Note: This story has been updated with the NFL's response.
The Cowboys could show off their new world headquarters if they successfully bid to host the 2018 NFL draft, one of the biggest events on the league's calendar. The franchise is in discussions with the NFL to host the draft at The Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, AT&T Stadium in Arlington or both facilities, a source confirmed Thursday.
The still under-construction The Star, which includes a 12,000-seat indoor stadium and will house the Cowboys' business and football operations and team practices, is slated to open Aug. 27.
The Cowboys had no official comment on their plans Thursday. But the franchise has made it clear it will be aggressive in pursuing high-profile events at The Star, as it has done and continues to do at AT&T Stadium, where it has often targeted and set events' attendance records.
Cowboys owner Jerry Jones and executive vice president Stephen Jones have said that the team would like to bring future drafts to AT&T Stadium or The Star. An NFL spokesman confirmed on Friday that the Cowboys are among the teams interested in hosting a future draft.
Frisco, of course, is keen on the idea.
"The potential for having the draft in Frisco at The Star is immeasurable, especially with an organization like the Cowboys behind it," Frisco Mayor Maher Maso said. "We feel it would be a huge benefit to our community and, frankly, to the region. If you think about it, something on the caliber of the NFL draft is really regional in nature and will benefit all the communities in North Texas."
Competition has intensified among cities that want to host the popular three-day draft since it left New York -- its home for 50 years -- and landed in Chicago in 2015 and 2016. Chicago beat out fellow finalist Los Angeles for the 2015 draft after Radio City Music Hall, the regular venue in New York, had scheduling conflicts.
The site of the 2017 draft is expected to be announced this summer, with Philadelphia mentioned as one possibility. The Chicago Sun-Times reported that NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said the draft will "very likely" move on from Chicago in 2017. Denver, Canton, Ohio, and Los Angeles are among several cities that have reportedly expressed interest in hosting future drafts.
The Super Bowl Advisory Committee, made up of team representatives, is providing guidance to the league office on the draft site process. and the league office will make the decisions, according to an NFL spokesman. The timeframe for determining draft sites hasn't been revealed beyond the 2017 draft.
The Star features a unique partnership among the Cowboys, the city of Frisco and Frisco ISD.
An estimated $1.5 billion is expected to be invested in the mixed-use, 91 acres of The Star, once fully developed.
Chad Estis, executive vice president of business operations for the Cowboys, spoke of the draft during a Frisco Chamber of Commerce governmental affairs committee meeting last week, according to Community Impact Newspaper.
"I don't know if there's a bigger event we could have at The Star," Estis said, according to the report. "From a pure media standpoint, that could be one of the biggest things that we could potentially have."
In Chicago, the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University hosted the early rounds of the draft, allowing about 3,000 fans to attend inside. The downtown event included a nearby "Selection Square" and the free "Draft Town" fan festival in Grant Park, drawing an estimated 200,000 fans.
Staff writers Jon Machota and Valerie Wigglesworth contributed to this report.
Twitter: @khairopoulos