Sponsor-driven Cowboys waste little time pulling World Cup covers from stadium signage

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Jerry Jones didn't waste any time starting to get his stadium signage back when the World Cup was finished at the home of his Dallas Cowboys.

The high-profile owner of the NFL's Cowboys had to surrender AT&T Stadium to FIFA for the tournament-high nine matches held under the giant video board and retractable roof. It was renamed Dallas Stadium for a month — even on Google maps.

Since none of the primary sponsors of the Cowboys matched those of the governing body of the World Cup, coverings were put over the large letters and logos on the roof and the smaller “AT&T Stadium” signs above the giant sliding glass doors on each end of the stadium.

Less than three hours after Spain beat France 2-0 in the semifinals on Tuesday in the final match in Texas, the Cowboys sent an email announcing a photo opportunity for 7 a.m. Wednesday. That's when workers were set to begin removing the coverings. The same email was sent again early Wednesday morning.

While the process was expected to take a few days, the large stadium name on one side of the roof was completely uncovered well before noon. Workers also were removing World Cup and FIFA banners that were on temporary fencing around the perimeter of the stadium.

Jones was a pioneer for radical changes in sponsorships in the NFL. When he bought the Cowboys in 1989, NFL teams shared almost all sponsorship money.

Six years later, the NFL and Jones sued each other as he fought for the right to strike his own sponsorship deals. Jones famously showed up on the field before a Monday night game with Nike CEO Phil Knight after reaching a deal with that shoe company when the NFL's shoe sponsor was Reebok.

There were plenty of coverings inside AT&T Stadium for the World Cup, including over signs for Pepsi, Dr Pepper and Ford.

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See more of AP’s World Cup coverage here