AT&T Stadium Game Day Guide
Dallas Cowboys · Arlington, TX
Know Before You Go
- Bag policy
Clear plastic, vinyl, or PVC bags may be no larger than 12 x 6 x 12 inches; one-gallon clear bags and one-compartment clutches no larger than 4.5 x 6.5 inches are also permitted.
Medically necessary items are allowed after inspection at a designated gate.
- Bag storage
The Mobile Locker Company stores non-compliant bags for a fee in Silver Lot 5 and Blue Lot 9 during Cowboys games.
- Gate opening
AT&T Stadium plazas, clubs, suites, and concourses open at least two hours before Cowboys kickoff.
Opening times can change by event; check the current game page before traveling.
- Mobile tickets
All AT&T Stadium tickets are mobile and available through the Dallas Cowboys app; PDFs and screenshots are not accepted.
Ticket barcodes refresh every few seconds and must be scanned on the mobile device.
- Re-entry
Cowboys tickets grant one-time entry to AT&T Stadium with no right of re-entry after exit.
- Prohibited items
AT&T Stadium prohibits weapons, outside food and drink, non-compliant bags, chairs and seat cushions, large camera lenses, drones, fireworks, noisemakers, lasers, sports balls, video cameras, and other listed items.
All guests and belongings are subject to search. Review the complete official list before leaving home because management may reject other dangerous or inappropriate items.
- First aid
First aid locations are in the northeast Event Level tunnel, behind Sections 219 and 244 on the Main Concourse, and behind Sections 420 and 451 on the Upper Concourse.
For medical help, contact event staff, call 817-892-4161, or text your location and message to 972-945-3005.
- Nursing and lactation
Five lockable nursing rooms with changing stations, sinks, and seating are in the North and South Main Clubs and behind Sections 416 and 446.
Guests may also nurse anywhere they feel comfortable.
- Family restrooms
Accessible family restrooms with baby-changing tables are on every concourse and each Club and Suite level.
- Tickets for children
Children age one and older need a ticket for the 2026 Cowboys home games.
- Guest services
Guest Services booths are behind Sections 219, 244, 420, and 451.
For event-day feedback or help, text 972-945-3005 or call 817-892-4161.
- Service animals
Service animals and service animals in training are permitted; other animals are prohibited.
Guests may contact Guest Services at 817-892-4161 before game day to discuss accommodations.
- Smoking and vaping
Smoking, e-cigarettes, and vaporizers are prohibited inside AT&T Stadium and allowed only in designated outdoor areas at least 50 feet from entrances.
Public areas are at Miller Lite House and the AT&T East Plaza; Entries A, E, F, and K serve Club and Suite guests.
Game Day Timeline
What the day looks like at AT&T Stadium, hour by hour.
Parking Lots Open
Official lots surrounding AT&T Stadium open for tailgating. Early arrivals stake out prime spots in Lot 4 and the east lots.
Tailgate Scene Peaks
Texas BBQ smokers are in full swing. Brisket, ribs, and sausage fill the air. Country music blasts from truck beds and the lots become a massive outdoor party.
Gates Open
Stadium gates open. Head inside early to take in the awe-inspiring atrium and the massive video board. The Art Collection inside the stadium is worth exploring.
Player Warmups
Players take the field under the retractable roof. The video board displays warmup highlights in stunning detail.
Pregame Show
Grab your brisket sandwich and find your seat. The Cowboys cheerleaders and Rowdy the mascot fire up the crowd.
Game Time
80,000 fans erupt as the Cowboys take the field. The video board replays are so massive you can see individual blades of grass. The atmosphere inside the climate-controlled stadium is electric.
Exit Strategy
Traffic dispersal is the biggest challenge. Wait 30-45 minutes for lots to thin out, or walk to nearby restaurants in the entertainment district.
Tips & Fan Reports
You can tailgate in any lot but Lot 4 has the main Cowboys tailgate scene. Lot 11 also has some great spots - look for the Dallas Cowboys shortbus, that's where the party is.
For a 3:25pm game eat lunch before/after the game somewhere beyond the stadium since the timing works well. Eat before you get there unless you don't mind dropping a house payment inside.
The video board stretching from 20-yard-line to 20-yard-line is absurd in person. Photos do not capture how massive it really is.
The stadium Art Collection features over $40 million in contemporary art. Take time to explore the concourses.
There is zero public transit to Arlington. Drive, Uber, or take the TRE to CentrePort and Uber the last 4 miles. That is it.
Arrive early to see the Cowboys cheerleaders pregame rehearsal on the field.
AT&T Stadium has $40M in contemporary art throughout the concourses. Take a lap before kickoff and actually look at the walls. It is a legit gallery.
Lots open about five hours before a Cowboys game and fill first-come, first-served even with a permit, so an early arrival gets a better spot rather than a guaranteed one.
The two-hour post-game tailgating window is the real advantage here. Staying put is usually faster than joining the exit queue.
Check your lot number before you buy. A permit for Lot 3, 8 or 9 is parking only (no tent, no cooler, no chairs) and portions of Lot 5 are excluded too.
Before the Game
Tailgating is permitted at AT&T Stadium, but only in named lots and only inside a measured footprint: 9 feet wide by 12 feet deep, confined to the area directly behind your parking space. Lots 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 through 15 allow it, with designated grassy perimeter areas; Lot 3, Lot 8, Lot 9 and parts of Lot 5 do not. The unusual part is the back end: tailgating runs from the time lots open until two hours after the game, so the lot is a place to wait out the traffic rather than somewhere you are pushed out of at kickoff. Lots generally open five hours before a Cowboys game and every vehicle needs a valid parking permit.
Where to Tailgate
Tailgating lots: 4, 5, 6, 7 and 10 through 15
The lots where tailgating is permitted, including designated grassy perimeter areas. Each vehicle gets a 9-foot by 12-foot tailgate footprint behind its space, and tents, coolers and chairs are allowed only in these designated tailgating spaces.
Known for Tailgating permitted · 9ft x 12ft per vehicle · Grassy perimeter areas
Non-tailgating lots: 3, 8, 9 and parts of 5
Standard parking lots where tailgating is prohibited. Tents, coolers and chairs are not permitted in these spaces at all, so a permit for one of these buys parking only.
Known for No tailgating · No tents or coolers · Parking only
The post-game window
Unusually, the lots stay open for tailgating up to two hours after Cowboys and college football games, which makes them a place to sit out the Arlington exit traffic rather than somewhere you are cleared from at kickoff.
Known for Two hours post-game · Beat the exit traffic
Pregame Rules
What AT&T Stadium allows before the game, and what it does not.
- Tailgating is permitted in Lots 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15, and is prohibited in Lot 3, portions of Lot 5, Lot 8 and Lot 9.
- A tailgate may occupy a maximum of 9 feet wide by 12 feet deep, confined to the area adjacent to the end of the designated tailgating vehicle parking space, a maximum of 12 feet from the rear of the parked vehicle.
- Tailgating is permitted from the time the lots open and up to two hours following Dallas Cowboys or college football games.
- Charcoal or gas grills are allowed. Open flame fires of any kind are prohibited.
- Deep fryers and any oil-based cooking or frying are prohibited.
- Tents, coolers, chairs and similar items are permitted only in designated tailgating spaces, not in standard parking spaces.
- Weapons, fireworks and amplified sound systems are prohibited.
- The sale of food, beverage or merchandise is prohibited, as is saving parking or tailgating spaces.
- Each vehicle must have a valid parking permit.
Weather
AT&T Stadium has a retractable roof, so these are the conditions for the walk in and the pregame, and the roof decides the rest.
Across the NFL season the warmest month is September, with an average high of 88°F, and the coldest is January, when the average low is 34°F. October is the wettest month at 4.8 inches and January the driest at 2.7 inches.
That January low ranks 20th coldest of the 32 NFL venues, and October here ranks 10th wettest.
September
3.5 inchesOctober
4.8 inchesNovember
2.8 inchesDecember
3.0 inchesJanuary
2.7 inchesWhat to Bring
- Only the outside food and drink the rule allows
Outside food, bottles, cans, thermoses, and beverage containers are prohibited.
- A card or a phone wallet
Food, beverage, parking, and retail transactions at AT&T Stadium are cashless; major cards and mobile pay are accepted.
- Layers, gloves and a hat
January lows average 34°F outside AT&T Stadium; the roof decides what the seats get.
- Sunscreen, sunglasses and a hat
September highs average 88°F outside AT&T Stadium, whatever the roof does.
- A rain layer
October averages 4.8 inches of rain here, outside the roof.
Tailgate Gear
Lots open about five hours before kickoff, and running until two hours after the game.
- A charcoal or gas grill: open flame fires of any kind are banned
- A setup inside 9 feet by 12 feet, no more than 12 feet back from your bumper
- A valid parking permit for one of the tailgating lots, not Lot 3, 8 or 9
- No deep fryer: oil-based cooking is prohibited
- No amplified sound system. These are prohibited outright here
How We Checked This Page
Every section below names the source it was read from and the day it was read. Where we could not reach a published figure, the page says so rather than presenting an estimate as a checked fact.
- Game day timeline
Gate opening time checked against the venue's own gate-opening policy: AT&T Stadium plazas, clubs, suites, and concourses open at least two hours before Cowboys kickoff.
- Pregame
AT&T Stadium official site, Plan Your Visit: Parking (tailgating rules and lot list)
- Weather
NOAA 1991-2020 Climate Normals
- Venue policies
Current AT&T Stadium A-Z, accessibility, parking, and 2026 Cowboys gameday guidance reviewed for all structured venue-policy topics.