Plenty of moving parts
From skills competition to red carpet, week is more than just a game
After a one-year pause due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pro Bowl is finally set to take place at noon Sunday at Allegiant Stadium.
The NFL and its vendor partners have been working on the setup of the league’s all-star game for about three weeks. That included readying not only Allegiant Stadium, where the game itself will occur, but also Las Vegas Ballpark, where fan-friendly events have been taking place all week.
Events at the 10,000-seat ballpark, which is home to the Triple-a baseball Las Vegas Aviators, include the skills showdown and open practices. After looking at a number of other facilities, the NFL liked the intimate feel of the almost three-year-old Las Vegas Ballpark.
“As fans will see, we really transformed Las Vegas Ballpark into a really unique hub of football activity,” said Matthew Shapiro, vice president, events strategy for the NFL. “There’s a football field in the diamond now.”
Following Wednesday’s skills competition, staff worked to remove the equipment used for that event to clear the field for the three days of open practices that were to follow.
The main fan-involved event ahead of the Pro Bowl at Allegiant Stadium Sunday is the red carpet arrival area, which was being set up simultaneously this week while finishing touches were being made at Las Vegas Ballpark.
“Players will come before the game, walk that red carpet and fans will be able to interact with them,” Shapiro said. “We’ll have a host there as well. It’s a fun way, like the rest of Pro Bowl week, to have fans see a little more of those players’ personalities.”
Like Raiders home games at Allegiant Stadium this season, fans will be required to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19. The two tents the Raiders used for onsite vaccination clinics and alternative screening will also be in use for the Pro Bowl.
There are 7,000 people credentialed for the Pro Bowl, including NFL staff and their vendor partners. “It’s one of our tentpole events, and it certainly is staffed at that level,” Shapiro said.
The NFL is carrying out the Pro Bowl while also setting up for the Super Bowl at Sofi Stadium in Los Angeles, meaning some staff in
Las Vegas are also keeping tabs on what’s occurring about 270 miles to the west.
The NFL’S partnership with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority and other local entities has made the one-year layoff easy to manage, Shapiro noted.
Steve Hill, president and CEO of the LVCVA, is excited to kick off what will be the first of three major NFL events taking place in Las Vegas over the next couple of years.
The NFL draft will occur in-andaround the Las Vegas Strip at the end of April, then the Super Bowl is set for Allegiant Stadium in 2024, making Las Vegas the first city to host all three of the league’s marquee events.
“The relationship we have with the NFL matters a lot to Las Vegas,” Hill said. “After trying to have a Pro Bowl and have a draft, it’s pretty exciting to actually have one of these events. The Pro Bowl is a marquee event, and the NFL is the mostwatched sport in the U.S.. Having 88 all-stars here for a whole week brings a spotlight on the city.”