by Bob Francis, Fort Worth Report
October 26, 2026

Fort Worth’s Dickies Arena has a new name: Ariat Arena. 

Trail Drive Management Corp., the arena’s manager, and Ariat International, a Western, equestrian and workwear brand, announced this morning that the venue will be renamed Ariat Arena. 

The 10-year naming rights partnership is effective immediately and designates Ariat as the arena’s official and exclusive partner for Western wear, work wear and boot categories.

“With Ariat, the team at Trail Drive Management Corp. and the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo combining our collective talents, innovative leadership and brand reputations, new and exciting synergies are evolving that will take the guest experience to new heights in Ariat Arena,” said Matt Carter, Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo president and general manager. “We are fortunate to already have a longstanding relationship with Ariat as a FWSSR corporate partner, and we’re honored that they are growing their support of FWSSR and Fort Worth’s amazing multipurpose arena.”

Founded in 1993, Ariat made its name integrating athletic footwear technology into boots for equestrian athletes and Western riders. 

“Fort Worth has played a huge part in Ariat’s growth, and the city and the state of Texas have been incredible partners every step of the way. Putting our name on this iconic arena is the next chapter, and we’re honored to welcome the community for rodeos, concerts and sporting events,” said Liz O’Neill, CEO of Ariat, in a statement.

The naming rights for the former Dickies Arena is not the only investment the equestrian footwear maker has made in Fort Worth. Last year Ariat International announced plans to invest $72.6 million and create 250 jobs to expand its regional headquarters in Fort Worth. 

The company also opened a flagship store in Mule Alley in the Fort Worth Stockyards in 2022. 

Ariat has been an integral part of the arena since becoming the title sponsor of the Ariat Club, the venue’s hospitality space. Ariat is also a longtime corporate sponsor of the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo and has been the naming rights sponsor of the local Professional Bull Riding team, the Texas Rattlers, since 2022.  

“This is a natural next step in that partnership and our investment in Fort Worth, a community whose Western heritage, people and traditions mean so much to our local employees, athletes and partners, said Susan Alcala, vice president of partnership marketing at Ariat. From our partnership with the Ariat Texas Rattlers and PBR to Tannahill’s and our store on Mule Alley, we’re proud to be part of this community.”

Under the partnership, Ariat and Trail Drive Management Corp. will also establish a charitable giving program to support Fort Worth-area organizations and further deepen Ariat’s involvement in the local community.

“I can’t think of a better naming partner than Ariat — one of the world’s leading Western and equestrian performance brands — for our city’s cherished arena,” said Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker, in a news release. “I’m incredibly grateful to Ariat for deepening its presence and investment in Fort Worth and for its commitment to the continued growth and vitality of our city.”

Fans will begin seeing new signage featuring the Ariat name right away, with all permanent signage expected to be installed by the end of the year, in time to celebrate the 130th anniversary of the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo beginning Jan. 15.

The clock was ticking on the name Dickies Arena when Bluestar Alliance bought the Dickies brand from VF Corp. for $600 million last year. The new owner said earlier this year it didn’t want to be the venue’s naming rights partner. 

Trail Drive later filed suit in a state district court in Fort Worth against VF, Bluestar and related entities, alleging a plan to “dump obligations” owed to Trail Drive.

Williamson-Dickie, the venerable workwear maker that started in 1922 in Fort Worth, has been the arena’s only naming rights partner. 

Trail Drive and Dickies have never disclosed the terms of the naming rights agreement.

Dickies Arena opened in 2019, filling a void on the western side of the metroplex for a multipurpose arena that can hold everything from rodeos to concerts, high school graduations and sporting events.

The arena can seat up to 14,000 depending on the type of event.

Voters approved bonds to build the arena in 2014, with a cost estimate of $450 million. Under the public-private partnership agreement with Trail Drive Management, the city’s contribution to the arena was capped at $225 million. The arena ended up costing an estimated $540 million. 

The arena is owned by the city, but it’s privately leased and managed by Trail Drive Management Corp., a nonprofit whose revenue goes back into maintaining the facility. 

Bob Francis is business editor of the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at bob.francis@fortworthreport.org. 

Disclosure: Bill Meadows, president and co-chair of the Fort Worth Report Board of Directors, is a board member of Trail Drive Management Corp. At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy here.

This article first appeared on Fort Worth Report and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. ""