hit 221 home runs. They eclipsed 200 again in 1998 (201), 1999 (230), 2001 (241), 2002 (230), 2003 (239), 2004 (227), and 2005 (260, four short of the all-time record of 264 by the 1997 Seattle Mariners). Many of the Rangers' already-skilled hitters took advantage of this, some even racking up multiple 30+ home run seasons, such as
Ian Kinsler Ian Michael Kinsler (; born June 22, 1982) is an American-Israeli former professional baseball second baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 14 seasons for the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles A ...
,
Adrián Beltré Adrián Beltré Pérez (born April 7, 1979) is a Dominican former professional baseball third baseman. During his career, Beltré played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox, and Texas Rangers in Major League Baseball ( ...
, and
Josh Hamilton Joshua Holt Hamilton (born May 21, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 2007 to 2015, most prominently as a member of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers teams ...
. The longest home run recorded was 505 feet to right field by Rangers RF Nomar Mazara on June 21, 2019. Dimensions


Lack of retractable roof

Despite being hailed as a wonderful venue in its infant years, articles in ''
The Dallas Morning News ''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...
'' began to suggest that the ballpark would have been better served by having a dome or retractable roof – much like
Daikin Park Daikin Park (originally Enron Field and formerly Astros Field and Minute Maid Park) is a retractable roof stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. It opened in 2000 and is the home ballpark of the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). ...
, the home of the
Houston Astros The Houston Astros are an American professional baseball team based in Houston. The Astros compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. They are one of two major leag ...
– due to the often oppressive heat that settles over Texas in summer during baseball season, with temperatures on the field being in excess of . Many argue that the intense heat was a liability in attracting players, particularly starting pitchers. When the Arlington ballpark was built in the early 1990s, the only Major League Baseball stadium with a retractable roof was
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
's SkyDome (now Rogers Centre), which opened in 1989. (Also,
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
's
Olympic Stadium ''Olympic Stadium'' is the name usually given to the main stadium of an Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports ...
was still in use as a ballpark at the time; in 1987, a retractable roof was installed which never worked correctly and was rarely if ever retracted.) The other modern retractable-roof ballparks like
Chase Field Chase Field, formerly Bank One Ballpark, is a retractable roof, retractable-roof stadium in downtown Phoenix, Arizona. It is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks. It opened in 1998 Arizona Diamondbacks season, 1998, the ...
,
T-Mobile Park T-Mobile Park is a retractable roof ballpark in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the home stadium of the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball and has a seating capacity of 47,929. It is in Seattle's SoDo neighborhood, near the w ...
,
Daikin Park Daikin Park (originally Enron Field and formerly Astros Field and Minute Maid Park) is a retractable roof stadium in Houston, Texas, United States. It opened in 2000 and is the home ballpark of the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). ...
,
LoanDepot Park LoanDepot Park (officially stylized as loanDepot park, and named Marlins Park until 2021) is a retractable roof stadium located in Miami, Florida, United States. It is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Miami Marlins. It is located on on ...
, and
American Family Field American Family Field is a retractable roof stadium in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Located southwest of the intersection of Interstate 94 in Wisconsin, Interstate 94 and Brewers Boulevard, it is the ballpark of Major League Baseball's Milwaukee Brewe ...
were built in ensuing years.


Renovations

On December 3, 2010, the Rangers announced that extensive renovations to the stadium would be made and ready for the 2011 season. These renovations included: *New
Daktronics Daktronics, Inc. is an American company based in Brookings, South Dakota, that designs, manufactures, sells, and services video displays, scoreboards, digital billboards, dynamic message signs, sound systems, and related products. It was found ...
HD video displays in right field (atop the Home Run Porch) and center field (on top of the office building). *The out-of-town scoreboard on the left field wall (which had been replaced prior to the 2009 season) also was updated with HD technology. *The audio system throughout the stadium was completely overhauled, with new speakers and production equipment. *A new "Show Control System" which can display networked data such as videos, scores, and point-of-sale information anywhere in the stadium. *An
IPTV Internet Protocol television (IPTV), also called TV over broadband, is the service delivery of television over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. Usually sold and run by a Telephone company, telecom provider, it consists of broadcast live telev ...
system that can display live television content on ten HDTV channels to any display in the stadium. It was announced on December 5, 2018, that the stadium's lower stands would undergo extensive renovations once the Renegades moved into the stadium in 2020. The conversion to Choctaw Stadium from Globe Life Park was designed by SBL Architecture, Inc. When renovations for the football layout began, the Texas Rangers sold 6,000 souvenir seats in pairs. A broadcast booth and two booths for football coaches were built in the renovated lower suites and two new auxiliary locker rooms were built on the service level. The Rangers' clubhouse became the Renegades' locker room and coaches offices. Lockers were added to the visiting locker room to accommodate Renegades opponents.


Accidents


1994

On April 11, 1994, the first game at the ballpark, Hollye Minter, who was posing for a picture while intoxicated, fell over a railing in right field, fracturing several bones and causing the
team A team is a group of individuals (human or non-human) working together to achieve their goal. As defined by Professor Leigh Thompson of the Kellogg School of Management, " team is a group of people who are interdependent with respect to in ...
to raise the height of the railings.


2010

On July 6,
2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
,
firefighter A firefighter (or fire fighter or fireman) is a first responder trained in specific emergency response such as firefighting, primarily to control and extinguish fires and respond to emergencies such as hazardous material incidents, medical in ...
Tyler Morris, leaning over the rail to catch a
Nelson Cruz Nelson Ramón Cruz Martínez (born July 1, 1980), nicknamed "Boomstick", is a Dominican-American former professional baseball designated hitter and right fielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers, Texas Ranger ...
foul ball, fell onto the section below him, causing a head injury and a severely sprained ankle to himself and minor injuries to fans he landed on. The game was stopped for 15 minutes while paramedics treated him.


2011

On July 7, 2011, firefighter Shannon Stone, from
Brownwood, Texas Brownwood is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, Texas, United States. The population was 18,862 as of th2020 census Brownwood is in the Texas Hill Country and is home to Howard Payne University, which was founded in 1889. History ...
, was attending the
Rangers A ranger is typically someone in a law enforcement or military/paramilitary role specializing in patrolling a given territory, called "ranging" or "scouting". The term most often refers to: * Park ranger or forest ranger, a person charged with prot ...
game against the
Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...
with his six-year-old son, Cooper, when outfielder
Josh Hamilton Joshua Holt Hamilton (born May 21, 1981) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as an outfielder from 2007 to 2015, most prominently as a member of the Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers teams ...
threw him a ball, as he had asked. Reaching for it, Shannon flipped over the railing and fell , head-first, onto the concrete behind the out-of-town scoreboard in left field. He was conscious and talking as paramedics tended to him, but he died en route to the hospital. The cause of death was identified as blunt force trauma. This was the fourth fall in the stadium's 17 years of history. A
moment of silence A moment of silence (also referred to as a minute's silence or a one-minute silence) is a period of silent contemplation, prayer, reflection, or meditation. Similar to flying a flag at half-mast, a moment of silence is often a gesture o ...
was held for him prior to the next day's game, both the Rangers and Athletics wore black ribbons on their uniforms, and the flags at the stadium were flown at
half-staff Half-mast or half-staff (American English) refers to a flag flying below the summit of a ship mast, a pole on land, or a pole on a building. In many countries this is seen as a symbol of respect, mourning, distress, or, in some cases, a sal ...
in memory of him. The Rangers Foundation set up a memorial fund for Stone's family. A tarp was placed over the opening through which Stone fell. Rangers team president
Nolan Ryan Lynn Nolan Ryan Jr. (born January 31, 1947), nicknamed "the Ryan Express", is an American former professional baseball pitcher and sports executive. Over a record 27-year playing career in Major League Baseball (MLB), Ryan pitched for the New Yo ...
said the height of the railings exceeds the requirement of the building codes but said the team would do "whatever it takes" to ensure the safety of the fans; on July 20, 2011, the Rangers announced they would raise all railings in the front of seating sections to . On August 10, 2011, the team announced it would erect a statue memorializing Stone. Cooper helped unveil the statue on April 5, 2012. It depicts him and his father wearing baseball caps. They are holding hands and looking at each other as if they were talking. The inscription on the statue reads "In memory of Shannon Stone and dedicated to all fans who love the game". On September 30, 2011, Cooper threw out the
ceremonial first pitch The ceremonial first pitch is a longstanding ritual of baseball in which a guest of honor throws a ball to mark the end of pregame festivities and the start of the game. Originally, the guest threw a ball from their seat in the grandstand to ...
to honor his father before Game 1 of the 2011 ALDS against the
Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...
.


Notable events


MLB

The Ballpark In Arlington was the site of one perfect game.
Kenny Rogers Kenneth Ray Rogers (born Kenneth Donald Rogers) (August 21, 1938 – March 20, 2020) was an American singer and songwriter. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, Country Music Hall of Fame in 2013. Rogers was particul ...
retired all 27 batters on July 28, 1994, against the
California Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...
. The ballpark hosted the 1995 MLB All-Star Game. The first MLB regular-season interleague game was played there on June 12, 1997, when the Rangers played the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
. There were four interleague games on the schedule that night, but the other three were played on the West Coast, so the Giants–Rangers matchup started earlier than the others. On September 18, 1999, Jim Morris made his major league debut there at age 35, ten years after he had retired from baseball following four arm surgeries. Morris became the oldest player to debut in the big leagues since Minnie Mendoza in 1970. The first postseason game won by the Rangers there would come in game 2 of the 2010 ALCS, by a score of 7–2 over the Yankees on October 16, 2010. Six days later, the Rangers clinched their first ever
American League pennant Every Major League Baseball (MLB) season, one American League (AL) team wins the pennant, signifying that they are the league's champion and have the right to play in the World Series against the champion of the National League (NL). The pennant ...
there after a 6–1 victory over the
New York Yankees The New York Yankees are an American professional baseball team based in the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of the Bronx. The Yankees compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Am ...
in game 6 of the ALCS, getting the third out in the ninth from former Ranger
Alex Rodriguez Alexander Emmanuel Rodriguez (born July 27, 1975), nicknamed "A-Rod", is an American former professional baseball shortstop, third baseman and designated hitter and current businessman. Rodriguez played 22 seasons in Major League Baseball (ML ...
. Two world series have been played in The Ballpark In Arlington. The Rangers hosted games 3, 4 and 5 of the
2010 World Series The 2010 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2010 Major League Baseball season, 2010 season. The 106th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American L ...
; the
San Francisco Giants The San Francisco Giants are an American professional baseball team based in San Francisco. The Giants compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League West, West Div ...
won the final two games to win the series in five. Games 3, 4 and 5 of the
2011 World Series The 2011 World Series was the World Series, championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2011 Major League Baseball season, 2011 season. The 107th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff played between the American Le ...
were also played there, with the Rangers winning 2 of 3 home games, but losing games 6 and 7 to the Cardinals in
St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
. This was one of three sporting championships to take place in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex in the same year, along with
Super Bowl XLV Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...
and the
2011 NBA Finals The 2011 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2010–11 season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. A rematch of the 2006 Finals, the series was contested between the Western Confer ...
.


College baseball

It hosted the
2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
and the 2004 Big 12 Conference baseball tournament. Since 2013, the UT Arlington baseball team annually hosts one game in the stadium every March.


In popular culture

Scenes from
Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney Pictures is an American film Film production company, production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios (division), the Walt Disney Studios, a division of Disney Entertainment, which is owned by the Walt Disney Company. The st ...
' '' The Rookie'' were shot there. Filming included actor
Dennis Quaid Dennis William Quaid (born April 9, 1954) is an American actor. He is known for his starring roles in '' Breaking Away'' (1979), '' The Right Stuff'' (1983), '' The Big Easy'' (1986), '' Innerspace'' (1987), '' Great Balls of Fire!'' (1989), ' ...
(as Jim Morris) running onto the playing field from the visitors'
bullpen In baseball, the bullpen (or simply the pen) is the area where relief pitchers warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also metonymically referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if ...
during the
seventh-inning stretch In baseball in the United States and Canada, the seventh-inning stretch (also known as the Lucky 7 in Japan and South Korea) is a long-standing tradition that takes place between the halves of the seventh inning of a game. Fans generally stand up ...
of an actual game in progress. The ballpark and Legends of the Game Museum were featured in an episode of ''North Texas Explorer''.


Non-baseball events


Concerts


Football

Prior to the XFL's shutdown after five weeks in 2020, the
Dallas Renegades The Arlington Renegades are a professional American football team based in Arlington, Texas. The Renegades compete in the United Football League (2024), United Football League (UFL) as a member of the XFL Conference. The team was founded as the D ...
had played three games in the stadium. They lost all three beginning with a 15–9 defeat in the season opener against the St. Louis BattleHawks. After the Houston Roughnecks defeated the Renegades 27–20 in Week 4, their last game at Globe Life Park was a 30–12 loss to the
New York Guardians New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...
. The Dallas Renegades will continue play in the stadium starting with the 2023 season, with the stadium serving as a hub for all eight teams during the regular season and the seven other teams flying to their home stadiums each week. In 2024, the XFL—ahead of an upcoming merger with the
United States Football League The United States Football League (USFL) was a professional American football league that played for three seasons, 1983 through 1985. The league played a spring/summer schedule in each of its active seasons. The 1986 season was scheduled to be ...
—indicated that the stadium would again serve as the hub for the merged league. In 2021 and 2022, the stadium was home of the annual Arlington Showdown featuring the
Texas Southern Tigers The Texas Southern Tigers represent Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas, in intercollegiate athletics. They field sixteen teams including men's and women's basketball, cross country, golf, and track and field; women's-only bowling, socce ...
versus the
Southern University Jaguars The Southern Jaguars and Lady Jaguars represent Southern University in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA intercollegiate athletics. Southern University's 13 athletic teams participate in the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) whi ...
. The stadium hosts the
high school football High school football, also known as prep football, is gridiron football played by High school (North America), high school teams in the United States and Canada. It ranks among the most popular high school sports, interscholastic sports in both c ...
games for the Arlington Independent School District as part of the
University Interscholastic League The University Interscholastic League (UIL) is an organization that creates rules for and administers almost all athletic, musical, and academic contests for public primary and secondary schools in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the largest organ ...
.


Rugby union

The stadium has been the home of the
Dallas Jackals The Dallas Jackals were a Major League Rugby team that began play in the 2022 Major League Rugby season, 2022 season as an expansion franchise. They were originally going to join the MLR for the 2021 Major League Rugby season, 2021 season, but on ...
of
Major League Rugby Major League Rugby (MLR) is a professional rugby union competition in the United States. The league comprises 11 teams. While operating outside of the governance and oversight of the national governing body, the league is officially sanctioned ...
since their inaugural season in 2022 until the club ceased operations in September 2024.


Soccer

The
International Champions Cup The International Champions Cup (ICC) was an annual club association football (soccer) official competition staged from 2013 to 2019. COVID-19 resulted in the 2020 edition being cancelled. The tournament was later abolished, but the Women's I ...
soccer match featuring
Atlético Madrid Club Atlético de Madrid, S.A.D. (; meaning "Athletic Club of Madrid"), commonly referred to as Atlético Madrid or simply Atlético, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid that plays in La Liga. The club play their home game ...
of Spain vs. Chivas Guadalajara of Mexico was played on July 23, 2019. It was the first time that a soccer match involving professional clubs was played at Choctaw Stadium.
North Texas SC North Texas Soccer Club is a professional soccer club that competes in MLS Next Pro, the third division of American soccer. The team is owned by, and operates as the reserve team of the Major League Soccer club FC Dallas. North Texas SC currently ...
of
USL League One USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's association football, soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019 USL League One season, 2019. The United States soccer league system, Division III league is operated ...
moved from its previous home in Frisco to Choctaw Stadium beginning in 2020. The club is scheduled to leave the stadium in 2026 and move to
Mansfield, Texas Mansfield is a suburban city in the U.S. state of Texas, and is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The city is located mostly in Tarrant County, with small parts in Ellis and Johnson counties. Its location is approximately 30 miles from Dalla ...
.


Other events

It was the venue for the Dallas/Fort Worth MDA Muscle Walk event that took place on September 20, 2014. This was previously held at
AT&T Stadium AT&T Stadium is a retractable roof stadium in Arlington, Texas, United States. It serves as the home of the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL), and was completed on May 27, 2009. It is also the home of the Cotton Bowl Classic ...
(formerly Cowboys Stadium) from 2010 to 2013. On June 17, 2019, a tornado with estimated strength of EF-1 touched down in Arlington near Choctaw Stadium. Officials said the storm damaged windscreens in left field and caused damage to a small portion of the left field roof. Further, the Chick-fil-A signage on the foul pole in left field was damaged.


See also

*
Texas Rangers Hall of Fame The Texas Rangers are an American professional baseball team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Rangers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West Division. The tea ...
*
List of rugby union stadiums by capacity The following is a list of stadiums at which rugby union is played, ordered by seating capacity. Currently all stadiums with a capacity of 10,000 or more which are the regular home venue of a club or national team, or are the regular hosts of a ...
*
Lists of stadiums The following are lists of stadiums throughout the world. Note that horse racing and motorsport venues are not included at some pages, because those are not stadiums but sports venues. Combined lists *List of stadiums by capacity * List of c ...


References


External links


Seating Chart




{{USL League One venues 1994 establishments in Texas American football venues in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex Arlington Renegades Baseball venues in Texas Baseball venues in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex Dallas Jackals David M. Schwarz buildings Defunct Major League Baseball venues Major League Rugby stadiums New Classical architecture in the United States Rebuilt buildings and structures in the United States Rugby union stadiums in Texas Soccer venues in Texas Sports venues completed in 1994 Sports venues in Arlington, Texas Texas Rangers stadiums Former USL League One stadiums MLS Next Pro stadiums