Nevada has gained several new sports venues over the last decade, and more are coming. But how many more?
- While the Athletics' baseball stadium has already begun to rise above the Strip, it's still uncertain if Las Vegas will gain an additional arena for its expected NBA expansion team. It's possible the team could be worked into the T-Mobile Arena calendar, though arena co-owner Bill Foley says hundreds of millions of dollars need to be spent on renovations if that happens. Several new arena proposals have been floated over the years, but
LVSportsBiz publisher Alan Snel told KNPR's State of Nevada that he likes one plan in particular. "My thought is about this Diamond Arena project, which is across from the Mandalay Bay. It's on the Strip. Keep in mind that sports is very associated closely with tourism. It would be accessible to people on the Strip." - Prospective ownership candidates have narrowed down over the last several weeks, especially with former Phoenix Suns owner Jerry Colangelo now partnering with Vegas Golden Knights owner Bill Foley on an ownership group. "You have Bill Laurie and his wife Nancy Walton — she's the heir to the Walton fortune," said Snel. If money is the number one criteria, I guess they have to be considered, really, at the forefront. And they gained a new partner, Egon Durban, who is the minority partner of the Raiders, adding a lot of juice to that particular group. You also have Bill Foley and Colangelo, as you mentioned, joining forces. The key about the Foley deal is that he already has access to [T-Mobile] arena. And the third group is the former Milwaukee Bucks owner [Marc Lasry], along with a very prominent Toronto real estate developer [Steve Apostolopoulos] — I think they're in the third place. Just personally, it's going to come down, I think, to the Lauries versus Foley. It's going to be largely about who's got the cash."
- Snel also told KNPR that he's spoken to folks over at Las Vegas Lights FC, who helped close Cashman Field permanently last month, and they told him there are no prospective venues for the team's 2027 season. But a pop-up playing space at a soccer field, park, or venue somewhere in the valley, with temporary bleachers, could work in the short term.
- Meanwhile, in Reno, plans are moving forward for a 6,000-seat stadium to house the forthcoming Reno City FC, which, like the Lights, is a United Soccer League team — the second one Reno has had in a decade's time. (The first team — which used to play at Greater Nevada Field, home of the Reno Aces AAA baseball team — closed operations during the pandemic.) The new stadium would be part of a $350 million entertainment complex. "I think that, given the facility issues that the previous USL team had, it's not great to be watching soccer matches in a baseball stadium," said Chris Murray, director of operations and host/writer of Nevada Sports Net. "The attendance was still pretty solid, and I do think that there is a lot of enthusiasm [for a new team]."
- Reno sports fans are seeing the initial construction of a new sports arena, where the University of Nevada, Reno Wolf Pack basketball team will play. The $435 million GSR Arena will be part of an expansion at Grand Sierra Resort and Casino — and, according to Murray, it could also host a prospective Reno team. "It's more than likely going to have an AHL (American Hockey League) minor league hockey team as well, because [GSR owner] Alex Meruelo also owns the Tucson Roadrunners. So it's going to be a multi-purpose venue. They have not officially announced the Roadrunners coming to Reno, but they would not be building this huge project and spending all of this money just for 18 Nevada men's basketball games. The Roadrunners will eventually be in Reno, as well."
Guests: Alan Snel, publisher, LVSportsBiz; Chris Murray, director of operations, Nevada Sports Net
