City at a Glance
Dallas is hosting nine matches at the 2026 tournament — more than any other city in the tournament — and the venue is the biggest. AT&T Stadium in Arlington seats roughly 80,000 with a retractable roof and the largest column-free interior in the world. If you only see one match in person on this trip, there is a reasonable argument that it should be one here. Whether or not Dallas itself is your kind of city is another matter, and that depends mostly on what you want from a holiday.
Dallas-Fort Worth is a sprawl. Greater DFW covers more than 9,000 square miles and contains around 8 million people across two big cities — Dallas and Fort Worth — and dozens of suburbs in between. Arlington, where the stadium sits, is one of those suburbs, equidistant from the two main centres. There is no proper downtown-to-stadium public transit option, which is the single most important practical thing to know about your trip. Plan on driving, ride-sharing, or coaches for every match day, and budget accordingly.
The other big variable is the weather. June in north Texas is brutally hot — average daytime temperatures of 32°C, regular days at 38°C or above, and the kind of dry heat that creeps up on you because you do not feel yourself sweating. The stadium's retractable roof and air conditioning are essential rather than nice-to-haves. Outside the stadium, plan your sightseeing for early morning and late afternoon, and treat midday as something to spend indoors. Hydrate ruthlessly. Dallas suits fans who want big, brash, distinctly American Americana — the kind of trip where every steak weighs a pound, every car is enormous, and everything is exactly as Texan as you imagined.
The Stadium & Match Day
AT&T Stadium, locally still called Jerry World after Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, opened in 2009 at a cost of over $1 billion. The roof retracts, the end zone doors slide open, and the centre-hung video board is itself a tourist attraction. Capacity for a typical NFL game is 80,000; configurations for the tournament, with grass laid over the artificial pitch, will be in a similar range. The pitch surface will be temporary natural turf for the tournament.
There is no commuter rail or subway from central Dallas or central Fort Worth to Arlington. Your options are: drive and park ($30 to $75 at official lots), ride-share (typically $40 to $90 from central Dallas, more on surge), book a coach (several tour operators run match-day services from downtown hotels for $30 to $50 return), or stay in Arlington itself. The last of these is genuinely worth considering for match days; there are large hotel clusters within walking distance of the stadium. Arrive at least two hours before kick-off — the surrounding roads gridlock for major events and the security queues are real.
Security uses the standard clear-bag policy: a clear plastic bag no larger than 30 by 15 by 30 centimetres, plus a small clutch. No outside food or drink. Inside, prices reflect the venue's standing — domestic beer $12 to $15, premium imports $14 to $18, hot dogs $8, brisket plates $20 and up. The brisket is, predictably, very good. There is an entire food court in the north end that genuinely justifies arriving early to explore.
The stadium itself is worth a non-match-day visit. Self-guided tours run for $25 and let you onto the playing surface, into the locker rooms, and up to the press box; guided VIP tours run $40 and are the closest you will get to the executive levels. There is also a substantial art collection scattered through the public concourses — major contemporary pieces commissioned specifically for the building — which is a peculiar and oddly impressive thing to come across at a football ground.
Where to Stay
Downtown Dallas — The most urban experience, with the West End, Reunion Tower, Klyde Warren Park, and the Sixth Floor Museum all walkable. Hotels include The Adolphus, the Joule, and various chain options. $200 to $450 per night during the tournament. Pros: best non-match-day base, restaurants and bars on your doorstep. Cons: a 30 to 45 minute ride to the stadium, traffic dependent.
Uptown Dallas — Just north of downtown, with the McKinney Avenue trolley, Klyde Warren Park, and the densest concentration of decent bars and restaurants in the city. The Crescent and various boutique hotels. $250 to $500. Pros: nightlife, walkability, younger feel. Cons: same distance to the stadium as downtown, slightly more expensive.
Arlington (Entertainment District) — Walking distance to AT&T Stadium and to Globe Life Field, the Texas Rangers baseball ground. Marriott, Sheraton, Live! by Loews, and others. $250 to $500 on match days, less on others. Pros: by far the easiest match-day logistics, hotels are walk-in-walk-out. Cons: not a destination outside of game days — the area is car-centric and quiet, with little to do beyond the stadiums and a few chain restaurants.
Fort Worth Stockyards / Downtown Fort Worth — Forty minutes west of Dallas and a genuinely different city, with a walkable downtown, the historic Stockyards district with its twice-daily cattle drives, and the Bass Performance Hall. Hotels at $200 to $400. Pros: most distinctive Texan experience, smaller and friendlier than Dallas, better food per dollar. Cons: longest commute to the stadium, but actually closer than central Dallas in traffic.
Getting Around
DART, Dallas Area Rapid Transit, runs light rail and buses around the city, covering downtown, Uptown, and the airport. A day pass is $6 and the system works well within Dallas itself — particularly the Red, Blue, Orange, and Green lines crossing through the central area. The Trinity Railway Express commuter line connects downtown Dallas to downtown Fort Worth in about an hour for $5 each way, which is the easiest way to do a Fort Worth day trip.
What DART does not do is reach AT&T Stadium. Arlington has no rail station and only limited bus connections. For the stadium, plan on a car or a ride-share. Uber and Lyft are everywhere; expect $40 to $90 from central Dallas to Arlington, much more on surge after big events. Hiring a car is genuinely sensible in DFW given the distances — small car hire from $50 a day, and most hotels have parking at $20 to $40 a night. American drivers and wide American roads make this easier than driving in central Boston or New York; the freeway system is daunting at first but quickly becomes routine.
DFW International Airport sits halfway between Dallas and Fort Worth and is enormous. The DART Orange Line runs to Terminal A and connects through to downtown Dallas in about an hour for $3. The TexRail commuter line runs to downtown Fort Worth. Taxis and ride-shares from DFW to central Dallas run $40 to $70.
Walking is impractical in most of DFW. Downtown Dallas, Uptown, and the Stockyards in Fort Worth are exceptions and reward an hour or two on foot. Everything else assumes you have wheels.
Food & Drink
Pecan Lodge — The Deep Ellum institution and probably the best-known barbecue restaurant in Texas. Brisket, ribs, sausage, pulled pork by the half pound, with sides of mac and cheese and collard greens. Around $25 to $35 a head. The queue is real, particularly at weekends; arrive within 45 minutes of opening or be prepared to wait two hours.
Terry Black's Barbecue — Deep Ellum's other top barbecue spot, owned by an Austin family with deep roots in the smoke. Less famous than Pecan Lodge, queues are shorter, and many locals quietly prefer it. $25 to $35 a head.
Rodeo Goat — A craft burger and beer joint with several DFW locations, including a popular one in the Design District. Excellent burgers in the $15 to $20 range, dozens of taps including good Texas craft, and a relaxed patio that works for a group of mates.
The French Room — When you want to drop $200 a head on a serious dinner, the dining room at the Adolphus Hotel downtown remains the city's classic special-occasion restaurant. Modern American with a French foundation, in a room that has hosted every Dallas dignitary since 1912.
Joe T. Garcia's (Fort Worth) — A vast, decades-old Tex-Mex restaurant on Fort Worth's north side with an enormous outdoor patio, fixed-menu enchilada dinners, and frozen margaritas that go down dangerously fast. $25 a head, cash and card both fine now. The right call for a large group on a hot evening.
Twin Peaks Sports Lodge — Several DFW locations of a chain that combines lumberjack-themed décor, dozens of TVs showing every match imaginable, and Texas-brewed beer kept at exactly 28 degrees Fahrenheit. The most concentrated sports-bar experience in the metroplex and almost certainly where you will end up watching at least one other 2026 fixture.
Things to Do Beyond the Match
The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza — The former Texas School Book Depository, from which Lee Harvey Oswald fired the shots that killed President Kennedy in November 1963. The museum is sober, exhaustive, and genuinely moving. About $20 entry, audio guide included. Allow two to three hours.
Dallas Museum of Art — Free general admission, with a strong American and contemporary collection. The Klyde Warren Park sits across the street, providing a green roof over a freeway and a pleasant place for a coffee.
Reunion Tower — The ball-on-a-stick observation tower that dominates the Dallas skyline. The GeO-Deck observation level is around $20 and offers the best wide view of the city, particularly at sunset.
Fort Worth Stockyards — A genuine former cattle yard turned tourist district, with twice-daily longhorn cattle drives down the main street at 11.30am and 4pm. Free to attend, and Billy Bob's Texas — the largest honky-tonk in the world — sits at the end of the block. Worth a full afternoon and evening.
Kimbell Art Museum (Fort Worth) — A small but world-class collection in a celebrated Louis Kahn building. Free general admission. Often called the best small museum in America and entirely worth the drive from Dallas.
Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden — Sixty-six acres on White Rock Lake, particularly impressive in June when the summer plantings are at their best. About $20 entry. A morning visit beats the worst of the heat.
Dallas Cowboys Tour at AT&T Stadium — Even if you are not seeing a match here, the stadium tour ($25 self-guided, $40 guided) is genuinely interesting. Pro football is to Texas what the village pitch is to England, only larger and louder.
Bishop Arts District — A small walkable neighbourhood south of downtown with independent shops, restaurants, and bars. The right antidote to the city's general scale, and Emporium Pies on West Davis Street is worth the trip on its own.
Hidden Gems
Babe's Chicken Dinner House (Roanoke) — Forty minutes north of downtown in the small town of Roanoke, a fried-chicken restaurant with family-style service, mashed potatoes, biscuits, and a complete absence of pretension. About $20 a head, cash and card. The cobbler is the closer.
White Rock Lake — A 1,000-acre lake within the city limits with a 9.3-mile path around it, popular with locals for cycling, running, and picnics. Almost no tourists. The Bath House Cultural Center on the east shore is worth a look.
Lockhart Smokehouse (Bishop Arts) — The Dallas outpost of the Lockhart, Texas, barbecue tradition. Brisket and sausage served on butcher paper without sauce, just the way central Texas intends. Around $25 a head.
The Cliff Cafe (Oak Cliff) — A small neighbourhood breakfast joint south of the Trinity River with proper Tex-Mex breakfast tacos, queso, and decent coffee. Where to start a non-match-day morning before the heat kicks in.
Day Trips
Fort Worth — Already mentioned in the staying-and-eating sections, Fort Worth is the day trip everyone forgets to take. Thirty miles west of Dallas on the Trinity Railway Express or by car. Stockyards, Kimbell, downtown Sundance Square, and Joe T. Garcia's for dinner. A full day, possibly the best one of your trip.
Waco — Ninety minutes south by car. Best known for Magnolia Market — Chip and Joanna Gaines's empire of homewares and home renovation TV — which has rebuilt the small downtown into a destination of its own. Half-day trip, ideal if anyone in your party watches Fixer Upper.
Glen Rose and Dinosaur Valley — Ninety minutes south-west by car. Dinosaur Valley State Park has genuine 113-million-year-old dinosaur tracks preserved in the riverbed, which you can wade out and stand in. Around $7 per vehicle. A surprisingly memorable half-day if you have children with you.
Sports Culture
Dallas-Fort Worth is one of the most sports-mad metropolitan areas in the United States. The Cowboys (NFL) and Mavericks (NBA) play in the Dallas area; the Texas Rangers (MLB) play at Globe Life Field next door to AT&T Stadium; the Stars (NHL) play at American Airlines Center downtown; and FC Dallas (MLS) play north of the city in Frisco. The Rangers' new stadium is air-conditioned and a baseball evening during the tournament is a genuinely civilised way to spend a hot summer night, even for someone who does not understand the rules. Tickets from $20.
For watching other 2026 fixtures, downtown Dallas, Uptown, and Lower Greenville have the densest sports-bar scene. The Old Monk on Henderson Avenue is the best straight-up English pub feel in the city, with proper draft, decent food, and football on the screens. The Common Table in Uptown is a craft-beer-focused option that takes its TVs seriously. In Fort Worth, Flying Saucer Draught Emporium on West Magnolia is the go-to. Twin Peaks and Hooters cover the more brash end of the spectrum.
Soccer is growing fast in DFW, helped by FC Dallas's two decades in the city and by the area's large Mexican-American population — the Mexican national team draws sell-out crowds at AT&T Stadium whenever they play here. Expect informed and engaged conversation about the tournament wherever you go.
Practical Tips for English Fans
- Tipping is non-negotiable. Twenty percent in restaurants and a dollar a drink at bars are normal, and Texans tip generously by US standards.
- Drinking age is 21 and ID checks are universal. Carry your passport on every night out.
- Texas sales tax is 8.25 percent and is added to almost every receipt. Menu prices are pre-tax.
- The heat is the headline. Drink water from the moment you wake up. Wear a hat. Reapply sun cream. The dry Texas heat does not feel as oppressive as Houston's, but it will burn you faster.
- Schedule outdoor sightseeing for before 11am or after 5pm. Midday belongs to museums and air-conditioned shopping.
- Distances are huge. A 30-minute drive across the metroplex is normal. Budget travel time generously, particularly around match days.
- Open alcohol containers in public are illegal. Texas is more conservative on this than you might expect.
- Texans are genuinely friendly and will strike up conversation. "Where y'all from?" is not small talk — they want to hear the accent and ask about the football.
- Carry photo ID at all times. Texas state law allows police to ask for ID in many situations.
- Tex-Mex is not Mexican food — it is its own thing, and it is excellent. Try queso, breakfast tacos, and enchiladas before passing judgement.
- Cowboy hats and boots are not costume in Fort Worth; they are normal Friday evening dress. Wear what you like.
- If you hire a car, fill up before returning it. Fuel near DFW airport is double the usual rate.
- Football here means American football. Refer to soccer as soccer unless you want to clarify three times.