The facility, owned by the City of Arlington, has also been used for a variety of other activities, such as concerts, basketball games, soccer, college and high-school football contests, rodeos, motocross, Spartan Races and professional wrestling.

[15] Additional attendance is made possible by the Party Pass (open areas) sections behind the seats in each end zone that are positioned on a series of six elevated platforms connected by stairways.

Originally estimated at $650 million, the stadium's actual construction cost rose to $1.15 billion,[18] making it one of the most expensive sports venues ever built.

The City of Arlington provided over $325 million (including interest) in bonds as funding,[18][19] and Jones covered any cost overruns.

The new stadium also includes "more than 3,000 Sony LCD displays throughout the luxury suites, concourses, concession areas and more, offering fans viewing options that extend beyond the action on the field".

The retractable roof was designed by structural engineering firm Walter P Moore and the systems were implemented by mechanization consultants Uni-Systems.

The electrification of Cowboys Stadium's retractable roof was developed by VAHLE, Inc.[26] These kinetic architecture fundamentals are employed to create quick conversions of the facility to accommodate a variety of events.

The football turf field was built by Hellas Construction, which developed a special SoftTop Convertible Turf system that has 26 interchangeable panels to allow the stadium to host a variety of events from concerts, dirt bike races, and monster truck rallies to college football, basketball, and soccer games.

[28] Although the stadium had yet to sell naming rights, many fans started referring to the project with various nicknames such as "Jerry World",[36][46][47] the "Death Star",[48] "The Palace in Dallas" (for which announcer Bob Costas was criticized by the Arlington mayor[49]), "Cowboys Cathedral",[50] "Jerrassic Park" and others.

[24] For basketball events played the stadium, such as the 2010 NBA All-Star Game, the 175 feet (58 yd) twin video screens that comprise the length of the scoreboard are actually larger than the court.

[citation needed] The video boards have since been surpassed in size, including at several other NFL stadiums, but remain among the largest in the world.

On December 5, 2009, the Texas Longhorns defeated the Nebraska Cornhuskers 13–12 in the 2009 Big 12 Championship Game, the first to be held in the stadium with attendance announced at 76,211.

The Arkansas Razorbacks vs. Texas A&M Aggies football rivalry, which began in 1903, was renewed in 2009 as the Southwest Classic, and was played at Cowboys Stadium from 2009 through 2011.

The stadium features paintings, sculptures, and installations by Franz Ackermann, Doug Aitken, Ricci Albenda, Mel Bochner, Daniel Buren, Olafur Eliasson, Teresita Fernandez, Wayne Gonzales, Terry Haggerty, Trenton Doyle Hancock, Jacqueline Humphries, Jim Isermann, Annette Lawrence, Dave Muller, Gary Simmons, and Lawrence Weiner.

[129] The stadium was only accessible via the weekday-only Metro Arlington Xpress (MAX) bus system; a 0.4 mi (0.64 km) walk from the Collins and Andrews stop that connected with the Trinity Rail Express (TRE) station at CentrePort/DFW Airport.

The bus system was an experimental program operated by Dallas Area Rapid Transit that commenced in April 2013 and was replaced by a ride-sharing service in December 2017.

Since its opening, the unorthodox size and positioning of the video boards above the field has been the source of controversy, specifically due to its interference with punts on multiple occasions.

For teams with strategies centered on maximizing hang time, physicist Christopher Moore of Longwood University has shown via computer simulation that well-kicked punts have the potential to hit the screen no matter the field position.

The screen was retrofitted with 16 custom winches using 11,000 feet (3,400 m) of 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) domestic galvanized wire rope to transport the video board in time to make room for U2's massive set during their 360° Tour, and was moved back down after the concert.

[citation needed] On August 24, 2013, during a preseason game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Cowboys punter Chris Jones became the second player to hit the scoreboard.

For stadium sites which require an east–west layout, teams either use curtains or other obstructions to keep out the sun, or limit large windows to sides of the building where direct sunlight is not an issue.

[136][137] In a 2024 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, Cowboys wide receiver CeeDee Lamb appeared to miss a potential touchdown throw from quarterback Cooper Rush due to the sunlight glare.

"[138][139] Ironically, the Cowboys had to jury-rig a shade for Coach Mike McCarthy's press conference the day after Lamb's comments, as the sun was shining right into his eyes.