LAS VEGAS — Imagine the NFL playing the Super Bowl in Las Vegas every year. If Raiders owner Mark Davis had his way, the Big Game would have a permanent spot at Allegiant Stadium in Southern Nevada. When Pro Football Network asked how often he expects the game to be here, he turned and said, “I say every year.”
It’s been a long road for the relationship between the NFL and the “Gambling Capital of the World.” Once a pipe dream no one thought would happen, the NFL has descended on Las Vegas, joining the likes of the NBA and NHL in holding its premier event here.
The Raiders owner played a big part in bringing the franchise here prior to the 2020 season and expects the Super Bowl to live up to the Vegas hype the city is known for.
“You only get one chance at a first impression. I think Las Vegas knows how to do these things,” said Davis. “I don’t think this is the last time the NFL will be back here for a Super Bowl. As you can see they have Formula One, they have everything here. It’s a hospitality area, but it’s also if you get here in Las Vegas, they have neighborhoods, they have real people here. We love being here.”
As for the betting aspect, the NFL avoided anything to do with Las Vegas for over five decades, once part of a lawsuit to prevent legalized sports betting. After the landmark Supreme Court ruling in 2018 that overturned the federal ban on sports betting, the NFL took a cautious approach, becoming the last of the four major sports to do a sponsorship deal with any sportsbook.
Davis wasn’t concerned, knowing the city and its reputation as an entertainment destination would win out:
“I hadn’t really paid much attention to it, believe it or not, the gambling side of it. I believe it’s something that is exciting and all of that. But I don’t know enough about it to really think about it.”
Now, on the cusp of hosting one of the world’s biggest events, Davis is enjoying every minute of having the eyes on Las Vegas.
When asked about if reality has set in that the NFL is holding a Super Bowl here: “I’m starting to soak it in right now.”
The NFL has long had a rotation of sorts with the Super Bowl, with Miami, New Orleans, and Los Angeles getting a lion’s share of the games. Las Vegas won’t get it every year, but with a successful debut this week, Sin City could very well join that unofficial rotation for years to come.
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