At the midpoint of the State Fair of Texas’ 24-day run, vendors are looking to its remaining major event dates for a stronger finish after rain, flooding, and temperatures well into the 90s made for a difficult opening stretch. The Dallas Observer reported that vendors described early sales as below expectations and pointed to Saturday’s Texas-OU game as a potential attendance boost.
A Soggy Start Tests Longtime Vendors
The fair opened on September 25 and runs through October 18. In its account of the early weeks, the Dallas Observer reported that the grounds were sparse on the second Saturday and muddy in places. Justin Martinez, owner of Fiesta Concessions, told the outlet that his first eight days had not met his expectations for the year. His family has been involved in the fair business since 1977, and he operates four outdoor locations. Martinez said rain can wipe out a day’s earnings for vendors who rely on the fair for much of their annual income.
Not every vendor is feeling the pinch the same way. Cheyne Hickey, who runs Stay Cheesy in the Tower Building, said her business is down 11 percent from the same time last year — a steeper number on paper, but one she said is actually better than she feared given the weather. The food court overall, according to the same account, continues to pull in substantial business despite the slower foot traffic outside.
Vendors Point to Texas-OU as the Turning Point
Jerome Garza, who runs Deep Fried Love in the Tower Building, said the weather's impact on his own sales has been relatively minor, and he's framing the upcoming Texas-OU weekend as the fair's chance to make up ground. No. 1 Texas faces Oklahoma on Saturday at Cotton Bowl Stadium in a rivalry that has played out there since 1929, and per SEC Network, the matchup typically draws more than 100,000 people into Fair Park, building on a 2025 game day that brought in 193,000 total fairgoers — the single busiest day of last year's fair. Martinez said he expects fairgoers who have been holding off to finally show up starting Texas-OU week, and both he and Garza remain optimistic about business and attendance in the days ahead.
The stakes extend well beyond individual food stands. The fair's leadership had already moved to shore up attendance this year, lowering admission and parking prices across the board after turnout dropped by roughly 400,000 people in 2025, falling to about 2.02 million fairgoers from 2.38 million the year before, according to CBS News. CBS News reported affordability concerns among fairgoers, and the fair cut adult weekday tickets to $15 and daily child tickets to $10 in August, as CultureMap Houston reported.
Why the Fair's Fortunes Matter Beyond Fair Park
The math behind this year's weather losses is steep: the 24-day fair generates an estimated economic impact of more than $600 million for the Dallas–Fort Worth region, per disclosures reported by WFAA. That revenue, organizers have said, also helps fund local scholarships and nonprofit grants across the region, which raises the stakes any time a rainy week chips away at projected vendor sales.
Fairgoers still have options to keep momentum going after Texas-OU. Cotton Bowl Stadium is set to host the second annual State Fair Clásico on October 17, featuring Dallas Trinity FC against Liga MX's Chivas Femenil, a fixture Hoodline previously reported comes with full-day fair admission built into ticket prices. The 2025 inaugural match drew 22,838 fans, setting a Texas attendance record for professional women's sports, as reported by Dallas Trinity FC.
The early results vary by vendor, but the coming event weekends will provide a test of whether attendance can strengthen during the second half of the fair. For Martinez, Hickey, and Garza, the weather has shaped business in different ways; each described reasons for cautious optimism about the days ahead.
