LAS VEGAS.- Territory prohibited until recently by the American leagues, Las Vegas (Nevada) shines this week like never before to receive the Super Bowl of the NFL, the high point of its evolution from a betting mecca to a major sporting stage.
For years, the NFL and other major professional sports, with the notable exception of boxing, kept their distance from Las Vegas, wary of being associated with gambling and the riotous image of so-called “Sin City.” “.
In 2002, when the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority wanted to spend $2 million on a Super Bowl ad promoting the city with the slogan “What happens here, stays here,” the NFL refused. issue it.
Those in charge of the most powerful league in the United States pointed to rules that prohibited gambling-related advertisements, although the commercial in question never mentioned betting.
Change in Las Vegas:
As time passed, the panorama changed and, one after another, most of the competitions began to land in Las Vegas.
The NHL (ice hockey) was the first of the North American major leagues to establish a franchise in the Nevada desert with the debut of the Vegas Golden Knights in late 2017.
That same year, the NFL gave the green light to the arrival of the Raiders, until then located in Oakland (California).
The Raiders’ futuristic Allegiant Stadium, located on the other side of the Strip, the famous casino avenue, hosted its first game in 2020 and on Sunday will be the scene of the Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers.
Formula 1 returned to the city last November with a 10-year agreement with an investment of 500 million dollars.
As for soccer, Allegiant Stadium has already hosted competitions such as last year’s Concacaf Nations League final four and this summer it will be one of the venues for the Copa América.
Source: AFP
