As the 2026 World Cup’s knockout phase heats up, one of the most discussed venues is Mexico’s iconic Estadio Azteca*, now temporarily named Mexico City Stadium. Known as one of the most intimidating stadiums in sports, Mexican fans have sent the soccer world into a frenzy with their presence in this year’s World Cup—they’ve created a home field advantage that’s yielded three wins there for Mexico.

But did you know not too long ago, the Dallas Cowboys made NFL history at the Azteca?

Not only that but it’s a record that is utterly unbreakable knowing what we know now. 

*Note: Estadio Azteca is actually now named Estadio Banorte due to a sponsorship, but you will rarely find a fan that calls it that. 

Cowboys set the NFL attendance record at Azteca

That’s right, the NFL’s record for the highest attended game ever happened in Mexico, not in the United States. 

Back in 1994, the Cowboys played a preseason game against the Houston Oilers at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, and 112,376 fans packed the stadium to witness it. That figure remains the highest-attended NFL game in history, surpassing every Super Bowl, every playoff game, and every regular season matchup the league has ever hosted. Again, it was a preseason matchup! 

 With the 2026 World Cup generating global buzz around the same iconic venue, it’s the perfect time to revisit how Dallas etched its name into the record book in a way that most casual football fans (and even diehard ones) don’t know about.

Why 112,376 people showed up for a preseason game

The context makes it all click. The Cowboys were back-to-back Super Bowl champions in 1994, and Mexico has always been one of the most passionate football markets outside the United States. Starting in 1970, the Cowboys were nationally broadcast by Televisa, the country’s most watched TV network. That led to a large number of fans of America’s Team. 

That night, Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman took the field for a single drive. Running back Emmitt Smith was expected to play as well, but heavy rain before and during the game turned the field into a soggy mess, and Dallas chose not to risk its star running back on treacherous footing.

The spectacle extended beyond the game itself. Legendary Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez handled the coin toss. Chávez, widely regarded as the greatest boxer in Mexican history, had held a boxing match at the same venue one year earlier that drew over 132,000 fans.

As for the game? It was a 6-0 loss for the Cowboys. The Oilers claimed afterward that they had converted a lot of Mexican fans into Houston supporters. That may or may not have been true, but as someone who lives in Mexico, I can tell you firsthand that Cowboys fans vastly outnumber Oilers (now Tennessee Titans) fans south of the border. And it’s certainly not close. 

Azteca is all the rage right now

Estadio Azteca is all the rage right now because of the 2026 World Cup. Mexico has played three of its four games there at the time of this writing, winning all three. The atmosphere has been electric, and every visiting team, including England (which will play a knockout game there on Sunday), has talked about how intimidating the environment is.

And you know what’s crazier? The NFL’s attendance record at Azteca actually falls short of the World Cup’s own attendance record at the venue by a little over 2,000 fans. 

What makes it an unbreakable record?

They say records are meant to be broken, but I’m not sure that is the case for this one. In fact, I bet it never will be.

Modern NFL stadiums simply aren’t built to hold 112,000 people. The league has invested heavily in new venues over the past two decades, but the trend in stadium design has moved toward comfort over capacity. Bleacher seating is a relic. Standing-room sections are a growing priority. Even in baseball, teams like the Cleveland Guardians have removed seats to create more open concourse space because some fans want to walk around, not sit shoulder to shoulder.

Heck, the NFL is heading to Australia for a Week 1 game this year at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, which is a massive venue. But it seats around 100,000 people. You’d need north of 110,000 to threaten the Cowboys’ mark.

The Cowboys hold one of the coolest records in all of sports. It doesn’t involve a touchdown, a sack, or a championship trophy, but 112,376 fans showing up for a preseason game in Mexico City is the kind of absurd, beautiful thing that makes football history worth knowing. I honestly think it’s one of the most unknown records in the NFL. The casual fan would never guess that a 6-0 preseason loss is the most attended game the league has ever seen.