The Dallas Cowboys were formed in 1960, in in Irving, Texas, as a National Football League (NFL) franchise. The Cowboys are one of four teams that play in the Est Division of the National Football conference. The "Steers" as it was initially known in it's first months of formation, changed it name to “Rangers,” but that name did not last long either because at that same time a baseball team operated in Dallas under that name, but was scheduled to fold before the 1960 football season. However, when the baseball team decided to play one more season, Clint Murchison Jr. and Bedford Wynne, two owners of the new NFL team, selected the name of Cowboys to avoid confusion. The team is sometimes referred to colloquially as America's Team due its having a large number of fans who live outside its immediate local area (the term itself is derived from the title of the team's 1979 highlight film).

The Cowboys won five of these games, a record matched only by the San Francisco 49ers.The Dallas Cowboys Hall of Famers include Mike Ditka, coach Tom Landry,Tony Dorsett,Bob Lilly, Mel Renfro, executive Tex Schramm,Roger Staubach and Randy White. Hall of Famer Tom Landry, was born on September 11, 1924, and passed away on February 12, 2000. Landry was a former all-pro defensive back for the New York Giants (1954), before becoming a coach. He coached the Dallas Cowboys for twenty nine years (1960-88); with them he won 2 Super Bowls (1972,78).Landry is third on the NFL all-time coaching wins list with 270.Tom Landry invented the "Flex Defense", when coaching in New York. It has been said that he invented the flex defense, and then invented the offense to score on it once we turned to the offensive side of the ball. On his passing, Tom Landry was interred in the Sparkman-Hillcrest Memorial Park Cemetery in Dallas, Texas.

In 1991, Schramm was inducted into the NFL Hall of Fame. In October 2003, became the 12th person selected into the Dallas Cowboys "Ring of Honor", which he created.He was also known for his innovations that helped redefine the modern NFL, such as forming the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders, using computer technology in scouting, and instant replay. The Dallas Cowboys do not retire the numbers of past standouts as a matter of policy. Instead, the team has a "Ring of Honor" in which its all-time greats are honored. Members of the Ring of Honor include Bob Lilly, Don Meredith, Don Perkins, Chuck Howley, Mel Renfro, Roger Staubach, Lee Roy Jordan, coach Tom Landry, Tony Dorsett, Randy White, Bob Hayes, Tex Schramm, Rayfield Wright and Cliff Harris.The Dallas Cowboys play their home games at the Texas Stadium, which was opened on October 24, 1971 and has a seating capacity 65,675. The teams previous stadium was the Cotton Bowl, opened in 1960-70 and had a seating capacity of 72,132.