page_title: Sports in the Las Vegas metropolitan area
section_title: Past issues with major league sports
hierarchical_section_title: Sports in the Las Vegas metropolitan area / History / Past issues with major league sports
caption_attribution_description: English: Odds boards at a race and sports book in Las Vegas
context_page_description: The Las Vegas metropolitan area 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 of the National Hockey League, which began play in 2017 as the region's first major pro team, the Las Vegas Raiders of the National Football League which began play in 2020 after relocating from Oakland, California, and the Las Vegas Aces of the WNBA. Las Vegas is home to two minor league sports teams: the Las Vegas Aviators of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League and the Las Vegas Lights FC of the USL Championship, the league at the second level of the U.S. men's soccer league system. The Las Vegas Lights are currently the only team playing in the City of Las Vegas, at the city-owned Cashman Field.
  The University of Nevada, Las Vegas, located just off the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, fields National Collegiate Athletic Association Division I athletic teams. Sam Boyd Stadium, located in Whitney, hosts UNLV football; the Las Vegas Bowl, an annual NCAA bowl game; and the USA Sevens, the largest rugby tournament in North America.
context_section_description: Historically, the most prominent issue with sports in Las Vegas was the perceived problem of legal sports betting. 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 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, Las Vegas Locomotives and arena football Las Vegas Outlaws. 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. Several owners of other sports franchises disagreed. Miami Marlins owner Jeffrey Loria described Las Vegas as "a potential gold mine" for a professional sports team owner. Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was also quoted saying that Las Vegas would be a good professional sports town.
  As the four leagues embraced daily fantasy sports (DFS) and mobile sports betting became more prevalent, the perceptions that the four major professional sports leagues had of Las Vegas changed and the doors opened to major pro sports in the market. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said he was in favor of regulated, legalized sports gambling and later the NHL became the first of the four professional sports leagues to land in Vegas, with the expansion team Vegas Golden Knights debuting 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 Las Vegas Raiders to the area in 2020.
  Prior to the opening of T-Mobile Arena 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 and MGM Grand Garden Arena 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 and the Anschutz Entertainment Group committed to building a new arena on a parcel of land behind Harrah's Paris and Bally's off the Strip, 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 said in a June, 2009 article in 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 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. Located at a former parking lot at the back of the Monte Carlo, 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 in Summerlin in 2019 with Cashman being converted to full time soccer use. Sam Boyd Stadium will be replaced by Allegiant Stadium, which will be the home of the Las Vegas Raiders and UNLV Football beginning in 2020. Ground was broken for the stadium on November 13, 2017.
caption: Professional sports leagues historically avoided Las Vegas due to legal sports betting.
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