North American basketball’s Dallas Mavericks and ice hockey’s Dallas Stars have unveiled plans to leave their shared home venue, American Airlines Center (AAC) in downtown Dallas, for new arenas in North Dallas and Plano, respectively.
The Dallas Mavericks, who play in the elite National Basketball Association, announced yesterday they had reached an agreement to purchase 104 acres of land at the former site of a mall in Far North Dallas – around 10 miles north of their current home.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
The new site has been vacant since 2015, and demolition of the mall building was completed in 2023.
The Mavericks' chief executive, Rick Welts, previously said the franchise wanted a potential site chosen by July 2026 to ensure construction of a new arena could be completed by July 2031, when their lease with AAC expires.
The agreement comes after reports that the team was considering a downtown site that would include City Hall, with the Dallas City Council currently deliberating whether to renovate or replace the building.
The 104 acres of the new site are more than twice the size the Mavericks indicated they needed for a downtown site, allowing the franchise to build ancillary spaces.
In a statement, the Mavericks said: “We have the opportunity to create a vibrant mixed-use destination anchored by a state-of-the-art arena, along with restaurants, entertainment options, public green spaces, and family-friendly experiences.
“Done thoughtfully and with community engagement, a project of this scale will serve as a meaningful economic catalyst for Dallas and its residents. We believe in Dallas, and our priority has been clear from the beginning: keeping the Dallas Mavericks in Dallas.”
Meanwhile, the Mavericks’ AAC co-tenants, the Dallas Stars of the top-tier National Hockey League, have signed a nonbinding letter of intent with the City of Plano to build a new arena and entertainment district at a mall site 17 miles north of AAC.
The plans for a new arena require approval from the Plano City Council. A meeting has been scheduled for June 8, including a public hearing on the Stars’ arena plans.
Plano City Council previously submitted a letter of intent to the Stars in February to build a $1 billion arena at The Shops at Willow Bend site.
Tom Gaglardi, Dallas Stars’ owner, governor, and chairman, said: “This project would present a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our franchise.
“We eagerly await the vote by the Plano City Council and look forward to continuing the conversation to be part of the redevelopment of The Shops at Willow Bend."
Plano Mayor John Muns added: “Plano has built a reputation as a city that welcomes world-class partners and community-focused investment.
“The Dallas Stars are an iconic North Texas organization, and we are encouraged by their interest as conversations move forward.”
The Dallas Cowboys (NFL), Dallas Wings (WNBA), and Texas Rangers (MLB) play in the suburb of Arlington, which is 20 miles west of Dallas. The Wings are in the process of building a new arena in downtown Dallas, which is expected to be completed by the 2027 season.
Major League Soccer’s FC Dallas, meanwhile, plays in Frisco, which is 29 miles north of downtown Dallas.
Elsewhere in NBA basketball, the LA Lakers have hired experienced sports executive Yao Williams as the franchise’s vice president and head of global partnership.
In the role, Williams will lead the Lakers' global partnerships team, including “partnership sales, business solutions, and partnership activation, driving revenue-generating opportunities and creating innovative programming and platforms to maximize brand value.”
Williams joins from Elevate Sports Ventures, where he co-led global partnerships. Before that, he worked at the NBA and English soccer’s Manchester City.
Lon Rosen, Lakers president of business operations, said: “I couldn’t be more excited to have Yao Williams join the Lakers business and lead our global partnership team.
“Yao is an engaging leader with an appetite for innovation that will help drive performance and deliver best-in-class experiences for Lakers partners.”
The new appointment comes as the Lakers continue to revamp their business operations staff on the back of Mark Walter, the controlling owner of baseball’s LA Dodgers, who took majority control of the basketball franchise in October.
Since then, Rosen was brought in to replace Tim Harris, while Michael Spetner was announced as the franchise's new chief strategy and growth officer.
In April, Ryan Kantor was announced as the team’s vice president of global partnerships, but will lead sponsorship revenue generation and have responsibility over sales strategy and driving new business across both domestic and international markets.
