Fort Worth artist Matt Cliff is no stranger to designing artwork for big acts.
He鈥檚 developed images and visuals for North Texas musical giants Leon Bridges and Post Malone in addition to iconic brands, including the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers.
Now, his artwork is reaching audiences worldwide with his as the artist of the official FIFA World Cup 2026 Dallas host city poster.
鈥淚t鈥檚 incredibly exciting, I鈥檝e never been on a global stage the way that I am right now,鈥� Cliff said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 seldom that my name is so directly attached to work that (so many) people are interacting with (as) when you鈥檙e being platformed for an event as big as the World Cup.鈥�
The North Texas FWC Organizing Committee revealed Cliff鈥檚 final design during an April 17 event at Klyde Warren Park in Dallas. FIFA World Cup sought out local artists in each of the 16 host cities in the U.S., Canada and Mexico to create unique posters that reflect the distinctive culture and history of their respective city.
Cliff was selected in late January after submitting his winning entry for the host city poster. His design will be displayed across Dallas-Fort Worth throughout the entirety of the FIFA World Cup June 11-July 19, 2026. Arlington will host the most matches of the tournament with nine. TCU and Mansfield have also been selected as potential 鈥渂ase camps鈥� for teams to train, rest and prepare for matches.
What exactly inspired Cliff鈥檚 design for the Dallas poster? He spoke with the Report about his artistic process.
Design breakdown
When approaching the design, it was a no-brainer for Cliff to incorporate elements of Fort Worth鈥檚 Western culture. The question in his mind became: How could he balance his hometown鈥檚 imagery with Dallas鈥� metropolitan feel?
Before putting pen to paper, the image became clear 鈥� a cowboy had to be the focal point. The image would then be connected to Dallas with the city鈥檚 skyline as the background. A soccer ball would serve as the tip of the Reunion Tower.
鈥淚t鈥檚 always been really interesting to me, the juxtaposition of seeing a Western culture that existed in Texas for hundreds of years walking along today鈥檚 modernity with the skyscrapers and everything like that,鈥� Cliff explained.
In drawing the cowboy, Cliff didn鈥檛 want the figure simply standing there. It was important for him to showcase soccer by positioning the cowboy flicking the ball with a bicycle kick. The move made the poster not only expressive, but gave Cliff the ability to hide the cowboy鈥檚 face 鈥� an intentional decision for the artist.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a mysterious figure that people can see themselves in,鈥� he explained. 鈥淚t can be an every man or every person type of character. There鈥檚 no skin color attached to it.鈥�
As for the poster鈥檚 colors? The image pays homage to the bold blue and red of the Texas flag, he said.
鈥淐olor and simplicity, a lot of the time, are two of the most quintessential things to drawing,鈥� Cliff added. 鈥淵ou鈥檝e got the navy in there with all the link work and little stippling dots and then that contrasting sharp red that cuts through. I hope it鈥檚 interesting to other people like it is to myself.鈥�
Stepping back to look at the complete design never gets old for the Fort Worth artist. What started off as a simple celebration of his hometown has now become a piece of artwork that will cement itself in North Texas history.
鈥淚t鈥檚 never lost on me how neat it is to see your art coexisting with other people and just seeing how people interact with it,鈥� Cliff said. 鈥淚 hope that maybe some kids, or even some adults, see it and feel inspired to maybe make something cool themselves.鈥�
David Moreno is the arts and culture reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at david.moreno@fortworthreport.org or .
At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy .
This first appeared on and is republished here under a .