The
Las Vegas metropolitan area
The Las Vegas Valley is a major metropolitan area in the southern part of the U.S. state of Nevada, and the second largest in the Southwestern United States. The state's largest urban agglomeration, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Statistical Area i ...
is home to many sports, most of which take place in the unincorporated communities around Las Vegas rather than in the city itself. The Las Vegas Valley has three major league professional teams: the
Vegas Golden Knights
The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. Founded in 2017 as an expan ...
of the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
(NHL), which began play in 2017 as the region's first major pro team,
the
Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL) which began play in 2020 after relocating from
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
, and the
Las Vegas Aces
The Las Vegas Aces are an American professional basketball team based in the Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Aces compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conferenc ...
of the
WNBA. Las Vegas is home to three minor league sports teams: the
Las Vegas Aviators
The Las Vegas Aviators, formerly known as the Las Vegas 51s and Las Vegas Stars, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Summerlin South, Nevad ...
of the
Triple-A West
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A level, which is one grade below Major League Bas ...
(
Minor League Baseball), the
Las Vegas Lights FC
Las Vegas Lights FC is an American professional soccer team based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that plays in the USL Championship. The team made its debut in 2018 and plays its home games at Cashman Field.
The team employs neon imagery in its crest a ...
of the
USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...
, the league at the second level of the U.S. men's
soccer
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
league system
A league system is a hierarchy of leagues in a sport. They are often called pyramids, due to their tendency to split into an increasing number of regional divisions further down the system. League systems of some sort are used in many sports in ...
, and the
Henderson Silver Knights
The Henderson Silver Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in Henderson, Nevada, that began play in the 2020–21 American Hockey League (AHL) season. The team plays its home games at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada. The tea ...
of the
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...
, the league at the second level of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Las Vegas Lights are currently the only team playing in the City of Las Vegas, at the city-owned
Cashman Field
Cashman Field is a soccer-specific stadium in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is primarily used for soccer as the home field of Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was the home of the Triple-A ...
.
The
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...
(UNLV), located just off the
Las Vegas Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of ...
in
Paradise
In religion, paradise is a place of exceptional happiness and delight. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical or eschatological or both, often compared to the miseries of human civilization: in paradis ...
, fields
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...
(NCAA)
Division I athletic teams.
Allegiant Stadium
Allegiant Stadium is a domed stadium located in Paradise, Nevada. It is the home stadium for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL), the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels college football team, the Las Ve ...
, located in Paradise, hosts
UNLV football and the
Las Vegas Bowl
The Las Vegas Bowl is an NCAA Division I FBS annual post-season college football bowl game held in the Las Vegas area. First played in 1992, the bowl was originally held at the 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada before moving to the ...
, an annual NCAA
bowl game
In North America, a bowl game is one of a number of post-season college football games that are primarily played by teams belonging to the NCAA's Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS). For most of its history, the Division I Bowl Subdivis ...
. The
Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, located in Clark County, Nevada in Las Vegas, Nevada about 15 miles northeast of the Las Vegas Strip, is a complex of multiple tracks for motorsports racing. The complex is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which is ...
(LVMS) just north of the city hosts
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
's
Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...
and other automotive events. The
National Finals Rodeo
The National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is the premier rodeo event by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The NFR showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money-winners in the season for each event.
The NFR is held each year in the fi ...
is held annually at the
Thomas & Mack Center
The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference.
History
The facility was fi ...
on the UNLV campus, and the
Professional Bull Riders
The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization based in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. In the U.S., PBR events have been televised on CBS and CBS Sports Network since 2012. In 2013, the ...
holds its annual World Finals at T-Mobile Arena on the Strip.
Visitors and residents also have many options for
boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether Motorboat, powerboats, Sailing, sailboats, or man-powered vessels (such as rowing and paddle boats), focused on the travel itself, as well as sp ...
,
golf
Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible.
Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping wi ...
,
hiking
Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
,
rock climbing
Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...
. The city has many
parks
A park is an area of natural, semi-natural or planted space set aside for human enjoyment and recreation or for the protection of wildlife or natural habitats. Urban parks are urban green space, green spaces set aside for recreation inside t ...
which offer a wide range of activities.
List of teams
Major professional teams
Minor professional teams
Amateur teams
College teams
History
Las Vegas was one of the largest cities in the United States without a
major league sports team prior to the entry of the Golden Knights into the NHL. Due in part to perceived risks with legal sports betting, no major professional sports league had ever had a team in Las Vegas until the NHL announced its intent to launch an expansion team in the city in June 2016, though the NBA's
Utah Jazz
The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference, Northwest Division (NBA), ...
played 11 home games at the
Thomas & Mack Center
The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference.
History
The facility was fi ...
in the
1983–84 season. The placement of a major league team in Las Vegas was an ongoing topic of discussion between city leaders and the professional sports leagues.
Past issues with major league sports
![Las Vegas sportsbook](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e5/Las_Vegas_sportsbook.jpg)
Historically, the most prominent issue with sports in Las Vegas was the perceived problem of legal
sports betting
Sports betting is the activity of predicting sports results and placing a wager on the outcome. The frequency of sports bet upon varies by culture, with the vast majority of bets being placed on association football, American football, basket ...
. Traditionally, all four major professional sports leagues had strong anti-gambling policies, prohibiting their personnel from having any involvement in gambling. The NFL took the toughest stance, even refusing to accept Las Vegas tourism advertising for
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the annual final playoff game of the National Football League (NFL) to determine the league champion. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966, replacing the NFL Championship Game. Since 2022, the game ...
telecasts and threatening to file suit against any local hotels holding Super Bowl parties.
Hotels got around the legal threat by referring to the Super Bowl as "The Big Game" rather than its actual name in advertising.
In addition, some potential owners believed a professional sports franchise would have difficulty gaining an audience, given Las Vegas's numerous entertainment options. A number of prior professional football teams in the city ranked at or near last in their leagues in attendance over the years, such as the
Las Vegas Posse
The Las Vegas Posse were a Canadian Football League (CFL) team, that played at the Sam Boyd Silver Bowl in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, in the league's 1994 season as part of the CFL's short-lived American expansion. Lasting only one seaso ...
(
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
), the
Las Vegas Locomotives
The Las Vegas Locomotives (called the Locos for short) were a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada that played in the United Football League. The team played their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium, home field for the Unive ...
(
United Football League) and the
Las Vegas Outlaws (
Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
). Las Vegas also has a high percentage of residents working in 24-hour occupations, many of whom work nights and weekends when most games would be played. The Las Vegas area also has a rather transient population, with a significant percentage of its residents being transplants, many of whom are loyal to the teams from their former cities and/or states, causing doubts that a professional sports team could gain an audience.
Several owners of other sports franchises disagreed.
Miami Marlins
The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park.
The franc ...
owner
Jeffrey Loria
Jeffrey Harold Loria (born November 20, 1940) is an American art dealer, author, and the former owner of the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals) and Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball.
Early life
Loria was born and raised in a Americ ...
described Las Vegas as "a potential gold mine" for a professional sports team owner.
Dallas Mavericks
The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference (NBA), Western Conferenc ...
owner
Mark Cuban
Mark Cuban (born July 31, 1958) is an American billionaire entrepreneur, television personality, and media proprietor whose net worth is an estimated $4.8 billion, according to ''Forbes'', and ranked No. 177 on the 2020 ''Forbes'' 400 list ...
was also quoted saying that Las Vegas would be a good professional sports town.
As the four leagues embraced
daily fantasy sports
Daily fantasy sports (DFS) are a subset of fantasy sport games. As with traditional fantasy sports games, players compete against others by building a team of professional athletes from a particular league or competition while remaining under a ...
(DFS) and various forms of both
online
In computer technology and telecommunications, online indicates a state of connectivity and offline indicates a disconnected state. In modern terminology, this usually refers to an Internet connection, but (especially when expressed "on line" or ...
and retail gambling such as
state lotteries
In the United States, lotteries are run by 48 jurisdictions: 45 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Lotteries are subject to the laws of and operated independently by each jurisdiction, and there is no ...
,
Native American gaming
Native American gaming comprises casinos, bingo halls, and other gambling operations on Indian reservations or other tribal lands in the United States. Because these areas have tribal sovereignty, states have limited ability to forbid gambling th ...
and online/mobile sports betting became more prevalent, the ethical arguments that the four major leagues used to justify excluding Las Vegas from professional sports gradually weakened and the doors opened to major pro sports in the market; NBA Commissioner
Adam Silver
Adam Silver (born April 25, 1962) is an American lawyer and sports executive who serves as the fifth and current commissioner of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He joined the NBA in 1992 and has held various positions within the lea ...
said he was in favor of regulated, legalized sports gambling. The NHL became the first of the four professional sports leagues to land in Vegas, with the
Vegas Golden Knights
The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. Founded in 2017 as an expan ...
expansion team commencing play in October 2017. The NFL, once a staunch opponent of Las Vegas, became the second of the four leagues to come to Vegas with the relocation of the
Raiders to the area from
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
in 2020.
Prior to the opening of
T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Paradise, Nevada. Opened on April 6, 2016, it is the home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). A joint venture between MGM Resorts International and Anschutz En ...
in April 2016, another major obstacle was the lack of suitable facilities. The city did not have a facility that was large enough or modern enough to host an MLB or NFL team. While the
Thomas & Mack Center
The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference.
History
The facility was fi ...
and
MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
were large enough on paper to host an NBA or NHL team, they were only suitable for temporary use due to age and/or design issues.
Harrah's Entertainment
Harrah's Entertainment (later named Caesars Entertainment Corporation, previously The Promus Companies) was an American casino and hotel company founded in Reno, Nevada, and based in Paradise, Nevada, that operated over 50 properties and seven go ...
and the
Anschutz Entertainment Group
The Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), also known as AEG Worldwide, is an American global sporting and music entertainment presenter and a subsidiary of The Anschutz Corporation. It is the world's largest owner of sports teams and sports even ...
committed to building a new arena on a parcel of land behind Harrah's
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
and
Bally's off
the Strip
The Las Vegas Strip is a stretch of Las Vegas Boulevard South in Clark County, Nevada, that is known for its concentration of resort hotels and casinos. The Strip, as it is known, is about long, and is immediately south of the Las Vegas city ...
, to be built to NHL and NBA standards. The arena was expected to open in the fall of 2010, but construction never began. Harrah's Entertainment CEO
Gary Loveman
Gary William Loveman (born April 12, 1960) is an American economist, businessman, and former academic professor. After nine years on the faculty of Harvard Business School, he left in 1998 to become COO of Harrah's Entertainment, which, following ...
said in a June 2009 article in the ''Las Vegas Business Press'' that his company was still committed to building the arena, but it was delayed by a lack of financing. On April 6, 2010, the ''
Las Vegas Review-Journal
The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area.
The ''Review-Journal'' ...
'' reported that three proposals had been made to build an arena of approximately 20,000 seats on or near the Strip to host professional basketball and hockey, rodeo, concerts and other events. All three proposals called for public money to be used for a portion of the construction cost. On November 5, 2013, Las Vegas news media reported plans for a joint-venture arena to be built on the Strip with the backing parties being AEG and
MGM Resorts
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924 a ...
. Located at a former parking lot at the back of the
Monte Carlo
Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...
, T-Mobile Arena seats 20,000 and costs $350 million. Ground was broken in May 2014, with its opening on April 6, 2016.
Cashman Field was replaced as a baseball venue by
Las Vegas Ballpark
Las Vegas Ballpark is a baseball stadium in Summerlin South, Nevada in the Las Vegas Valley. It is the home field for the Las Vegas Aviators of the Pacific Coast League. The stadium is owned by the Howard Hughes Corporation. Las Vegas Ballpark i ...
in Summerlin in 2019 with Cashman being converted to full time soccer use. Sam Boyd Stadium was replaced by
Allegiant Stadium
Allegiant Stadium is a domed stadium located in Paradise, Nevada. It is the home stadium for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL), the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels college football team, the Las Ve ...
, which became the home of the Las Vegas Raiders and the UNLV Rebels football team beginning in 2020. Ground was broken for Allegiant Stadium on November 13, 2017, with its opening taking place on July 31, 2020.
Major league professional teams
National Hockey League
![T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas (34836465501)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b8/T-Mobile_Arena%2C_Las_Vegas_%2834836465501%29.jpg)
Las Vegas is the home to the
Vegas Golden Knights
The Vegas Golden Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference. Founded in 2017 as an expan ...
of the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
(NHL). The Golden Knights are owned by Black Knight Sports & Entertainment, a consortium led by
Bill Foley
William Foley is an American photojournalist whose work has been recognized by several national and international awards, including a Pulitzer Prize and International Press Freedom Awards. He has worked on assignment in 47 countries, with a p ...
,
and play at
T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Paradise, Nevada. Opened on April 6, 2016, it is the home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). A joint venture between MGM Resorts International and Anschutz En ...
. The Golden Knights began play during the
2017–18 NHL season
The 2017–18 NHL season was the 101st season of operation (100th season of play) of the National Hockey League. With the addition of a new expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, 31 teams competed in an 82-game regular season. The regular sea ...
and became the first
major league professional team in Las Vegas. The Golden Knights also became the first NHL expansion team since the
St. Louis Blues
The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the s ...
to reach the
Stanley Cup Finals
The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey (also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media, french: Finale de la Coupe Stanley) is the National Hockey League's (NHL) championship series to determine the winner of the Stanley Cup, North America ...
in their first season only to lose to the
Washington Capitals
The Washington Capitals (colloquially known as the Caps) are a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL) ...
.
Prior to the Golden Knights, the National Hockey League had experience with Las Vegas beginning in 1991, when
an outdoor game was held in Las Vegas, with the
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
facing the
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...
outside
Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks.
Caesars P ...
in a preseason exhibition game. It carried thorough the years with an annual preseason exhibition game called
Frozen Fury
''Frozen Fury'' is an annual pre-season ice hockey game between the Los Angeles Kings and the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL), held in Salt Lake City since 2021. A previous incarnation of the series was held between the Ki ...
which was held at the
MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
. The league has also held the
NHL Awards
The National Hockey League presents numerous annual awards and trophies to recognize its teams and players. The oldest, and most recognizable, is the Stanley Cup. First awarded in 1893, the Stanley Cup is awarded to the NHL's playoff champion. ...
ceremonies after each season since 2009.
National Football League
![Allegiantstadiumjune2020](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/36/Allegiantstadiumjune2020.jpg)
Las Vegas is home to the
Las Vegas Raiders
The Las Vegas Raiders are a professional American football team based in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Raiders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West divis ...
of the
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
(NFL). The Raiders are controlled by principal owner and managing general partner
Mark Davis Mark Davis may refer to:
Entertainers
*Mark Davis (talk show host), American radio talk show host
* Mark Jonathan Davis (born 1965), American actor/singer and creator of Richard Cheese
*Mark Davis, American bassist and founding member for the band ...
and began play in Las Vegas in 2020. On March 27, 2017, NFL owners voted 31–1 to approve the
Oakland Raiders
The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...
' move to Las Vegas, though the team continued to play at the
Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum
Oakland Coliseum, currently naming rights, branded as RingCentral Coliseum, is a stadium in Oakland, California. It is part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Complex, with the adjacent Oakland Arena, near Interstate 880 (California), In ...
in
Oakland
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third largest city overall in the Bay A ...
until their new stadium,
Allegiant Stadium
Allegiant Stadium is a domed stadium located in Paradise, Nevada. It is the home stadium for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL), the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels college football team, the Las Ve ...
, was built in time for the 2020 NFL season.
Prior to the Raiders, professional outdoor football had been attempted three times in the area. The first two attempts, the
XFL
XFL may refer to:
Sports
* XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001
* XFL (2020), a professional American football league
Vehicles
* Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...
's
Las Vegas Outlaws and the
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
's
Las Vegas Posse
The Las Vegas Posse were a Canadian Football League (CFL) team, that played at the Sam Boyd Silver Bowl in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States, in the league's 1994 season as part of the CFL's short-lived American expansion. Lasting only one seaso ...
, were unsuccessful, with both teams folding after only one season of play. The
XFL
XFL may refer to:
Sports
* XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001
* XFL (2020), a professional American football league
Vehicles
* Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...
folded outright, while the Posse were a failure at the box office, part of the
CFL
The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...
's
failed U.S. expansion attempt. A third attempt at professional football was begun in the fall of 2009 with the
United Football League's
Las Vegas Locomotives
The Las Vegas Locomotives (called the Locos for short) were a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada that played in the United Football League. The team played their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium, home field for the Unive ...
; however, the franchise and the league folded in 2012. The Locomotives played in the league's first three championship games, winning the first two in 2009 and 2010. The first professional football game ever held in Las Vegas was an
American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
preseason contest between the Raiders and
Houston Oilers
The Houston Oilers were a professional American football team that played in Houston from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Tennessee Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as ...
in 1964.
Allegiant Stadium will host
Super Bowl LVIII
Super Bowl LVIII is the planned championship game of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2023 NFL season. The game is scheduled to be played on February 11, 2024, at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada. It is the first Super Bowl that ...
in 2024.
Women's National Basketball Association
In October 2017, multiple national media outlets reported that
Spurs Sports & Entertainment
Spurs Sports & Entertainment L.L.C. (SS&E) is an American sports & entertainment organization, based in San Antonio, Texas. The company owns and operates several sporting franchises including the National Basketball Association (NBA) San Antonio ...
, owner of the
San Antonio Spurs
The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference (NBA), Western Conference Southwest Division ( ...
of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and its
Women's National Basketball Association
The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of twelve teams, all based in the United States. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the Natio ...
(WNBA) sister team, the
San Antonio Stars
The San Antonio Stars were a professional basketball team based in San Antonio, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded in Salt Lake City, Utah, as the Utah Starzz before the ...
, had reached an agreement to sell the Stars to a Las Vegas-based group that would move the team to the area effective with the 2018 season. The NBA and WNBA officially approved the sale on October 17, 2017, and announced the
Las Vegas Aces
The Las Vegas Aces are an American professional basketball team based in the Las Vegas Valley, Las Vegas metropolitan area. The Aces compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conferenc ...
would play at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, now known as
Michelob Ultra Arena
The Michelob Ultra Arena, formerly the Mandalay Bay Events Center, is a 12,000-seat multi-purpose indoor arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned and operated by MGM Resorts In ...
, starting in the 2018 season.
During the 2022 season, the Aces defeated the
Phoenix Mercury
The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the league ...
in round 1 and the
Seattle Storm
The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The Storm competes in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded by Ginger Ackerl ...
in the semifinals before deafeating the
Connecticut Sun
The Connecticut Sun are an American professional basketball team based in Uncasville, Connecticut that competes in the Eastern Conference (WNBA), Eastern Conference of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).
The team was established ...
in the
2022 WNBA Finals
The 2022 WNBA Finals, officially the WNBA Finals 2022 presented by YouTube TV for sponsorship reasons, was the best-of-five championship series for the 2022 season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The finals featured the fi ...
in 4 games to win the franchise's first championship and the first professional sports championship for Las Vegas.
Proposed major league teams
Major League Baseball
In April 2004,
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...
(MLB)
Commissioner
A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something).
In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...
Bud Selig
Allan Huber "Bud" Selig
(; born July 30, 1934) is an American baseball executive who currently serves as the Commissioner Emeritus of Baseball. Previously, he served as the ninth Commissioner of Baseball from 1998 to 2015. He initially served as ...
publicly revealed that baseball was considering Las Vegas as a potential home for the
Montreal Expos
The Montreal Expos (french: link=no, Les Expos de Montréal) were a Canadian professional baseball team based in Montreal, Quebec. The Expos were the first Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise located outside the United States. They played in t ...
. The lack of a baseball park that could be quickly reconfigured for Major League Baseball cost the city any chance of landing the team. Baseball eventually chose
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
, primarily because the city agreed to provide a new stadium built entirely with public funding.
A news item on a local television station dated August 26, 2010 reported that then Mayor
Oscar Goodman
Oscar Baylin Goodman (born July 26, 1939) is an American attorney and politician. A Democrat-turned-independent, Goodman was the mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada from 1999 to 2011. His wife, Carolyn Goodman, succeeded him as mayor in 2011.
Early lif ...
was still actively pursuing a Major League Baseball franchise for the city. He was reportedly rebuffed by the owner of an unnamed team due to the small size of the market and the weak local economy.
In 2021, the
Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
began researching the possibility of
relocating
Relocation, also known as moving, or moving house, is the process of leaving one's dwelling and settling in another. The new location can be in the same neighborhood or a much farther place in a different city or different country (immigration). ...
to the Las Vegas area if their
proposed ballpark at Howard Terminal to replace the decrepit
Oakland Coliseum
Oakland Coliseum, currently branded as RingCentral Coliseum, is a stadium in Oakland, California. It is part of the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Complex, with the adjacent Oakland Arena, near Interstate 880. The Coliseum is the home ba ...
in
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
was not approved by the city government. If the relocation occurred it would be the first time two major league sports teams from one city both relocated to the same city (and, in fact, the same venue) as the Raiders also relocated from Oakland to Las Vegas due to similar concerns over the Oakland Coliseum. Coincidentally, the Athletics played six home games at Cashman Field during the
1996 MLB season
The 1996 Major League Baseball season was the final season of league-only play before the beginning of interleague play the following season. The season ended with the New York Yankees defeating the defending champion Atlanta Braves in six games ...
when the renovations for the Coliseum were not yet complete. Las Vegas was also previously considered as a relocation site for the
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks (colloquially known as the D-backs) are an American professional baseball team based in Phoenix. The Diamondbacks compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The f ...
with the team signing a non-disclosure agreement with officials on a new retractable roof ballpark in the suburb of
Henderson Henderson may refer to:
People
*Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname
*Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan
Places Argentina
*Henderson, Buenos Aires
Australia
*Henderson, Western Australia
Canada
*He ...
under the codename "Project Marble" in 2018 only for the negotiations to stall and the team to focus on staying in the
Phoenix metropolitan area
The Phoenix Metropolitan Area – also the Valley of the Sun, the Salt River Valley, or Metro Phoenix (known by most locals simply as “the Valley”) – is the largest metropolitan area in the Southwestern United States, centered on the city ...
.
National Basketball Association
Rumors surfaced in 2005 about the possible
relocation of the
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...
's (NBA)
Sacramento Kings
The Sacramento Kings are an American professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California. The Kings compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Western Conference Pacific Division. The Kings are the oldest ...
to Las Vegas. In November 2006, California voters rejected a proposal to fund a new arena in Sacramento, considered to be a condition of the team remaining there. Another possible factor was that the owners of the Kings, the
Maloof family
The Maloof family is a prominent American family based in Las Vegas, Nevada, who are owners of numerous business properties in the Western United States. The original spelling of the family name is Maalouf. The family is of Lebanese descent via th ...
, also owned the
Palms Casino Resort
Palms Casino Resort is a hotel and casino located near the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada, United States. It is owned and operated by the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians. It includes 703 rooms and a casino. It was originally owned by th ...
in Las Vegas. Changes in the Kings owners' financial situation led to a decision to sell the club to a group planning to keep the team in Sacramento, which finalized the purchase of the Kings in May 2013.
The
Milwaukee Bucks
The Milwaukee Bucks are an American professional basketball team based in Milwaukee. The Bucks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The team was founded in 1968 ...
had also been mentioned as possible candidates for relocation to Las Vegas, as were the
Seattle SuperSonics
The Seattle SuperSonics (commonly known as the Seattle Sonics) were an American professional basketball team based in Seattle. The SuperSonics competed in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member club of the league's Western Confe ...
before their
relocation to
Oklahoma City
Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
.
Former
UNLV
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...
and NBA player
Jackie Robinson
Jack Roosevelt Robinson (January 31, 1919 – October 24, 1972) was an American professional baseball player who became the first African American to play in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the modern era. Robinson broke the baseball color line ...
has been working to build the
All Net Resort and Arena
All Net Resort & Arena is a planned entertainment complex in Las Vegas. A project of businessman and former basketball player Jackie Robinson, the complex will encompass a resort hotel, retail and restaurant space, and a multi-purpose arena with a ...
, a $1.4 billion privately funded complex encompassing an arena, hotel and shopping project near the
SLS Las Vegas
Sahara Las Vegas is a hotel and casino located on the Las Vegas Strip in Winchester, Nevada. It is owned and operated by the Meruelo Group. The hotel has 1,616 rooms, and the casino contains . The Sahara anchors the northern end of the Las Vegas ...
and
Turnberry Towers
Turnberry Towers is a 45-story twin tower condominium complex in Winchester, Nevada, near the Las Vegas Strip. Initially, plans were announced in 1998 for Great Masters, a $300 million condominium project consisting of 56-story twin towers. The ...
that could attract an NBA franchise to Las Vegas. The arena itself would cost $670 million, being operated by
Comcast-Spectacor (owners of another NBA stadium, Philadelphia's
Wells Fargo Center Wells Fargo Center may refer to:
*Wells Fargo Center (Los Angeles), California
*Wells Fargo Center (Sacramento), California
* Wells Fargo Center (San Francisco), California
* Wells Fargo Center for the Arts, Santa Rosa, California
* Wells Fargo Cen ...
).
Designed by the Cuningham Group, the arena was planned to open in 2017. The All Net Arena saw its groundbreaking ceremony on October 29, 2014,
and Robinson entered into negotiations with Clark County expecting to begin construction by Fall 2015. However, the plan was placed on hold in 2016 due to financing problems.
Las Vegas hosted the
2007 NBA All-Star Game
The 2007 NBA All-Star Game was an Exhibition game, exhibition basketball game that was played on February 18, 2007, during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2006–07 NBA season, 2006–07 season. It was the 56th edition of the NBA All-S ...
, the only time the event has been held in a non-NBA city. As part of the conditions the NBA set for holding the game in Las Vegas,
sports books agreed not to take bets on the game. The
NBA Summer League
The NBA Summer League, also known as the Las Vegas Summer League, is an off-season competition organized by the National Basketball Association. NBA teams come together to try out different summer rosters instead of their regular season line-ups ...
is currently held in Paradise, Nevada. The
2008
File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
and
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
United States men's Olympic basketball teams trained in Las Vegas, and played a game at the Thomas & Mack Center against the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic ( ; es, República Dominicana, ) is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean region. It occupies the eastern five-eighths of the island, which it shares wit ...
.
In October 2016, during an interview with KNPR’s State of Nevada,
MGM Resorts International
MGM Resorts International is an American global hospitality and entertainment company operating destination resorts in Las Vegas, Massachusetts, Detroit, Mississippi, Maryland, and New Jersey, including Bellagio, Mandalay Bay, MGM Grand, and Pa ...
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...
Jim Murren
James Joseph Murren (born October 5, 1961) is an American businessman. He was the chairman and CEO of MGM Resorts International. He is a member of the National Infrastructure Advisory Council.
On March 22, 2020, Murren was appointed by Nevada Go ...
said he was working on bringing an NBA team to Las Vegas, to play at the
T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Paradise, Nevada. Opened on April 6, 2016, it is the home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). A joint venture between MGM Resorts International and Anschutz En ...
, adding that it would most likely be through the relocation of an existing team rather than through expansion. By 2022, Las Vegas became one of the two most discussed markets with potential to be awarded an expansion franchise (along with
Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
) with
Los Angeles Lakers
The Los Angeles Lakers are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Lakers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Lakers play their ...
player
LeBron James
LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest pl ...
expressing interesting in owning an expansion franchise in the Las Vegas Valley.
Las Vegas mayor
Carolyn Goodman
Carolyn Goodman (née ''Goldmark'') is an American politician who has served as mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada, since 2011. She is the second female mayor of Las Vegas and is married to former mayor and attorney Oscar Goodman. She is the founder, pr ...
expressed her confidence in the city being the location of an NBA team.
[
]
Major League Soccer
The local media reported in the summer of 2008 that Las Vegas was on the short list of cities Major League Soccer
Major League Soccer (MLS) is a men's professional soccer league sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation, which represents the sport's highest level in the United States. The league comprises 29 teams—26 in the U.S. and 3 in Canada ...
(MLS) was considering for an expansion franchise in the near future. After a controversial campaign by Mayor Carolyn Goodman
Carolyn Goodman (née ''Goldmark'') is an American politician who has served as mayor of Las Vegas, Nevada, since 2011. She is the second female mayor of Las Vegas and is married to former mayor and attorney Oscar Goodman. She is the founder, pr ...
and Cordish Company
The Cordish Companies (previously The Cordish Company) is a U.S.-based real estate development and entertainment operating company with its headquarters on the 6th floor of the Pratt Street Power Plant in Baltimore, Maryland. It was founded i ...
to use public dollars for a new taxpayer-funded stadium, the proposal faced public backlash before MLS ultimately decided to pass on Las Vegas in February 2015.
Minor league professional teams
Baseball
Las Vegas is home to the Las Vegas Aviators
The Las Vegas Aviators, formerly known as the Las Vegas 51s and Las Vegas Stars, are a Minor League Baseball team of the Pacific Coast League (PCL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. They are located in Summerlin South, Nevad ...
of the Pacific Coast League
The Pacific Coast League (PCL) is a Minor League Baseball league that operates in the Western United States. Along with the International League, it is one of two leagues playing at the Triple-A (baseball), Triple-A level, which is one grade bel ...
(AAA), who play at Las Vegas Ballpark
Las Vegas Ballpark is a baseball stadium in Summerlin South, Nevada in the Las Vegas Valley. It is the home field for the Las Vegas Aviators of the Pacific Coast League. The stadium is owned by the Howard Hughes Corporation. Las Vegas Ballpark i ...
. The park is in a part of Summerlin
Summerlin is a master-planned community in the Las Vegas Valley of Southern Nevada. It lies at the edge of the Spring Mountains and Red Rock Canyon to the west; it is partly within the official city limits of Las Vegas and partly within uninco ...
that lies outside the Las Vegas city limits. Established in 1983, the team had previously played as the Las Vegas Stars from 1983 until 2000 and later the Las Vegas 51s from 2001 until 2018 at Cashman Field
Cashman Field is a soccer-specific stadium in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is primarily used for soccer as the home field of Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was the home of the Triple-A ...
until the opening of their new ballpark in 2019. The Aviators are currently the AAA affiliate of the Oakland Athletics
The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...
.
When the team came to Las Vegas in 1983 they became the first professional sports team to play in Las Vegas since the Las Vegas Wranglers
The Las Vegas Wranglers were a professional ice hockey team based in Las Vegas Valley. The Wranglers were members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League). The Wranglers were founded a ...
baseball club who played from 1947 to 1952 and 1957 to 1958.
Soccer
Beginning in 2018, Las Vegas became home to a USL Championship
The USL Championship (USLC) is a professional men's soccer league in the United States that began its inaugural season in 2011. The USL is sanctioned by the United States Soccer Federation (U.S. Soccer) as a Division II league since 2017, pl ...
soccer team known as Las Vegas Lights FC
Las Vegas Lights FC is an American professional soccer team based in Las Vegas, Nevada, that plays in the USL Championship. The team made its debut in 2018 and plays its home games at Cashman Field.
The team employs neon imagery in its crest a ...
. The team plays at Cashman Field, and in its first season became the second team to play within the Las Vegas city limits. Following the 51s' rebranding as the Aviators and move to the new ballpark, Lights FC are the only professional team that plays within the city limits.
Hockey
In 2020, the Las Vegas area became home of an American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...
franchise when the San Antonio Rampage
The San Antonio Rampage were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League based in San Antonio, Texas. The Rampage was primarily owned by Spurs Sports & Entertainment throughout the team's existence. In 2020, the franchise was sold ...
relocated to the market as the Henderson Silver Knights
The Henderson Silver Knights are a professional ice hockey team based in Henderson, Nevada, that began play in the 2020–21 American Hockey League (AHL) season. The team plays its home games at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nevada. The tea ...
. The team which is minor league affiliate of the Golden Knights played in Orleans Arena
Orleans Arena is a 9,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Paradise, Nevada, in the Las Vegas Valley. It is located at the Orleans Hotel and Casino and is operated by Coast Casinos, a subsidiary of Boyd Gaming Corporation.
The arena is the home to ...
until a Dollar Loan Center
The Dollar Loan Center is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Henderson, Nevada. Built on the site of the former Henderson Pavilion, it is the home of the Henderson Silver Knights of the American Hockey League, the Vegas Knight Hawks of the Indoor ...
was constructed in Henderson.
Previously the Las Vegas area had minor hockey teams in the Las Vegas Thunder
The Las Vegas Thunder were a professional ice hockey team competing in the International Hockey League. The team's home rink was at the Thomas & Mack Center. They began play in the 1993–1994 season, folding on April 18, 1999. The demise of the ...
of the International Hockey League and later Las Vegas Wranglers
The Las Vegas Wranglers were a professional ice hockey team based in Las Vegas Valley. The Wranglers were members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League). The Wranglers were founded a ...
of the ECHL
The ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) is a mid-level professional ice hockey league based in Shrewsbury, New Jersey, with teams scattered across the United States and Canada. It is a tier below the American Hockey League (AHL).
The E ...
.
Arena Football
In 2022, the Vegas Knight Hawks
The Vegas Knight Hawks are a professional indoor football team based in Henderson, Nevada, a suburb of Las Vegas. A member of the Indoor Football League (IFL), the Knight Hawks began play in 2022 at Dollar Loan Center. The Knight Hawks are owne ...
of the Indoor Football League
The Indoor Football League (IFL) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2008 out of the merger between the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. It has one of the largest number of currently active teams amon ...
began play at Dollar Loan Center. The Knight Hawks are owned by Vegas Golden Knights owner Bill Foley
William Foley is an American photojournalist whose work has been recognized by several national and international awards, including a Pulitzer Prize and International Press Freedom Awards. He has worked on assignment in 47 countries, with a p ...
.
Previously, Las Vegas was home to the Las Vegas Sting, Las Vegas Gladiators
{{Cat main, Thomas & Mack Center
Paradise, Nevada
University of Nevada, Las Vegas
Wikipedia categories named after buildings and structures in the United States
Wikipedia categories named after sports venues ...
, and Las Vegas Outlaws, all from the also defunct Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
.
Minor league sports issues
Cashman Field
Cashman Field is a soccer-specific stadium in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is primarily used for soccer as the home field of Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was the home of the Triple-A ...
, the former home of the team now known as the Aviators, was built in 1983, and saw few upgrades during its time as a minor league ballpark. After the toilets backed up during a 2015 game, PCL president Branch Barrett Rickey
Branch Barrett Rickey (born November 1, 1945) is a baseball executive who served as the 17th and final President of the Pacific Coast League (PCL), a Triple-A baseball league competing in Minor League Baseball (MiLB). He previously served as the ...
wrote a letter to the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) is a government agency and the official destination marketing organization for Southern Nevada. It was founded by the Nevada Legislature in 1955. The LVCVA owns and operates the Las Vegas ...
to warn that the upgrades needed to keep Cashman at something approaching Triple-A standards would require spending "tens of millions of dollars." Rickey added that even that wouldn't be enough, as many experts inside and outside Las Vegas believed that Cashman was at the end of its useful life.
Because it lagged so far behind most other facilities in AAA baseball there was danger that Las Vegas would lose its place in minor league baseball's top tier (which happened to Portland after the 2010 season when plans for a new park fell through). Dissatisfaction with the facilities, along with the lack of a plan to improve the situation, was cited as a major reason that the Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. Established in 1883 in the city of Brooklyn ...
did not renew their working agreement with the then-Las Vegas 51s after it expired in 2008. The Dodgers resumed what had been a long-term affiliation with Albuquerque
Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
, where a new ballpark opened in 2003. The now-Aviators opened Las Vegas Ballpark
Las Vegas Ballpark is a baseball stadium in Summerlin South, Nevada in the Las Vegas Valley. It is the home field for the Las Vegas Aviators of the Pacific Coast League. The stadium is owned by the Howard Hughes Corporation. Las Vegas Ballpark i ...
in Summerlin in 2019, which is considered a top facility in Minor League Baseball.
In 1999, UNLV officials refused to discuss a new agreement with the owners of the Las Vegas Thunder
The Las Vegas Thunder were a professional ice hockey team competing in the International Hockey League. The team's home rink was at the Thomas & Mack Center. They began play in the 1993–1994 season, folding on April 18, 1999. The demise of the ...
of the International Hockey League to play at the Thomas & Mack Center. Hotels with facilities suitable for the Thunder would not commit to an entire hockey season, as this would have seriously restricted the dates available for concerts and other events. This left the Thunder without a place to play. The team was disbanded, and the city lost hockey for four years. Only the opening of the Orleans Arena
Orleans Arena is a 9,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Paradise, Nevada, in the Las Vegas Valley. It is located at the Orleans Hotel and Casino and is operated by Coast Casinos, a subsidiary of Boyd Gaming Corporation.
The arena is the home to ...
(considerably smaller than the Thomas & Mack) at the off-Strip Orleans Hotel
The Orleans Hotel is a building listed as a California Historical Landmark. Formerly a prominent hotel in Sacramento, California, it now serves as upscale apartments in Old Sacramento.
History
The original Orleans Hotel was built by materials fro ...
allowed for the return of hockey with the Las Vegas Wranglers of the ECHL. The ECHL is considered two steps below the NHL, or the equivalent of the 'AA' level in minor league baseball. The Wranglers ceased operations after the 2013–14 season after Orleans Hotel owners Boyd Gaming informed the team that their lease at the Orleans Arena would not be renewed, and efforts to find a new location failed.
The Las Vegas Locomotives
The Las Vegas Locomotives (called the Locos for short) were a professional American football team based in Las Vegas, Nevada that played in the United Football League. The team played their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium, home field for the Unive ...
began play in October 2009 in the inaugural season of the United Football League. The Locos played in the first three UFL championship games, winning the first
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
two
2 (two) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 1 and preceding 3. It is the smallest and only even prime number. Because it forms the basis of a duality, it has religious and spiritual significance in many cultur ...
against the Florida Tuskers
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to th ...
, while losing the 2011 edition to the relocated Tuskers, then the Virginia Destroyers. The head coach was Jim Fassel
James Edward Fassel (August 31, 1949 – June 7, 2021) was an American college and professional football player and coach. He was the head coach of the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL) from 1997 to 2003. He was offensive coor ...
, former head coach of the NFL's New York Giants
The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...
. The team played home games at UNLV's Sam Boyd Stadium
Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Las Vegas Silver Bowl) is a football stadium in the western United States, located in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas Valley. It honors Sam Boyd (1910–1993), a major figure in the hote ...
. The league suspended operations in the middle of the 2012 season, with Las Vegas undefeated through the first four games. Las Vegas, despite being the league's best and most consistent team on the field, was also consistently one of the poorest draws at the gate in the league; their final home game drew only 600 fans into the stadium, a league record low.
Af2
The AF2 (often styled as af2, and short for arenafootball2) was the Arena Football League's developmental league; it was founded in 1999 and played its first season in 2000. Like its parent AFL, the AF2 played using the same arena football ru ...
, a second-tier arena football league, announced on June 24 that the ArenaCup
The ArenaCup was the af2's championship game. For the league's first five years, it was held at the arena of the higher seeded team. However, the 2005 ArenaCup was the first to be played at a neutral site in Bossier City, Louisiana. The 2006 Aren ...
, the league championship game, would be played in Las Vegas at the Orleans arena
Orleans Arena is a 9,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Paradise, Nevada, in the Las Vegas Valley. It is located at the Orleans Hotel and Casino and is operated by Coast Casinos, a subsidiary of Boyd Gaming Corporation.
The arena is the home to ...
on August 22, 2009. Af2 President Jerry Kurz
Jerry B. Kurz (born June 21, 1949) is a founding father of the now-defunct Arena Football League. He was one of the earliest leaders of Arena football, and was part owner of Gridiron Enterprises, original owner of the proprietary, formerly patent ...
stated that the league had serious plans to put a team in Las Vegas to play at the Orleans Arena. He said that he had "no qualms" about this even given the problems that the Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena Football League
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in ...
had in the city. This turned out to be the last season of af2 due to the demise of its parent league, the original Arena Football League.
In 2005–06, the city hosted ArenaBowl XIX
ArenaBowl XIX was the 2005 championship game of the Arena Football League (AFL), and was played at the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada. The first neutral-site title game in AFL history drew 10,822 fans to see the Colorado Crush defeat th ...
and ArenaBowl XX
ArenaBowl XX, held on Sunday, June 11, 2006, was played to determine the championship of the 2006 season of the Arena Football League (AFL). For the second consecutive year, the game was played at the neutral site of the Thomas & Mack Center in P ...
at the Thomas & Mack Center, the AFL's first neutral-site title games. After two years of disappointing attendance the game was moved.
Former professional teams
College sports
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas
The University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) is a public land-grant research university in Paradise, Nevada. The campus is about east of the Las Vegas Strip. It was formerly part of the University of Nevada from 1957 to 1969. It includes the S ...
(UNLV) Rebels
Rebels may refer to:
* Participants in a rebellion
* Rebel groups, people who refuse obedience or order
* Rebels (American Revolution), patriots who rejected British rule in 1776
Film and television
* ''Rebels'' (film) or ''Rebelles'', a 2019 ...
(the name Runnin' Rebels is used only by the men's basketball team) host Mountain West Conference
The Mountain West Conference (MW) is one of the collegiate athletic conferences affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (formerly I-A). The MW officially began operations o ...
events on the UNLV campus and at Allegiant Stadium
Allegiant Stadium is a domed stadium located in Paradise, Nevada. It is the home stadium for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL), the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels college football team, the Las Ve ...
. Indoor sporting events are held at the Thomas & Mack Center
The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference.
History
The facility was fi ...
complex, both at the main arena and at Cox Pavilion
Cox Pavilion is a , multi-purpose indoor arena on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus, connected to the Thomas & Mack Center. The Pavilion serves as the home court for UNLV Lady Rebels women's basketball and volleyball programs as well as t ...
, a smaller arena attached to the complex.
The College of Southern Nevada
The College of Southern Nevada (CSN) is a public community college in Clark County, Nevada. The college has more than 2,500 teaching and non-teaching staff and is the largest public college or university in Nevada. It is part of the Nevada Syst ...
(CSN) Coyotes
The coyote (''Canis latrans'') is a species of canis, canine native to North America. It is smaller than its close relative, the wolf, and slightly smaller than the closely related eastern wolf and red wolf. It fills much of the same ecologica ...
host Scenic West Athletic Conference
The Scenic West Athletic Conference (also known as the Scenic West Conference) is a sports association for junior colleges located in Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Nevada, and California. The conference is a member of the NJCAA and sponsors 9 sports, 4 ...
events on the CSN campus at William R. Morse Stadium and at Heritage Park both in Henderson Henderson may refer to:
People
*Henderson (surname), description of the surname, and a list of people with the surname
*Clan Henderson, a Scottish clan
Places Argentina
*Henderson, Buenos Aires
Australia
*Henderson, Western Australia
Canada
*He ...
.
The city has become a regional hub for college basketball conference tournaments. The Mountain West Conference
The Mountain West Conference (MW) is one of the collegiate athletic conferences affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (formerly I-A). The MW officially began operations o ...
(MW) holds its annual tournaments for both men
A man is an adult male human. Prior to adulthood, a male human is referred to as a boy (a male child or adolescent). Like most other male mammals, a man's genome usually inherits an X chromosome from the mother and a Y chrom ...
and women
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or Adolescence, adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female hum ...
at the Thomas & Mack Center. Las Vegas hosted the tournaments for the first seven years of the MW's existence, with the tournaments returning to Las Vegas in 2009 after three years in Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
. In 2009 the West Coast Conference
The West Coast Conference (WCC) — known as the California Basketball Association from 1952 to 1956 and then as the West Coast Athletic Conference until 1989 — is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with NCAA Division I consisting of ...
, which does not have a team in Nevada, moved its men's and women's
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
tournaments to the Orleans Arena. The Western Athletic Conference
The Western Athletic Conference (WAC) is an NCAA Division I conference. The WAC covers a broad expanse of the western United States with member institutions located in Arizona, California, New Mexico, Utah, Washington (state), Washington, and Texa ...
moved both of its tournaments to Las Vegas in 2011. The WAC also plays at the Orleans Arena.
On March 14, 2012, the ''Las Vegas Review-Journal
The ''Las Vegas Review-Journal'' is a daily subscription newspaper published in Las Vegas, Nevada, since 1909. It is the largest circulating daily newspaper in Nevada and one of two daily newspapers in the Las Vegas area.
The ''Review-Journal'' ...
'' reported that the Pac-12 Conference
The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...
was moving its men's basketball conference tournament to Las Vegas in 2013, to be played at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
. The tournament remained at this venue through the 2016 edition, after which it moved to T-Mobile Arena. The Pac-12 has since moved its women's tournament from its most recent site in Seattle
Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
to Las Vegas, originally at MGM Grand Garden Arena and now at Michelob Ultra Arena
The Michelob Ultra Arena, formerly the Mandalay Bay Events Center, is a 12,000-seat multi-purpose indoor arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned and operated by MGM Resorts In ...
. Most recently, the Big West Conference
The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. The conference was originally formed on July 1, 1969, as the Pacific ...
moved its men's and women's
A woman is an adult female human. Prior to adulthood, a female human is referred to as a girl (a female child or adolescent). The plural ''women'' is sometimes used in certain phrases such as "women's rights" to denote female humans regardl ...
tournaments to the area starting in 2020–21, first at Michelob Ultra Arena in 2021 and then Dollar Loan Center from 2022.
Las Vegas hosts the Las Vegas Bowl
The Las Vegas Bowl is an NCAA Division I FBS annual post-season college football bowl game held in the Las Vegas area. First played in 1992, the bowl was originally held at the 40,000-seat Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada before moving to the ...
, a college bowl game, around Christmas Day. The game pairs a Pac-12
The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference, that operates in the Western United States, participating in 24 sports at the NCAA Division I level. Its College football, football teams compete in the NCAA D ...
team against either a SEC team or Big Ten
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
team.
Despite the state of Nevada having no collegiate wrestling itself, many of the most prestigious college wrestling events are held in the area each year. The Cliff Keen Las Vegas Invitational tournament has been held in the city since 1981. Some of the nations best wrestling teams, such as Michigan, Nebraska, Virginia Tech, Minnesota, Iowa State, Ohio State and Northern Iowa often attend the event. Nearby Reno, also holds a huge wrestling tournament every year for both collegiate and high school wrestling known as The Reno Tournament of Champions.
Vegas has also been home to many international amateur wrestling events. In 2015, Vegas held the World Wrestling Championships at Orleans Arena.
Rugby union and variations
The Las Vegas Blackjacks RFC
The Las Vegas Blackjacks Rugby Football Club (Las Vegas Blackjacks RFC) was a rugby union team based in Las Vegas, Nevada. They were members of the Southern California Rugby Football Union and competed in the Senior Men's 1st (Red) Division of USA ...
are a rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
team that compete in the Southern California Rugby Football Union
The Southern California Rugby Football Union (SCRFU) is the Geographical Union (GU) governing body within USA Rugby that governs adult rugby union teams in Southern California, the Las Vegas metropolitan area, Arizona, and New Mexico. The SCRFU in ...
.
The USA Sevens, the largest annual rugby tournament in North America, was in Sam Boyd Stadium
Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Las Vegas Silver Bowl) is a football stadium in the western United States, located in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas Valley. It honors Sam Boyd (1910–1993), a major figure in the hote ...
from 2010 until 2018. The tournament had been held in late January or early February until 2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
, when it moved to its current date of the first full weekend in March. The USA Sevens, one of the events in the annual World Rugby Sevens Series
The World Rugby Men's Sevens Series is an annual series of international rugby sevens tournaments run by World Rugby featuring national sevens teams. Organised for the first time in the 1999–2000 season as the IRB World Sevens Series, the com ...
rugby sevens circuit, moved to Las Vegas from San Diego, where it had previously been held. The 2012 USA Sevens drew over 64,000 fans to the stadium and was broadcast live on NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
. The Sevens World Series is an annual series of tournaments for national sevens teams, with most events featuring 16 teams competing for two distinct trophies.
The 2017 edition saw the addition of the USA Women's Sevens to the tournament weekend, also at Sam Boyd Stadium. The USA Women's Sevens has been part of the World Rugby Women's Sevens Series
The World Rugby Women's Sevens Series, is a series of international rugby sevens tournaments for women's national teams run by World Rugby. The inaugural series was held in 2012–13 as the successor to the IRB Women's Sevens Challenge Cup held ...
since the circuit's creation in 2012–13; its first edition
The bibliographical definition of an edition includes all copies of a book printed from substantially the same setting of type, including all minor typographical variants.
First edition
According to the definition of ''edition'' above, a b ...
had been held in Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
before moving to suburban Atlanta for its next three editions. However, 2017 was the only year in which Las Vegas hosted a women's tournament. The USA Women's Sevens was not held in the 2017–18 season, being superseded by the 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens
The 2018 Rugby World Cup Sevens was the seventh edition of the Rugby World Cup Sevens. Organised by World Rugby, it was held at AT&T Park, now known as Oracle Park, in San Francisco, United States. A total of 84 matches were played over three da ...
in San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
. While that event resumed in the 2018–19 season, it was moved to Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
.
In February 2020, five Major League Rugby
Major League Rugby (MLR or USMLR) is a professional rugby union competition and the top-level championship for clubs in North America. In the 2022 season it was contested by thirteen teams: twelve from the United States and one from Canada. Off ...
games were held at Sam Boyd Stadium.
Special sports events
The NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...
has drawn up to 165,000 fans. Las Vegas also hosts a significant number of professional fights. Many of these fights (such as those in MMA
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...
's UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
) take place near downtown or on the Strip in one of the major resort/hotel/casino event centers. Mandalay Bay
Mandalay Bay is a 43-story luxury resort and casino at the south end of the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned by Vici Properties and The Blackstone Group and operated by MGM Resorts International. It was developed by Circus Circus ...
is frequently a top contender as a venue for the UFC.
Las Vegas submitted a bid to host the 2020 Summer Olympics
The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July.
Tokyo was selected as the host city during the ...
, but did so without United States Olympic Committee
The United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee (USOPC) is the National Olympic Committee and the National Paralympic Committee for the United States. It was founded in 1895 as the United States Olympic Committee, and is headquartered in Col ...
(USOC) consent. The International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee (IOC; french: link=no, Comité international olympique, ''CIO'') is a non-governmental sports organisation based in Lausanne, Switzerland. It is constituted in the form of an association under the Swiss ...
(IOC) requires that a national Olympic committee nominates a city within their country followed by the submission of the bid to the IOC. The USOC stated that they would not submit a 2020 bid. Las Vegas proceeded without USOC support. The IOC reportedly rejected the bid. The day after the September 1, 2011 deadline for bidding, the IOC revealed the six applicant cities and Las Vegas was not one of them.
Individual sports
Boxing
Las Vegas is host to many professional boxing matches and has hosted many championship bouts, including the following notable bouts:
*Larry Holmes
Larry Holmes (born November 3, 1949) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1973 to 2002 and was world heavyweight champion from 1978 until 1985. He grew up in Easton, Pennsylvania, which led to his boxing nickname of the "Eas ...
vs. Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, a ...
(1980)
* The Battle of the Little Giants (1981)
*Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns
Sugar Ray Leonard vs. Thomas Hearns, billed as ''The Showdown'', was a professional boxing match contested on September 16, 1981 for the WBA, WBC, and ''The Ring'' welterweight titles.
Background
Sugar Ray Leonard won the WBC welterweight ti ...
(1981, 1989)
*Larry Holmes vs. Gerry Cooney
Larry Holmes vs. Gerry Cooney was a heavyweight boxing match that took place on June 11, 1982, in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. It was one of the most highly anticipated fights of the early 1980s.
Setup
Larry Holmes had been the WBC heavywei ...
(1982)
* Marvin Hagler vs. Thomas Hearns (1985)
*Julio César Chávez vs. Meldrick Taylor
Julio César Chávez vs. Meldrick Taylor, also billed as ''Thunder Meets Lightning'', was a light welterweight world championship bout held on March 17, 1990 between WBC world champion Julio César Chávez of Mexico and IBF world champion Me ...
aka Thunder Meets Lightning (1990)
*Julio César Chávez
Julio César Chávez González (; born July 12, 1962), also known as Julio César Chávez Sr., is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1980 to 2005. A multiple-time world champion in three weight divisions, Chávez was liste ...
vs. Hector Camacho Sr. (1992)
*Michael Carbajal vs. Humberto Gonzalez I
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name "Michael"
* Michael (archangel), ''first'' of God's archangels in the Jewish, Christian an ...
(1993)
*Oscar De La Hoya
Oscar De La Hoya ( , ; born on February 4, 1973) is an American boxing promoter and former professional boxer who competed from 1992 to 2008. His accolades include winning 11 world titles in six weight classes, including the lineal championshi ...
vs. Julio César Chávez (1996, 1998)
*The Bite Fight
Evander Holyfield vs. Mike Tyson II, billed as ''the Sound and the Fury'' and afterwards infamously referred to as ''The Bite Fight'', was a professional boxing match contested between Evander Holyfield and Mike Tyson on June 28, 1997, for the ...
(1997)
*Fight of the Millennium
Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...
(1999)
*Lennox Lewis vs. Evander Holyfield II
Evander Holyfield vs. Lennox Lewis II, was a professional boxing match contested on November 13, 1999 for the WBA, WBC, IBF, and vacant IBO heavyweight championships.
Background
The two fighters had met eight months prior in Madison Square Ga ...
(1999)
* Barrera vs. Morales trilogy (2000, 2002, 2004)
*Oscar De La Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather
Oscar De La Hoya vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr., billed as ''The World Awaits'', was a super welterweight superfight that took place on May 5, 2007, at the MGM Grand Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada between six-division world champion Oscar De La Hoya and u ...
(2007)
*Floyd Mayweather vs. Ricky Hatton
Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Ricky Hatton, billed as ''Undefeated'', was a boxing superfight that took place on December 8, 2007, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, between reigning WBC and ''The Ring'' welterweight champion Floyd Mayweathe ...
(2007)
*Bernard Hopkins vs. Joe Calzaghe
Bernard Hopkins vs. Joe Calzaghe, was a boxing match that took place on April 19, 2008, at the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada, between '' The Ring'' light heavyweight champion Bernard Hopkins and unified super middleweight champion J ...
(2008)
* Ricky Hatton vs. Manny Pacquiao (2009)
*Floyd Mayweather vs. Manny Pacquiao
Floyd Mayweather Jr. vs. Manny Pacquiao, billed as the ''Fight of the Century'' or the ''Battle for Greatness'', was a professional boxing superfight between undefeated five-division world champion Floyd Mayweather Jr. and eight-division world ...
(2015)
*Canelo Álvarez vs. Amir Khan
Canelo Álvarez vs. Amir Khan (boxer), Amir Khan, was a professional boxing fight which took place on May 7, 2016, and was contested for the World Boxing Council, WBC, The Ring (magazine), ''The Ring'' magazine and lineal championship, lineal midd ...
(2016)
*Sergey Kovalev vs. Andre Ward
Sergey Kovalev (boxer), Sergey Kovalev vs. Andre Ward, billed as ''Pound for Pound'', was a highly anticipated professional boxing superfight for the unified World Boxing Association, WBA (Undisputed), International Boxing Federation, IBF, and Wor ...
(2016)
* Floyd Mayweather vs. Conor McGregor (2017)
*Canelo Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin
Canelo Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin, billed as ''Supremacy'', was a professional boxing match contested for the unified WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, IBO, ''Ring'' magazine, and lineal middleweight championship. The bout was on September 16, 201 ...
(2017)
*Canelo Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin II
Canelo Álvarez vs. Gennady Golovkin II billed as ''Final Judgment'', was a professional boxing rematch between Canelo Álvarez and Gennady Golovkin which took place at T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada on September 15, 2018. Alvarez won by ...
(2018)
*Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II
Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury II, was a heavyweight professional boxing rematch between undefeated and reigning WBC champion Deontay Wilder and undefeated former unified heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, for the WBC and vacant ''The Ring'' heavywe ...
(2020)
* Deontay Wilder vs. Tyson Fury III (2021)
Golf
Las Vegas hosts two pro tour events:
* PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
Shriners Hospitals for Children Open
The Shriners Children's Open is a golf tournament on the PGA Tour in Nevada. Founded in 1983, it is the fourth event of the Tour's 2019–20 wrap-around season and is played annually in October in Las Vegas. It is currently held at the TPC Sum ...
(historically known as the Las Vegas Invitational)
* PGA Tour Champions
PGA Tour Champions (formerly the Senior PGA Tour and the Champions Tour) is a men's professional senior golf tour, administered as a branch of the PGA Tour.
History and format
The Senior PGA Championship, founded in 1937, was for many years ...
Las Vegas Open
The Las Vegas Country Club The Las Vegas Country Club is a private membership club located in the Winchester area of metropolitan Las Vegas, Nevada.
History
It was built on the site of a 1950s horse and automobile racetrack named Las Vegas Park and later the Las Vegas Park ...
previously hosted the LPGA
The Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) is an American organization for female golfers. The organization is headquartered at the LPGA International in Daytona Beach, Florida, and is best known for running the LPGA Tour, a series of weekl ...
Takefuji Classic from 2003 until 2006.
Mixed martial arts
Along with significant rises in popularity in mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
(MMA), a number of fight leagues such as the premier MMA organization in the world the UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
call Las Vegas home with the headquarters of world operations due to the number of suitable host venues with an annual international fight week held near July 4. The Mandalay Bay Events Center
The Michelob Ultra Arena, formerly the Mandalay Bay Events Center, is a 12,000-seat multi-purpose indoor arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned and operated by MGM Resorts In ...
and MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
are among some of the more popular venues for fighting events and have hosted several UFC and other MMA title fights, with the addition of the new T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Paradise, Nevada. Opened on April 6, 2016, it is the home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). A joint venture between MGM Resorts International and Anschutz En ...
.
Motorsports
Las Vegas has become an internationally known motor racing locale, having hosted the elite Formula One
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
racers at Caesars Palace and the Championship Auto Racing Teams
Championship Auto Racing Teams (CART) was a Governing body, sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 1979 to 2003. It sanctioned the PPG Indy Car World Series from 1979 until dissolving after the 2003 CART season, ...
(CART) for Indy racers in the early 1980s. Las Vegas is also home to the Mint 400
The Mint 400 is an annual American desert off-road race which takes place in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was resumed in 2008 after a 20-year hiatus.
The race was for both motorcycles, until 1977, and four-wheel vehicles ( buggies, cars and trucks) s ...
, an off-road race run in the unforgiving Nevada desert outside Las Vegas. During the race's "classic era" from 1967 to 1987, as many as 100,000 spectators lined the 100-mile (160 km) loop to view the 500-plus off-road racing vehicles. Sponsored by Del Webb's Mint Hotel and Casino, the event was the largest and richest event in the sport. The technical and safety inspection was held on famed Fremont Street and became one of the major must-attend sporting events in Las Vegas history. After the 1987 race, the Del Webb organization sold the Mint Hotel to the adjacent Horseshoe
A horseshoe is a fabricated product designed to protect a horse hoof from wear. Shoes are attached on the palmar surface (ground side) of the hooves, usually nailed through the insensitive hoof wall that is anatomically akin to the human toen ...
owned by the legendary Binion gaming family, and the race was discontinued after the 1989 edition. In 2008, the Mint 400 was revived under new management, and since 2012 it has been held on a completely new 100-mile desert loop.
Over the years, Vegas was the host for the Caesars Palace Grand Prix
The Caesars Palace Grand Prix was a car race held in Las Vegas between 1981 and 1984. For the first two years, the race was part of the Formula One World Championship, before becoming a round of the CART series in 1983. Nissan/Datsun was a pre ...
.
The Can-Am Challenge Cup
The Canadian-American Challenge Cup, or Can-Am, was an SCCA/ CASC sports car racing series from 1966 to 1987.
History
Can-Am started out as a race series for group 7 sports racers with two races in Canada (''Can'') and four races in the United ...
races in 1966–68 were held at the old Stardust Raceway
The Stardust International Raceway was an auto racing track in present-day Spring Valley, Nevada, in the Las Vegas Valley. It featured a flat, , 13-turn road course, and a quarter-mile drag strip. Some track maps depicted the road course with ...
and were officially called the Stardust Grand Prix.
In July 2006, the Las Vegas City Council
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
approved a 2.44-mile, 14-turn, counterclockwise street circuit in the downtown area for a Champ Car
Champ Car World Series (CCWS) was the series sanctioned by Open-Wheel Racing Series Inc., or Champ Car, a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 2004 to 2008. It was the successor to Championship Auto Racing Teams ( ...
event slated for April 6–8, 2007.
Las Vegas hosts these motor sports at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, located in Clark County, Nevada in Las Vegas, Nevada about 15 miles northeast of the Las Vegas Strip, is a complex of multiple tracks for motorsports racing. The complex is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which is ...
:
* NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...
: Pennzoil 400, South Point 400
The South Point 400 is a NASCAR Cup Series stock car race held annually at Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada, with the other one being the Pennzoil 400, The race is held on the last weekend of September and is the fourth race of the ...
* NASCAR Xfinity Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
: Boyd Gaming 300
Stock car racing events in the NASCAR Xfinity Series has been held at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada since the track's inauguration in 1997 NASCAR Busch Series, 1997. Currently, the track holds two races, both sponsored by Als ...
, DC Solar 300
Stock car racing events in the NASCAR Xfinity Series has been held at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway in Las Vegas, Nevada since the track's inauguration in 1997. Currently, the track holds two races, both sponsored by Alsco, with the 300-mile ( ...
* NASCAR Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
: Strat 200
The Bucked Up 200 was a 134-lap, 200-mile long NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race that takes place at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.
History
The race was first held on November 3, 1996 as the Carquest 420K. The race continued annually until 2000, ...
, World of Westgate 200
The Victoria’s Voice Foundation 200 presented by Westgate Resorts is a 134-lap, NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race that takes place at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The inaugural race was held in 2018.
History
Despite the agreement, Speedway ...
* Denso Spark Plugs NHRA
The National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) is a drag racing governing body, which sets rules in drag racing and hosts events all over the United States and Canada. With over 40,000 drivers in its rosters, the NHRA claims to be the largest motorspo ...
Nationals (April)
* NHRA Toyota Nationals (November)
* Monster Jam World Finals
The Monster Jam World Finals is an annual monster truck event that is the championship event of the Monster Jam series, consisting of racing and freestyle competitions, with the winner of each considered the World Champion in that competition fo ...
at Sam Boyd Stadium
Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Las Vegas Silver Bowl) is a football stadium in the western United States, located in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas Valley. It honors Sam Boyd (1910–1993), a major figure in the hote ...
(March)
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On March 30, 2022, Formula 1 announced the Las Vegas Grand Prix
The Las Vegas Grand Prix is a planned Formula One Grand Prix due to form part of the 2023 Formula One World Championship, with the event taking place in Paradise, Nevada, on a temporary street circuit including the Las Vegas Strip.
History ...
for 2023. This will be the first race to take place on a Saturday night, and will be F1's first visit to Vegas since 1982.
Professional wrestling
Over the years, Las Vegas has housed many wrestling events for WWE
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc., d/b/a as WWE, is an American professional wrestling promotion. A global integrated media and entertainment company, WWE has also branched out into other fields, including film, American football, and vario ...
such as WrestleMania IX
WrestleMania IX was the ninth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). The event took place on April 4, 1993, at Caesars Palace in the Las Vegas suburb of Paradi ...
at Caesars Palace
Caesars Palace is a luxury hotel and casino in Paradise, Nevada, United States. The hotel is situated on the west side of the Las Vegas Strip between Bellagio and The Mirage. It is one of Las Vegas's largest and best known landmarks.
Caesars P ...
, No Way Out (2001)
The 2001 No Way Out was the third WWE No Way Out, No Way Out professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) List of WWE pay-per-view events, event produced by the WWE, World Wrestling Federation (WWF, now WWE). It took place on Attitude Era, February 2 ...
housed at the Thomas & Mack Center
The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference.
History
The facility was fi ...
, Vengeance (2005)
The 2005 Vengeance was the fifth annual Vengeance professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). It was held exclusively for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw brand division. The event took pl ...
, ''Monday Night Raw
''WWE Raw'', also known as ''Monday Night Raw'' or simply ''Raw'', is an American professional wrestling television program produced by WWE that currently airs live every Monday at 8 p.m. ET on the USA Network in the United States. The show fe ...
'', and No Way Out (2008) and SummerSlam (2021)
The 2021 SummerSlam was the 34th annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event took place on Saturday, Au ...
and the upcoming Money in the Bank (2022)
The 2022 Money in the Bank was the 13th annual Money in the Bank professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) and livestreaming event produced by WWE. It was held for wrestlers from the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brand divisions. The event took ...
Pay Per View at Allegiant Stadium
Allegiant Stadium is a domed stadium located in Paradise, Nevada. It is the home stadium for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL), the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels college football team, the Las Ve ...
. Las Vegas also hosted World Championship Wrestling
World Championship Wrestling, Inc. (WCW) was an American professional wrestling promotion founded by Ted Turner in 1988, after Turner Broadcasting System, through a subsidiary named Universal Wrestling Corporation, purchased the assets of Nation ...
's Halloween Havoc
Halloween Havoc is a professional wrestling event currently produced by WWE for the company's developmental brand, NXT. As the name implies, it is a Halloween-themed show held in October.
It was originally produced as an annual pay-per-view (PPV ...
from 1996 to 2000 and TNA Wrestling
Impact Wrestling (stylized as ''IMPACT! Wrestling''), is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee. It is a subsidiary of Anthem Sports & Entertainment.
Founded by Jeff and Jerry Jarrett in 2002, the promoti ...
's ''TNA Impact!
''Impact!'' (stylized as ''IMPACT!''), also known as ''IMPACT! on AXS TV'',
is an American professional wrestling television program produced by the American promotion Impact Wrestling (formerly known as Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA)) tha ...
'' along with numerous Ring of Honor
Ring of Honor (ROH) is an American professional wrestling promotion based in Jacksonville, Florida. The promotion was founded by Rob Feinstein on February 23, 2002, and was operated by Cary Silkin from 2004 until 2011, when the promotion was so ...
Pay Per View and televised events including the 13th and 14th Anniversary Shows, along with Death Before Dishonor XIV and Death Before Dishonor XV
Death Before Dishonor XV was the 15th Death Before Dishonor professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by Ring of Honor (ROH), which took place on September 22, 2017, at Sam's Town Live in Sunrise Manor, Nevada.
Wrestlers from N ...
. The latest event to be held by a major wrestling organisation was AEW AEW or aew may refer to:
* Airborne early warning, airborne radar system for detecting aircraft
* Aerosvit Airlines, an airline based in Kyiv, Ukraine (ICAO airline designator: AEW)
* AEW Capital Management, a property investment management company
...
's inaugural Double or Nothing
Double or nothing (UK often double or quits) is a gamble to decide whether a loss or debt should be doubled. The result of a "double or nothing" bet is either the subject doubled to twice the amount as the original ''or'' the doubling of a debt. It ...
pay-per-view held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
in 2019; the event will return to Las Vegas in 2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...
at a venue to be announced.
Rodeo
The National Finals Rodeo
The National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is the premier rodeo event by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The NFR showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money-winners in the season for each event.
The NFR is held each year in the fi ...
has drawn thousands of fans to the city since 1985; a contract extension was signed in 2005 keeping the event in Las Vegas through 2014, followed by another extension that will keep the event in Las Vegas through 2024. The Professional Bull Riders
The Professional Bull Riders, Inc. (PBR) is an international professional bull riding organization based in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. In the U.S., PBR events have been televised on CBS and CBS Sports Network since 2012. In 2013, the ...
circuit also holds its world finals in Las Vegas. Before 2016, both held their finals at the Thomas & Mack Center, but PBR now holds its finals at T-Mobile Arena.
Las Vegas has hosted three Professional Rodeo events:
* BigHorn Rodeo
The bighorn sheep (''Ovis canadensis'') is a species of sheep native to North America. It is named for its large horns. A pair of horns might weigh up to ; the sheep typically weigh up to . Recent genetic testing indicates three distinct subspe ...
* PBR World Finals PBR may refer to:
Science and technology
* Passive bistatic radar
* Partition boot record
* Pebble bed reactor, a type of nuclear reactor
* Peripheral benzodiazepine receptor, another name for translocator protein
* Phosphorus bromide
* Photob ...
(1994–) — Unleash the Beast World Finals
* National Finals Rodeo
The National Finals Rodeo (NFR) is the premier rodeo event by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA). The NFR showcases the talents of the PRCA's top 15 money-winners in the season for each event.
The NFR is held each year in the fi ...
(1985–) — Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association
The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) is the largest rodeo organization in the world. It sanctions events in the United States and Canada, with members from said countries, as well as others. Its championship event is the National F ...
Wrangler National Finals Rodeo
Running and triathlon
*Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon
The Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon & 1/2 Marathon is an annual marathon foot-race run on the Las Vegas Strip and in parts of the Las Vegas Valley, Nevada. The race was one of the oldest marathons in the United States, having been run between 1 ...
— The marathon was originally organized by Al Boka
AL, Al, Ål or al may stand for:
Arts and entertainment Fictional characters
* Al (''Aladdin'') or Aladdin, the main character in Disney's ''Aladdin'' media
* Al (''EastEnders''), a minor character in the British soap opera
* Al (''Fullmetal ...
in 1983, who eventually sold the marathon in 2005 to Devine Racing
Devine is an Irish surname derived from Ní Dhaimhín / Ó Daimhín. Notable people with the surname include:
* Adam DeVine (born 1983), American actor, comedian, singer, writer and producer
* Alan Devine, Irish actor
* Alexander Devine, Britis ...
, a Chicago-based race organization company that is responsible for several other races, including the Los Angeles Marathon
The Los Angeles Marathon (formerly known as the City of Los Angeles Marathon) is an annual running event typically held each spring in Los Angeles, California, since 1986. The marathon was inspired by the success of the 1984 Summer Olympic Ga ...
. Devine redubbed the race as "The New Las Vegas Marathon", and updated the course to include the Strip
Strip or Stripping may refer to:
Places
* Aouzou Strip, a strip of land following the northern border of Chad that had been claimed and occupied by Libya
* Caprivi Strip, narrow strip of land extending from the Okavango Region of Namibia to ...
. Introduced on December 4, 2005, the new course marks one of the race occasions that the Strip is closed to traffic. Prior to that, the course had run on the old Los Angeles Highway, beginning in the community of Jean, Nevada
Jean is a small commercial town in Clark County, Nevada, United States, located approximately north of the Nevada–California state line along Interstate 15. Las Vegas is located about to the north. There are no residents of Jean, making it th ...
, and ending inside Las Vegas proper (Sunset Park). Additionally in 2005, the date of the marathon was changed from January to December to help ensure better weather. In 2009, the Las Vegas Marathon was acquired by the Competitor Group, Inc.
Competitor Group, Inc. (CGI) is a privately held, for-profit, sports marketing and Event management, management company based in Mira Mesa, San Diego, California. The company owns and operates over 40 large scale running, cycling, and triathlon ev ...
and renamed as the Rock 'n' Roll Las Vegas Marathon, as part of the company's Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series
The Rock 'n' Roll Marathon Series is a collection of road running events owned and operated by the IRONMAN Group's Competitor Group, part of Advance Publications. The series is known for lining race routes with live bands, cheerleaders and themed ...
.
*Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup Relay – Vegas is the end point for the annual Baker to Vegas Challenge Cup Relay. This 120 mile long foot race is run in April of each year by law enforcement teams from around the world. The race starts in Baker, California
Baker is a census-designated place located in San Bernardino County, California, US. As of the 2010 census, the CDP had a total population of 735. Baker's ZIP Code is 92309 and the community is within area codes 442 and 760.
History
Baker w ...
and is run over two days. This is the largest law enforcement athletic event in the world.
*The World Triathlon Corporation
The World Triathlon Corporation (WTC) is a sports event promotion company owned by conglomerate Advance Publications, that produces the Ironman Triathlon, Ironman 70.3, the 5150 series of triathlon races, and other sports events.
History
In De ...
(WTC) had hosted the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in the Las Vegas metropolitan area from 2011 to 2013. The swim portion of the competition is held at Lake Las Vegas
Lake Las Vegas in Henderson, Nevada, refers to a reservoir and the developed area around the reservoir. The area is sometimes referred to as the ''Lake Las Vegas Resort''. It is being developed by 5 companies including Lake at Las Vegas Join ...
, and the bike and run portions are held in the Henderson, Nevada
Henderson is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, about southeast of downtown Las Vegas. It is the second largest city in Nevada, after Las Vegas, with an estimated population of 320,189 in 2019. The city is part of the Las Vegas Vall ...
area. In 2014, the race was renamed the Ironman 70.3 Silverman as the championship race began the practice of changing to a new location each year going forward.
*The Lake Las Vegas/Henderson, Nevada area was host to the ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championships The World Triathlon Long Distance Championships is a triathlon race held annually since 1994. The championships involve a continuous swim-cycle-run, over distances varying between that of an Olympic-distance and an Iron-distance triathlon race. The ...
on November 5, 2011, and organized by the International Triathlon Union
World Triathlon, previously known as the International Triathlon Union (ITU), is the international governing body for the multi-sport disciplines of triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon and other nonstandard variations. World Triathlon hosts the top ...
. The venue featured the same course as the previously held Nevada Silverman Triathlon.
Other events
*Las Vegas is home to the Tennis Channel Open
The Tennis Channel Open was a men's tennis tournament on the ATP International Series which was held for the first time in Las Vegas, Nevada from February 27 to March 5, 2006. In the men's singles final, James Blake defeated Lleyton Hewitt whi ...
hosted at Darling Tennis Center
The Darling Tennis Center (DTC) or the Amanda and Stacy Darling Tennis Center is a multi court facility completed in 2005 that is used for community activities and junior to senior tournaments for the Association of Tennis Professionals and the US ...
. An international series tournament with a $1,000,000 prize fund which attracts stars such as Lleyton Hewitt
Lleyton Glynn Hewitt (born 24 February 1981) is an Australian former world No. 1 tennis player. He is the most recent Australian man to win a major singles title, with two at the 2001 US Open and 2002 Wimbledon Championships. In November 200 ...
, James Blake and Las Vegas native Andre Agassi
Andre Kirk Agassi ( ; born April 29, 1970) is an American former world No. 1 tennis player. He is an eight-time major champion and an Olympic gold medalist, as well as a runner-up in seven other majors.
Agassi is the second of five men to ach ...
.
*In 2006, the city hosted the USAFL National Championships
The USAFL National Championships is a tournament for Australian rules football in the United States.
Since 1997, the National Championships have been a large event featuring teams from the United States and Canada in four men's divisions and two ...
, the biggest event in the United States for the sport of Australian rules football
Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...
, with over 2,000 players from the US and Canada including local team Las Vegas Gamblers.
*The annual Evolution Championship Series
The Evolution Championship Series, commonly known as Evo, is an annual esports event that focuses exclusively on fighting games. The tournaments are completely open and use the double elimination format. As with Super Battle Opera, contestants ...
fighting game
A fighting game, also known as a versus fighting game, is a video game genre, genre of video game that involves combat between two or more players. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappli ...
event – which holds the largest fighting game tournaments in the world – has been hosted in Las Vegas since its rebranding in 2002.
*Las Vegas is home to the professional paintball
Paintball is a competitive team shooting sport in which players eliminate opponents from play by hitting them with spherical dye-filled gelatin capsules called paintballs that break upon impact. Paintballs are usually shot using low-energy ai ...
team Las Vegas LTZ and amateur team Sin City Paintball.
*Las Vegas is home of the ''American Ninja Warrior
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
'' national finals since season 4, which resembles the Mt. Midoriyama course from its Japanese TV series ''Sasuke''. Here, 90 competitors from around the country compete in this city to earn the title of ''American Ninja Warrior'' champion and the cash prize of $1,000,000.
*eSports organization Major League Gaming
Major League Gaming Corp. (MLG) is a professional esports organization. MLG is headquartered in New York City, New York and was founded in 2002 by Sundance DiGiovanni and Mike Sepso. MLG has held official video game tournaments throughout the ...
hosted an MLG gaming event in Las Vegas from 2006 to 2008, featuring competitive Halo, Call of Duty, and other gaming tournaments. Las Vegas will be hosting an MLG event called MLG Vegas from December 16-18th. 2016.
*Las Vegas was the host city for three major figure skating events, held at the Orleans Arena: 2019 Skate America
The 2019 Skate America presented by American Cruise Lines was the first event in the 2019–20 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Oc ...
, 2020 Skate America
The 2020 Guaranteed Rate Skate America was the first event in the 2020–21 ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, a senior-level international invitational competition series. It was held at Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 23–24. Med ...
, and the 2021 U.S. Figure Skating Championships
The 2021 Toyota U.S. Figure Skating Championships were held from January 11–21, 2021 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Medals were awarded in the disciplines of men's singles, ladies' singles, pair skating, and ice dance at the senior ...
. The Orleans Arena was also the planned site for the 2021 U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships, which was canceled due to the pandemic.
Sports venues
Arenas
* City National Arena
*Cox Pavilion
Cox Pavilion is a , multi-purpose indoor arena on the University of Nevada, Las Vegas campus, connected to the Thomas & Mack Center. The Pavilion serves as the home court for UNLV Lady Rebels women's basketball and volleyball programs as well as t ...
*Dollar Loan Center
The Dollar Loan Center is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Henderson, Nevada. Built on the site of the former Henderson Pavilion, it is the home of the Henderson Silver Knights of the American Hockey League, the Vegas Knight Hawks of the Indoor ...
*Las Vegas Ice Center
*Lifeguard Arena
*MGM Grand Garden Arena
The MGM Grand Garden Arena (originally known as the MGM Grand Garden Special Events Center) is a 17,000-seat multi-purpose arena located within the MGM Grand Las Vegas on the Las Vegas Strip.
Sporting events
From its opening on December 18, 1993 ...
*Michelob Ultra Arena
The Michelob Ultra Arena, formerly the Mandalay Bay Events Center, is a 12,000-seat multi-purpose indoor arena at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, located on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada. It is owned and operated by MGM Resorts In ...
*MSG Sphere Las Vegas
Sphere at The Venetian Resort is a sphere-shaped music and entertainment arena being built in Paradise, Nevada, near the Las Vegas Strip and east of the Venetian resort. The 17,500-seat auditorium was initially scheduled to open in 2021, but co ...
(2021)
*Orleans Arena
Orleans Arena is a 9,500-seat multi-purpose arena in Paradise, Nevada, in the Las Vegas Valley. It is located at the Orleans Hotel and Casino and is operated by Coast Casinos, a subsidiary of Boyd Gaming Corporation.
The arena is the home to ...
*Sobe Ice Arena
* South Point Events Center
*Tarkanian Basketball Center
*Thomas & Mack Center
The Thomas & Mack Center is a multi-purpose arena located on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada. It is home of the UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team of the Mountain West Conference.
History
The facility was fi ...
*T-Mobile Arena
T-Mobile Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Paradise, Nevada. Opened on April 6, 2016, it is the home arena of the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). A joint venture between MGM Resorts International and Anschutz En ...
Golf courses
*Primm Valley Golf Club
Primm Valley Golf Club is a part of the Primm Valley Resort and is located south of Primm, Nevada in San Bernardino County, California.
The Golf Club includes the Lakes Course and the Desert Course.
History
In 2007, the club was host to the inaug ...
*Rio Secco Golf Club
Rio Secco Golf Club is a public golf course located in the Seven Hills neighborhood of Henderson, in the Las Vegas Valley. The course has hosted the annual Tiger Woods Jam and other charity and competitive events including the VegasGolfer Pro Sho ...
* Shadow Creek Golf Club – Private
*TPC Las Vegas
TPC Las Vegas, formerly TPC at The Canyons, is an 18-hole golf course located in the planned community of Summerlin in western Las Vegas, Nevada.
Opened in 1996 and designed by Bobby Weed in consultation with tour professional Raymond Floyd, TPC ...
(formerly TPC at The Canyons)
*TPC at Summerlin
TPC at Summerlin is a private golf club in the western United States, located within the planned community of Summerlin in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Opened in 1991, the championship golf course was designed by Bobby Weed and is a member of the Tourname ...
– Private
* Wynn Golf and Country Club
* Rhodes Ranch Golf Club
* Chimera Golf Club
*Badlands
Badlands are a type of dry terrain where softer sedimentary rocks and clay-rich soils have been extensively eroded."Badlands" in ''Chambers's Encyclopædia''. London: George Newnes, 1961, Vol. 2, p. 47. They are characterized by steep slopes, m ...
* The Club at Sunrise
* Las Vegas Golf Club
Motor sports
*Las Vegas Motor Speedway
Las Vegas Motor Speedway, located in Clark County, Nevada in Las Vegas, Nevada about 15 miles northeast of the Las Vegas Strip, is a complex of multiple tracks for motorsports racing. The complex is owned by Speedway Motorsports, Inc., which is ...
Sports fields
*Allegiant Stadium
Allegiant Stadium is a domed stadium located in Paradise, Nevada. It is the home stadium for the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League (NFL), the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) Rebels college football team, the Las Ve ...
*Bettye Wilson Soccer Complex
The Bettye Wilson Soccer Complex is a 10-field soccer complex located on in Las Vegas, Nevada. The facility is located adjacent to Cimarron-Memorial High School. The complex is home to the Las Vegas Mayors Cup International Tournaments. The La ...
*Cashman Field
Cashman Field is a soccer-specific stadium in Downtown Las Vegas, Nevada. It is primarily used for soccer as the home field of Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship. Originally built as a baseball stadium, it was the home of the Triple-A ...
*Sam Boyd Stadium
Sam Boyd Stadium (formerly the Las Vegas Silver Bowl) is a football stadium in the western United States, located in Whitney, Nevada, an unincorporated community in the Las Vegas Valley. It honors Sam Boyd (1910–1993), a major figure in the hote ...
*Las Vegas Ballpark
Las Vegas Ballpark is a baseball stadium in Summerlin South, Nevada in the Las Vegas Valley. It is the home field for the Las Vegas Aviators of the Pacific Coast League. The stadium is owned by the Howard Hughes Corporation. Las Vegas Ballpark i ...
See also
*Las Vegas Desert Classic
The Las Vegas Desert Classic was a darts tournament, organized by the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) and was held each year in July from 2002 until 2009. Its original venue was the MGM Grand Casino and Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada from 2002 to ...
(darts)
*Fabulous Sin City Rollergirls
Fabulous Sin City Roller Derby or Sin City Roller Derby (SCRD), is a women's flat track roller derby league based in Las Vegas, Nevada. Founded in 2004, Sin City is a founding member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).
History
S ...
(WFTDA) (roller derby)
*Sports in Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, t ...
Notes
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sports In Las Vegas