When you spend five days in Las Vegas, you never know what you will find.
My five days were probably not what most people would consider a typical “What Happens In Vegas, Stays In Vegas” experience. On the contrary what I found was the exporting of the Vegas experience to all forms of sports business and a global community which now has a host of anchors to tie to.
Here’s a look at the stops and the people along the way.
“We were here first.” A great reminder from UFC veteran Forrest Griffin, who repped the promotion at a Wednesday pep rally at Toshiba Plaza outside of T-Mobile Arena. There was a time not so long ago when boxing and the UFC were the only sports business shows in town, outside of the homestanding UNLV Runnin Rebels. This past week Vegas showed all the pieces that are now regular parts of the sports scene with more to come.
From NASCAR to Rugby Sevens to the UFC to The Golden Knights to a smaller Bull Riding event to a slew of college hoops starting with the West Coast Conference tournament, there was something for anyone interested in a sport big or small from anywhere around the world. Then you factor in the fast growing Las Vegas Lights of the USL (nice story here), the WNBA Aces, the AAA 51’s, still a Mets affiliate for one more year but now with a new stadium coming, and the constant stories about the impending Raiders move and the talk around sports in Vegas is no longer just about the lines, it’s about the events.
Making The Gamble: It is Vegas after all, and we made one of the stops early on at the massive South Point Hotel and Convention Center. With the Vegas Stats and Information Network’s live studio (Brent Musburger holding a key slot with his show on Sirius XM) placed in a glass booth right off the sports book, the largest and most comprehensive in Sin City, VSIN continues to position itself with an audience that’s growing, of fans clamoring for all things sports gambling. It has plenty of regular sports talk and guests and also knows the fantasy game which many feel will be a key entrée into the sports gambling area when the current laws are overturned. In the meantime VSIN is building not just a loyal following but a steady voice in the conversation around gambling, one which will continue to grow.
“Some studios overlook fields, ours overlooks the future,” said VSIN’s Brian Musburger
The South Point isn’t all about gambling though. With a 5,000 seat arena (hosting any series of horse shows, rodeos and other events), two world class bowling centers, and a massive convention center along with its state of the art casino, it is a destination unto itself.
More on Gambling: While sports gambling is on the minds of all in sports business, it is interesting to see how it is being watched, and handled, in the only state where all is legal. For years teams coming into the city for games would not be mentioned or involved in live sports bookmaking. If you played there, no line was set on the game in the state. Now, anyone coming to town can easily place a bet on whatever action one likes: NASCAR, hockey, and of course college basketball, are all up for grabs in a digital environment or in a brick and mortar casino, where by the way, you have to go in and establish an account to bet. That will be a big issue going forward with sports gambling; without being able to use a credit card…yet…anyone wanting to bet must GO IN and set up an account. That of course is great traffic for the casinos, which is even more of a reason for the push to legalize; getting bodies in the door who probably will stay a while.
Another oddity at two stadia: Ads for large scale bookmaker William Hill. While one could understand casino advertising seeing a sports book advertising in Cashman Field, the home of the Mets affiliate, and even more at Sam Boyd Stadium, the home of the Runnin Rebels, was more than a little surprise. Going forward will there be sports book ads everywhere? For sure, just like we see online poker ads in locales that have legal poker and stakes games. But now? In a facility tied to MLB and one tied to the NCAA? A great sale for someone, but more than a little hypocritical for the powers that be to be taking money in an area that they vehemently continually oppose.
One More Thing About Hoops And Wagering: It still is amazing that for an organization so opposed to gambling, that there are over 80 Conference tournament games in and around casinos last week and this week in Las Vegas. The Orleans Arena is literally several hundred feet from a casino floor and hosted the WCC Tournament and this week’s WAC Tournament but there is no complaint from the powers that be. Again, if you are going to take the money in one hand, don’t deny the possibilities in the other, and work against the inevitability of legal sports gambling. It’s either OK or it’s not.
The Knights Are Hot: We move in this industry it seems from one hot startup franchise to the next. Last year it was Atlanta, year before Orlando FC now it’s the Las Vegas Golden Knights. While there has been skepticism for years about in market support (and the failure of everything from indoor and outdoor soccer to arena football and minor league hockey over the years) the Golden Knights have done everything right to build an authentic in arena experience and brand identity…and it doesn’t hurt that they are winning either. One of the most amazing things about the franchise; merchandise sales. Although nationally in the top five, the lines in arena for merch on the first day of March…four months into the season…were astounding. That’s without a third jersey or new color schemes even being introduced. You could not go more than a half mile on the Strip without seeing Knights gear on non-game days. Their apparel dwarfed every other team, including the Raiders, who will be in Vegas in a few years and are building their presence as well. They even have a standalone presence at McCarren Airport, a rarity for sports, let alone NHL teams.
The Golden Knights have done everything right to connect with fans of all levels. Astounding customer service, a great atmosphere, terrific work on social, and a great product on the ice. They don’t downplay the visiting fans in the arena, they take them on in a fun and engaged way. However with all that has come a baseline support which cities like Seattle will try and use in their playbook for NHL, or even, NBA expansion. Nothing felt forced or out of place. It was a great show.
Soccer Turns The Lights On: It is USL not MLS, but the Las Vegas Lights are making noise now too. They have taken over Cashman Stadium, which they are sharing with the Mets AAA affiliate this year, but what’s even more engaging is their constant presence in and around Las Vegas, in promotions to billboards, a spend which most USL teams probably won’t even consider. They too are playing the best practice game to build a fan base from nothing, and realize the large Latino community has an affinity to soccer. So being cost effective in sales while looking big makes great sense. Their games also not that far from the eclectic, gritty and reborn Downtown Las Vegas, about six miles from the strip, and the Lights are playing to that funkiness as well. Will they fill the 9,000 or so sets in the heat of the summer? We shall see. But they are taking a professional marketing tact that will build brand, just like the Golden Knights have.
Baseball Anyone? Baseball in the desert has always been a tough fit, and Cashman Field is not exactly in the heart of the Vegas strip (which as mentioned the USL Knights have embraced). However with a new stadium in the offing and the upgraded expectations of the local fan base, maybe AAA Baseball in Vegas can have a marketing renaissance. The 51’s will get a new affiliate after the Mets depart after this season, so a reboot for the brand will maybe help things get back on track in a city that still loves promotion, and craves affordability.
Then There Is Hoops: The NBA has helped spur the growth and interest in basketball on the pro side with the continued expansion of the NBA Vegas Summer League and now will have the transplanted Aces o the WNBA in ton. Talk of yet another arena also resurrected talk of an NBA expansion into the marketplace, but that continues to be a whisper. For now, summer basketball seems to be the thing, with rules testing and now a pro franchise to see of any experimentation with gambling can be tried. Don’t forget the WNBA has pushed a few marketing boundaries before (jersey signage being one), so seeing what can fly with little grumbling on the legal gambling ide could be very interesting.
And Rugby: The reason I was in town was for USA Sevens Rugby, which again was a spectacular international sporting event, the largest on the calendar each year for Nevada. This year didn’t disappoint, with ESPN3 televising and the USA Eagles taking the weekend competition for the first time ever. For me, the weekend was a great reminder of the power not just of sport, but of global media we as ugly Americans sometimes take for granted. While maybe Kenyan media or Fijian media don’t help sell local tickets for promoters, they have massive followings in their home countries, and that pebble in a pond effect from a journalist like Bernard Ndong from Kenya (with 85 k followers on twitter) can only assist the long term growth of the event and the still growing sport in the US as well. Is it easy to just concentrate on the outlets we know? For sure. Is it smart to look beyond the traditional? In a digital world, even more so than before. Just because we don’t speak the same language or come from the same place is no reason to downplay global media significance, and the weekend was great reminder of how impactful that simple outreach can be. American event promoters need to continue to educate themselves as to the value of global press; as everything today can be amplified at home through social.
ESports Finding A Spot? Last year we wandered over to Freemont Street and a place called Neonpolis to see the opening of the small scale EArena. It was on the third floor and on a Friday was packed with gamers. A small scale theater was part of the complex, where a few hundred others were watching a live stream of another event. It seemed like the perfect opportunity for malls to reinvent themselves, filling rooms with consoles and theaters with rabid fans. This year? Closed. No competitions posted. Doors locked, signs talking about events from 2017. No one to be found. Maybe too much too soon?
Now juxtapose that empty small scale scene with the esports arena being built on The Strip at the Luxor; a multilayer state of the art facility which will be unlike anything else the esports world has seen. Big events, big games and the theory goes, big, younger crowds coming to Las Vegas for the first time from around the world. Will it work? This is a gambling town which tears down and rebuilds at will, and the risk being run by the Luxor is not as large as say, spending money to bring a WNBA team into town. The events will market to a UFC-like crowd, fiercely brand loyal and big on authenticity. Will they also wander to clubs and slots? Will they bring along family members who will venture out while the gamers game? That is the hope, and it will be an interesting test.
Small scale may not work here; big gamers, maybe they will.
So what does all this mean for the future of sports in Vegas, a team which is big on change and still short on the usual big ticket brand headquarters that pro sports needs to usually find long-term success? It is an interesting question. Minor league sports have thrived and fizzled here before; UNLV was the toast of the town and is now struggling to refund its footprint and even UFC is not the brightest of lights with sold out crowds that it used to be. The Raiders mix of just eight home games should be a solid combo of visiting weekend fans and a core group, and the Golden Knights will have to feed a rabid fan base both innovation and success to stay at the high level of year one. Easy? No. Possible? Given the experience that has been launched, it is probably more possible than what most have predicted.
Now will legal sports gambling help or hurt the town in terms of sports? The casinos fill for March madness and Super Bowl, with few ever leaving a screen. Will in home wagering for an NHL or even an NCAA or NFL game help make more casual fans enjoy the experience more? That’s the theory.
One thing is apparent. The Golden Knights have proved that there is a core base of fans who will turn out consistently and spend against their own team. They may have been casual hockey fans before, but they are rabid now. Soccer may find its own level in a different demo, and the big events; NASCAR, sevens rugby, PBR and rodeo, the major fights, will make Vegas a destination still. The NFL will have a place, even if it means displacing one of its storied franchises in the Bay Area. How much will be enough? In a town that loves excess, that’s a good question. Judging from the visits the past five days.
It’s one that we have yet to answer.
