![\"Larry](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/larry-wansley.png\")
<\/p>\nWhen fans arrive at “Dallas Stadium” in Arlington for World Cup matches, they will see metal detectors, police officers and visible security checkpoints. <\/p>\n
What they won’t see may be even more important.<\/p>\n
“They don’t see a lot, and it’s designed that way,” said Larry Wansley, the recently retired Dallas Cowboys director of security.<\/p>\n
With World Cup matches set to bring massive crowds and international attention to North Texas, Wansley said the security operation surrounding AT&T Stadium will include multiple layers of protection working behind the scenes.<\/p>\n
“It is a very stressful job. It’s a stressful position to be put in,” Wansley said.<\/p>\n
Few people understand the challenges better.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tEdward Ayala, NBC 5 NewsEdward Ayala, NBC 5 News<\/p>\n
Larry Wansley<\/p>\n
Before leading security for the Cowboys, Wansley served as an FBI undercover agent and later headed global security for American Airlines. Over decades in security leadership roles, he helped develop security plans for major events at AT&T Stadium and worked closely with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies.<\/p>\n
He said the World Cup raises the stakes because of its size, international profile and the number of participating countries.<\/p>\n
“Just the volume and the scope and the spread of it is much more because of the World Cup,” Wansley said. “You’ve got the international aspect, all the various countries that are participating.”<\/p>\n
Still, he said the foundation of event security remains the same and success begins long before fans enter the stadium.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"Larry](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/larry-wansley-observer.png\")
<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tThe ObserverThe Observer<\/p>\n
Larry Wansley<\/p>\n
Security officials spend months reviewing intelligence, identifying potential threats, conducting tabletop exercises and training alongside local, state and federal agencies. Wansley said communication between those agencies is critical.<\/p>\n
“If we’re not talking to one another, you have all these entities that are operating in a silo-type fashion, you’re going to miss something and someone’s going to get hurt,” he said.<\/p>\n
While officials expect AT&T Stadium itself to be heavily secured during the tournament, Wansley said some of his concerns extend beyond the stadium gates.<\/p>\n
He pointed to areas where large groups of fans may gather nearby, including parking lots and entertainment areas outside the venue.<\/p>\n
“Maybe that obscure parking lot that’s a quarter of a mile away or half a mile away, maybe you have a situation there,” he said.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"Larry](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/larry-wansley-dc.png\")
<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tDallas CowboysDallas Cowboys<\/p>\n
Larry Wansley<\/p>\n
That’s one reason Wansley encourages residents and visitors to remain alert throughout the World Cup and report suspicious activity to law enforcement.<\/p>\n
With so many agencies involved in security operations, he believes officers will be prepared to respond quickly if problems arise.<\/p>\n
In Arlington, police have agreements with about 30 surrounding cities to provide additional officers on major event days.<\/p>\n
Watching preparations from retirement, Wansley said he remembers the pressure security teams feel in the days leading up to a major event.<\/p>\n
“There’s always the thought that I must have missed something,” he said. “You go back and you check, you double check.”<\/p>\n
That pressure doesn’t disappear once the event begins.<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"Larry](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/larry-wansley-js-dc.png\")
<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\tJames Smith \/ Dallas CowboysJames Smith \/ Dallas Cowboys<\/p>\n
Larry Wansley, on the sideline.<\/p>\n
When thousands of fans pour through stadium gates, security officials must remain focused as they monitor a constantly changing environment.<\/p>\n
“Your head’s on a swivel,” Wansley said. “You’re constantly thinking about potential situations.”<\/p>\n
After an event ends safely, he said, there is often a brief moment of relief before attention shifts to the next challenge.<\/p>\n
“Miller Time,” Wansley joked. “No, really, it’s such a relief. It’s like, ‘Whew.’ You take a deep breath and say, ‘Wow, got through this one.’ And then you start immediately thinking about the next one because it’s out there.”<\/p>\n
Security beyond the stadium<\/p>\n
Wansley said he also feels for the security directors traveling with World Cup teams.<\/p>\n
Moving players safely between airports, hotels, training facilities and stadiums can be a major logistical challenge, particularly when enthusiastic fans gather around team hotels.<\/p>\n
“It’s a logistical nightmare,” he said.<\/p>\n
Security officials said several North Texas police departments will be responsible for the motorcades escorting teams between airports, hotels, training sites and AT&T Stadium.<\/p>\n
Those motorcades, along with increased police presence around venues and fan gathering areas, are expected to become a familiar sight across North Texas throughout the tournament.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"When fans arrive at “Dallas Stadium” in Arlington for World Cup matches, they will see metal detectors, police…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":917476,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2066],"tags":[9370,230,229,257,2461,7,6],"class_list":["post-917475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas-cowboys","tag-2026-world-cup","tag-cowboys","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-cowboys","tag-dallascowboys","tag-football","tag-nfl"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116741017963369771","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/917475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=917475"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/917475\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/917476"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=917475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=917475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=917475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}