Every city that gets to host the NFL’s marquee sports and entertainment event turns that week into a celebration with festivities in an attempt to maximize the potential revenue but this past week Las Vegas turned up the heat on a dial that had already been ripped off the oven long ago. We’re not likely to see a place turn the NFL into this big a diamond for a while.
From the iconic Strip to Fremont Street, nearly every resort and usual tourist destination decked out to welcome the big game with parties featuring celebrities at nearly every nightclub. Even brands got in on the action. We got to visit tons of fantastic activations to promote all the snacks and channels associated with football in some way. The Tostitos lounge served tons of free chips and specialty drinks in their bar. People were even getting married or renewing vows in the Cheetos chapel. Visitors could dress up in cheeto hue fit and your officiant…virtual Chester Cheetah.
The big game week didn’t stop at football. Both WWE and All Elite Wrestling held events in town last week. WWE drew thousands to the T-Mobile arena to hear Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Cody Rhodes hype the upcoming WrestleMania in Philadelphia. AEW held an action-packed Collision on TNT broadcast the day before the game at The Dollar Loan Center. Not many cities have the bandwidth to logistically and physically support this many different genres of entertainment in the same window.
Paramount Plus brought The Mountain to the fountains at The Mirage. Fans were treated to a huge activation highlighting several properties such as South Park, Star Trek, and more. Those who have visited this during San Diego Comic-Con are familiar with what the whole setup is like but new in this version was a 4D virtual gondola ride that incorporated CBS coverage of the NFL with out-of-the-box moments like the Quiet Place monsters. It was definitely one of the biggest free highlights people in town could do during Super Bowl weekend.
Of course, the NFL fan fest experience was back taking over the Venitian Sands. The expo highlighted every team in the league and gave fans a chance to meet former players and get tons of photos without the hits.
Over the weekend alone, Vegas was projected to bring in over 330,000 visitors from around the world and an estimated $700 million in additional revenue. Next year, the game is set to return to New Orleans at the Ceasars Superdome but you can bet it won’t be long before the NFL eyes a return to the entertainment capital of the world.
