Super Bowl 58: How Las Vegas fell in love with big sport
The story of how a $500m gamble on an ice hockey team in a desert paved the way for Las Vegas' Super Bowl.
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[Other Sport] Viva Las Vegas
- Thread starter lasvegan
- Start date
el punal
Well-known member
“To lure more punters into its casinos” says it all in my view. I find it strange the way America seems to treat its sports teams and their fans with such disdain. The iconic baseball team Brooklyn Dodgers, founded in 1883, was moved lock, stock and barrel to Los Angeles. In the NFL the Oakland Raiders up sticks to L.A. then back to Oakland and now reside in Las Vegas. That’s just two examples of many. Have Americans got no sense of geographical loyalty or is it a case of the big bucks pay? Weird.
- Mar 23, 2023
- 2,362
It’s like MK Dons all over again.
Some of it is politics.
A number of the NFL moves have happened due to the city”s mayor not committing to supporting the team with a new stadium for example.
Except people go to see the raiders.
Corrected for you
That's why a lot of Americans follow college teams rather than professional ones, certainly in football. As Mr Maybank mentions above some of it is political. A relative of mine, a huge football fan (USC Trojans) lived in San Diego. There was a referendum as to whether the San Diego NFL team (the Chargers) should have a new stadium. He voted against! The Chargers lost the referendum and relocated to Los Angeles.
And as an aside I believe that out of the ten largest stadiums in the world, seven of them are for US college football teams!
That still translates as $$$$$$$$....
Yes, but politics as well, as taxes will potentially increase to pay for a new facility.
Fignon's Ponytail
Well-known member
Lived in SD and a USC fan? He obviously WANTED the Chargers to relocate to LA!
All joking aside, our friends in SD are huge Chargers fans, but I think even they voted against the new stadium as it would've meant a massive tax hike.
crodonilson
He/Him
The excellent ESPN 30 for 30 documentaries has one about when the Baltimore Colts was moved to Indianapolis pretty much overnight, really interesting and an eye opener for an English sports fan.
Yeah, I think if it had just been like the Falmer referendum he'd have voted in favour, but he didn't see why the city should foot the bill. Unlike your friends he had very little interest in the NFL. He follows the careers of former USC players (a bit like we on NSC post about former Albion players) and wants them to do well, but if the league packed up tomorrow he'd just shrug.Lived in SD and a USC fan? He obviously WANTED the Chargers to relocate to LA!
All joking aside, our friends in SD are huge Chargers fans, but I think even they voted against the new stadium as it would've meant a massive tax hike.
He lives in San Francisco now and has the same indifference to the 49ers!
This is very much true. When a team doesn't get the stadium paid for they threaten to move to another city that will pay for a new stadium. If the other city's deal is better the team then leaves for the other city. Greed.
Fignon's Ponytail
Well-known member
Dont we all!?!
North of Robertsbridge
Well-known member
I used to go watch the Raiders (in preference to the 49ers) when I lived in the Bay Area. It was the only US sport where you got fans fighting in the beer queue - made it feel like home, and tailgating in the Coliseum car park was a blast
I worked for a trucking company in Indianapolis for a few years and one of my fellow employees had worked for a moving company from Indianapolis called Mayflower. This former Mayflower employee told me they were instructed by the government of the city of Indianapolis to move all of their moving trucks on the US east coast to Baltimore overnight for a huge move of an organization from Baltimore to Indianapolis. They were told to keep every detail of the move very quiet and not to discuss it at all. When all the trucks were instructed to go to the Baltimore Colts headquarters it became very evident what was going on.