Buzz
Reports indicate that the NHL has selected Las Vegas as the potential home for its next expansion team. The decision depends on the approval of the NHL’s board of governors and the Las Vegas coalition raising $500 million to cover the expansion fee (which, at the rate of a night of craps, shouldn't be a problem).
While the idea of ice hockey in the Nevada desert may seem strange (or even, one might argue, against nature), this development follows numerous past efforts to bring professional sports to Las Vegas. Some of these attempts were more serious than others. Historically, Las Vegas has been a tool for team owners to leverage their current cities and states into funding new, more luxurious stadiums.
For many years, these moves were mostly just empty threats. The presence of legalized sports betting in Las Vegas deterred most leagues, and the city's stadiums were not up to pro standards. Yet, Las Vegas politicians and investors remained determined, constructing a 20,000-seat arena and hosting high-profile events such as NBA All-Star Games, summer leagues, and the NHL Awards. As for gambling, it's been over 15 years since Nevada lifted the ban on betting on in-state college games, and as Forbes reports, with no issues arising from local collegiate programs since, the fear of sports betting is no longer a major concern for leagues.
This set the stage for Las Vegas’ soon-to-be-named hockey team. Although they will be the first professional sports team in the city, other franchises almost made the move. Here’s a look at six teams that came close.
1. MONTREAL EXPOS
In the early 2000s, the Montreal Expos faced financial instability and ownership issues, leading them to seek a new home. Washington, D.C. seemed the likely destination, but Las Vegas emerged as a serious contender in 2004. This was largely due to MLB commissioner Bud Selig’s desire to “avoid a confrontation with Baltimore Orioles owner Peter G. Angelos, who argued that relocating the Expos to Washington or Northern Virginia would irreparably damage his team,” as reported by the Washington Post.
Despite this, the league kept their options open and sent representatives to Las Vegas, where they were treated to a Celine Dion concert at Caesar's Palace and dinner at Prime, a Jean-Georges Vongerichten steakhouse in the Bellagio. They even visited a potential downtown stadium site, which appeared ideal—except that the investors lost their funding, and the stadium never came to be.
Ultimately, Washington, D.C. was awarded the team, which was renamed the Washington Nationals.
2. FLORIDA MARLINS
In 2004, representatives from the Florida Marlins met with Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman to discuss the possibility of relocating the team to the city. This came amid ongoing talks with Miami about funding a new stadium, which left some local officials frustrated. "I was disappointed that they publicly announced the negotiations and discussions with Las Vegas," said Florida State Senate President Tom Lee, adding, "And I don't negotiate with terrorists."
Less than three years later, both Miami-Dade County and the City of Miami agreed to fund the stadium, committing hundreds of millions in public funds. (The actual costs ended up being significantly higher than initially projected.)
3. OAKLAND RAIDERS
Raiders ownership made it clear that they would no longer share a stadium with the Oakland Athletics, even if it meant leaving Oakland entirely. Owner Mark Davis recently announced he would contribute $500 million toward building a new stadium in Las Vegas for the team (the stadium’s total cost would be around $1.4 billion), though the move has yet to receive approval from Nevada or the NFL.
Oakland is unlikely to build a new billion-dollar stadium, so if the Raiders don’t end up in Las Vegas, they’re likely to relocate elsewhere. However, it seems Mark Davis has his sights set on Nevada. “The Raiders are undefeated in Las Vegas,” he joked.
4. SACRAMENTO KINGS
The back-and-forth saga between the Kings and Sacramento has finally come to a temporary end, but for many years, a move away from California's capital seemed inevitable. One potential destination was Las Vegas—largely because the Maloof brothers, who owned the team, made their fortune through their family's casinos in the city.
The Maloofs played a major role in bringing the NBA All-Star game to Las Vegas in 2007 (the idea was originally theirs), but after new investors took control of the Kings in 2013, the team’s move to Nevada never came to pass.
5. SEATTLE SUPERSONICS
During the Seattle Supersonics' dramatic departure from the city, team owner Clay Bennett openly flirted with the idea of moving to Las Vegas. After Washington State rejected his demands for a new arena, Bennett met with the Seattle Convention and Visitors Bureau in 2007 and expressed his admiration for Vegas. A bureau member told reporters, "What I heard [Bennett] say was that if he ended up having to move the team, Vegas would likely be a more attractive market than Oklahoma City."
Regardless of what he said during that meeting, Bennett was likely only using Las Vegas as leverage—he and his ownership group had their sights firmly set on Oklahoma City, and the team made the move there in 2008.
6. MILWAUKEE BUCKS
In a bid to pressure Wisconsin into providing public funds for a new stadium, Milwaukee Bucks owner Peter Feigin employed the classic tactic of threatening to relocate the team to Las Vegas. As the AP reported in July 2015, "Feigin told the [Wisconsin] Legislature's budget committee earlier this month that if construction on a new arena didn't begin this year, the NBA would move the team, possibly to Las Vegas or Seattle."
The threat proved effective, and shortly after, the state pledged $250 million in public funds for the new arena.
BONUS: THE LAS VEGAS OUTLAWS
Though not part of one of the 'big four' pro leagues, the XFL did pay its players, making the Las Vegas Outlaws a legitimate professional football team in the city. The team took part in the XFL's inaugural game in 2001 and played for a single season before the league collapsed. They finished at the bottom of their division, trailing the Los Angeles Xtreme, San Francisco Demons, and Memphis Maniax (who could forget them?), and missed the playoffs.
