Baseball Stadium Deal Cements Las Vegas’ ‘Sports Capital’ Label: Hornbuckle
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By approving a funding plan to bring the Oakland Athletics to Southern Nevada, the state's lawmakers have cemented Las Vegas’ reputation as a global sports destination, a casino executive says.
During a special session at the Nevada Capitol this week, legislators and Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo signed off on Senate Bill 1 to provide $380 million in public funding for a $1.5 billion Major League Baseball Stadium on the Las Vegas Strip.
Bill Hornbuckle, CEO and president of MGM Resorts International, said this will create jobs and provide other benefits to the region.
“This action not only cements Las Vegas’ status as the sports and entertainment capital of the world, but also provides a big economic boost and job opportunities for the community,” he said.
Ballpark Slated For Tropicana Resort Site
MGM Resorts operates nine hotel-casinos on the Las Vegas Strip: Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Aria, Excalibur, MGM Grand, New York-New York, Park MGM, the Cosmopolitan and Bellagio.
The stadium is slated to be built on the Strip where the Rat Pack-era Tropicana hotel-casino now stands. The closest MGM properties to the proposed ballpark are the MGM Grand and Excalibur. Both are linked by a skybridge to the Tropicana site.
Hornbuckle said MGM Resorts “can’t wait to extend our world-class hospitality to baseball fans from around the country.”
Once connected to the Mob, the Tropicana, which first opened in 1957, is slated to be demolished. Now operated by Bally’s Corp. of Rhode Island, the Tropicana is one of the few resorts on the Strip from that era with much of its original construction in place.
First Pitch Possible In Las Vegas By 2028
After league owners approve the A’s relocation as expected, the 30,000-seat Las Vegas ballpark will become the team’s future home, once it's built. The stadium will include a retractable roof.
Construction is expected to begin by 2025, with the first pitch possible at the start of the 2028 season, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
It is unclear where the A’s will play until then. The team’s Triple-A affiliate, the Aviators, play home games in a minor league ballpark west of downtown near the Red Rock Resort. That stadium, which seats 10,000 spectators, is considered extremely small for a big league team.
Sports Create ‘Economic Activity’ In Southern Nevada
The proposed A’s ballpark on the Strip has faced criticism. Some opponents assert that the already congested Strip will become even more of a traffic nightmare with the A’s stadium located at a major intersection. Others don't want to see another legendary Las Vegas casino destroyed.
Those who support the ballpark and similar major sports projects point to the economic benefits.
A recent UNLV report, “A Summary of the Sports Economy in Las Vegas," notes that sporting events in Las Vegas generated more than $1.8 billion “in economic activity from out-of-town visitors during the fiscal year 2022 alone.”
“Forecasters anticipate an even greater return in the future,” the report states.
“One in four of our workers and nearly thirty percent of our real GDP is tied to recreation services,” wrote Andrew Woods, one of the report’s authors. “If sporting activity drives new businesses, new jobs, especially full-time skilled jobs, and improves the economic and cultural well-being for residents and their families, then it’s no doubt a positive effect on the Las Vegas economy.”
Is An NBA Team Next?
At one time, major sport leagues shunned Las Vegas because of its mobbed-up reputation and affiliation with gambling in the years before casinos and sports betting were legalized across the country.
Now, the A’s are expected to be the fourth major team whose home games are played on or near the Strip. The A’s will join the NFL’s Raiders, NHL’s Golden Knights and WNBA’s Aces in making the Las Vegas Valley their home.
An NBA team also might end up in Las Vegas on a permanent basis at some point in the near future. Years ago, the Utah Jazz played some “home” games in Las Vegas but didn’t permanently settle in Southern Nevada.
Derek Stevens, who operates three hotel-casinos in downtown Las Vegas, including Circa Resort, has said it is only a matter of time before an NBA team is located in Las Vegas.
Meanwhile, now that Las Vegas is close to having a Major League Baseball team, speculation has arisen across the country about which city could get a big league expansion franchise. Among the cities with the best odds are Nashville, Charlotte and San Antonio.
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