While there’s a possibility that the Oakland Raiders might some day find themselves pursuing a long-term home in Los Vegas, one NFL owner does not feel that it will happen.
John Mara of the New York Giants said that he and other owners hope the Raiders will stay in Oakland. But even if that does not happen, he does not feel that Las Vegas is a suitable home for the Raiders, or any other NFL team.
https://twitter.com/BartHubbuch/status/711686908003352576
In Vegas, it’s obviously very easy to bet on sports. With sports books scattered throughout the city, it would not only be easy for team personnel to make a dumb mistake. If that happened, it would create a serious problem for the NFL.
With that in mind, Las Vegas has plenty of positives that the NFL (and any other sport’s league) should definitely consider.
The city of Las Vegas has nearly 600,000 people living within the city limits, nearly two million in the metro area, and is obviously one of the biggest cities in the world in terms of tourism.
It is also in the middle of the desert, and because of that there’s plenty of room to build a stadium. Finally, it’s a city with a lot of money. Money is necessary to not only get a stadium built but also to have a successful team in the city on a long-term basis.
Given how prevalent betting on the NFL is, a professional football team in Las Vegas would certainly has its drawbacks, and they would need to be considered. But that factor alone shouldn’t make it a non-starter. If the NFL could find ways to minimize that threat, then Las Vegas would be a potentially great market for the Raiders and the NFL.