Dallas World Cup fan fest to feature 26 statues of women in STEM

As Dallas prepares to host the World Cup, the city will also welcome 26 life-size statues of women in science and sports.

From June 11 through July 19, visitors to the FIFA Fan Festival at Fair Park can explore an interactive exhibit honoring women who have shaped sports through their work in STEM, or science, technology, engineering and math. The festival is a free 34-day event where fans can watch World Cup matches, attend concerts and take part in other activities.

The statue display is part of Dallas-based Lyda Hill Philanthropies’ If/Then Initiative, which aims to elevate women in STEM and inspire more girls to pursue those fields. The exhibit will be presented in collaboration with the North Texas FIFA World Cup Organizing Committee.

“The World Cup is one of the most watched sporting events on the planet, making it a powerful moment to showcase the STEM behind the sports we love,” Nicole Small, chief executive officer of Lyda Hill Philanthropies and co-founder of If/Then, said in a news release. “This exhibit highlights the innovators transforming sports and helps the next generation see how science and technology open doors on and off the field.”

News Roundups

Nicole Small, CEO of LH Capital Inc., surrounded by 121 sculptures, all of women in STEM as...

Nicole Small, CEO of LH Capital Inc., surrounded by 121 sculptures, all of women in STEM as part of the #IfThenSheCan—The Exhibit at the NorthPark Center in Dallas on Tuesday, May 18, 2021.

Lola Gomez / Staff Photographer

The statues, printed in Dallas in a bright lime-green acrylic, depict athletes such as FIFA World Cup champion Julie Foudy and pro golfer Lucy Li and other sports professionals such as former Dallas Mavericks chief executive officer Cynt Marshall and kinesiologist Colleen Hacker. Other statues will be of women whose work spans sports medicine to data analytics and stadium engineering.

Each statue is paired with objects related to the honoree’s work — from soccer balls to microscopes and drawing boards — along with a QR code linking to videos and images about their careers.

The If/Then Initiative was launched in 2019, following a 2016 analysis led by former United States Treasurer Rosie Rios that found 12 U.S. cities, including Dallas, collectively displayed fewer than six statues of real, historical women.

“It was one of those things that you can’t unsee,” Small told The Dallas Morning News in 2021. “We were like, ‘Holy cow! There really aren’t a lot of women statues.’ And there were no women scientists anywhere.”

FIFA World Cup champion Julie Foudy is among the women honored by Lyda Hil's If/Then...

FIFA World Cup champion Julie Foudy is among the women honored by Lyda Hil’s If/Then Initiative showcasing at this summer’s Fan Festival.

@alexendersimoes / @alexendersimoes

The first If/Then exhibit featured more than 100 3D-printed statues of women in STEM and debuted in May 2021 at NorthPark Center in Dallas. The statues depicted neuroscientists, paleontologists, sports researchers and even a shark biologist. Organizers of the project said at the time it marked the largest gathering of statues of real women ever assembled in one place.

“When we invest in STEM talent, we invest in solutions for our future,” Lyda Hill, founder of Lyda Hill Philanthropies, said in the news release about the upcoming Fan Festival display. “We hope these statues spark inspiration, conversation and lasting impact on the next generation long after the final match. If they can see it, then they can be it!”

Miriam Fauzia is a science reporting fellow at The Dallas Morning News. Her fellowship is supported by the University of Texas at Dallas. The News makes all editorial decisions.

A Texas pregnancy center told her everything was fine. Three days later, she was in the ER