Mayor warms up to NFL

 

Goodman, pro football executive try to repair rift

 

By J.M. KALIL

REVIEW-JOURNAL

 

 

As Las Vegas continues its highly publicized pursuit of a Major League Baseball team, the city is quietly moving to warm up its icy relationship with the NFL in hopes of landing a professional football franchise.

 

The nasty rift sparked last year by the NFL's refusal of Las Vegas tourism advertisements and stoked by subsequent fiery words from Mayor Oscar Goodman is healing, if recent written exchanges between the two entities are any indication.

 

In letters obtained Monday by the Review-Journal, the mayor and an NFL executive eschew the prior war of words, threats of litigation and accusations of hypocrisy in favor of a more affable tone.

 

"I would hope that you will accept my offer that we now be collegial with one another," Goodman wrote NFL Executive Vice President Jeffrey Pash in a Nov. 16 letter.

 

"We look forward to having a constructive dialogue going forward," Pash replied in a Dec. 6 missive to the mayor.

 

Goodman said Monday that he hopes the pleasantries have sufficiently laid the groundwork for a possible visit to the NFL's New York City headquarters next month for talks with league officials on Las Vegas' suitability for a professional football team.

 

"There was the name-calling stage, and now we're in the making-up stage," Goodman said. He framed the mending relationship in terms of Cold War foreign relations. "I'm ready for detente, and so are they."

 

An NFL official agreed.

 

"The letters speak for themselves," said Greg Aiello, a spokesman for the NFL in New York City. "We're always looking to have cordial relations with the mayors of our cities."

 

With pledges toward more congeniality in future communications, the sunny letters offer a marked contrast to previous exchanges between Goodman and the NFL.

 

Two years ago, the NFL refused to air Las Vegas tourism ads during the Super Bowl, saying it did not want its signature event associated with gambling. An outraged Goodman responded by commenting that the NFL's image was already tainted by players accused of crimes that range from murder and child molestation to burglary and sexual assault.

 

Goodman also called NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue a hypocrite by citing a beer ad that depicted two scantily clad women wrestling in a fountain and a puddle of mud, a commercial that routinely aired on NFL telecasts. "For Tagliabue to suggest (Las Vegas' ads) are bad for football's image is a case of the pot calling the kettle black," Goodman said. "He'd better get his own house in order before he starts talking about integrity."

 

The rift deepened earlier this year when the NFL moved to halt casinos from charging admission to Super Bowl parties, stating the league owned the copyrighted broadcast. This forced some casinos to cancel events and others to modify plans or say they were charging admission for food and drinks, not to view the game. The league's interference again drew more public attacks from Goodman, who unsuccessfully lobbied the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority to sue the league for anti-Las Vegas actions.

 

So do the newly cordial relations offer realistic hope for an NFL team landing in Las Vegas?

 

One expert says no, citing a major roadblock that still exists.

 

"I don't think there's a likelihood for the NFL to be in Las Vegas for the foreseeable future because the NFL is appropriately much more sensitive to gambling issues than other sports," said Marc Ganis, president of Chicago-based Sportscorp, Ltd., the consultant that helped move both the St. Louis Rams and the Oakland Raiders out of Los Angeles.

 

"There's more money bet on NFL games than all other sports combined, and the league out of necessity needs to be vigilant about the separation of gambling and the activities on the field. It goes to the heart of the integrity of the game."

 

Pash, the NFL executive, referenced this in his letter to Goodman last week.

 

"I recognize that we likely have differing views on sports gambling," Pash wrote. "But I believe that your interests and ours will be well served if we are able to discuss our positions in a respectful and professional way."

 

Goodman said he will try to dissuade Tagliabue, as well as NBA Commissioner David Stern, from their belief that professional sports and Las Vegas should not mix.

 

"I think they're wrong," the mayor said. "I really believe Las Vegas is more important to these sports than they are to us."

 

Some city officials say an NFL franchise based in a massive Las Vegas stadium would be more likely to succeed than a baseball team here.

 

They say with only eight home games a season, a Las Vegas football team would likely have little trouble selling out 100,000 seats, including thousands to tourists from all over the nation who would likely travel here to see their home team play.

 

Meanwhile, the mayor acknowledges a Las Vegas baseball stadium would probably need to be about one-third that size. And even with only 35,000 seats, critics wonder if a baseball team would draw large crowds for all of the season's more than 80 home games a year.

 

Ganis, the Chicago sports consultant, says while an NFL team is unlikely to land here, it is only a matter of time before Major League Baseball comes to town. Las Vegas is the most ripe city in the nation for a baseball team, Ganis said.

 

"It's the best unserved market in the U.S.," Ganis said. "It has a growing population, low housing costs, low tax base and moderate incomes so there's more discretionary spending available, and one of the highest cable (TV) penetration markets in the country. Las Vegas should already have a major league team."

 

 

 

http://www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/200...s/25469848.html

Ganis, the Chicago sports consultant, says while an NFL team is unlikely to land here, it is only a matter of time before Major League Baseball comes to town. Las Vegas is the most ripe city in the nation for a baseball team, Ganis said.

 

"It's the best unserved market in the U.S.," Ganis said. "It has a growing population, low housing costs, low tax base and moderate incomes so there's more discretionary spending available, and one of the highest cable (TV) penetration markets in the country. Las Vegas should already have a major league team."

 

You forgot to bold that part :plain

Ganis, the Chicago sports consultant, says while an NFL team is unlikely to land here, it is only a matter of time before Major League Baseball comes to town. Las Vegas is the most ripe city in the nation for a baseball team, Ganis said.

 

"It's the best unserved market in the U.S.," Ganis said. "It has a growing population, low housing costs, low tax base and moderate incomes so there's more discretionary spending available, and one of the highest cable (TV) penetration markets in the country. Las Vegas should already have a major league team."

 

You forgot to bold that part :plain

635423[/snapback]

Same man that moved teams from LA claiming the market was too small....he is pretty bright ain't he? :plain

Ganis, the Chicago sports consultant, says while an NFL team is unlikely to land here, it is only a matter of time before Major League Baseball comes to town. Las Vegas is the most ripe city in the nation for a baseball team, Ganis said.

 

"It's the best unserved market in the U.S.," Ganis said. "It has a growing population, low housing costs, low tax base and moderate incomes so there's more discretionary spending available, and one of the highest cable (TV) penetration markets in the country. Las Vegas should already have a major league team."

 

You forgot to bold that part :plain

635423[/snapback]

Same man that moved teams from LA claiming the market was too small....he is pretty bright ain't he? :plain

635428[/snapback]

Le Qwn.

Ganis, the Chicago sports consultant, says while an NFL team is unlikely to land here, it is only a matter of time before Major League Baseball comes to town. Las Vegas is the most ripe city in the nation for a baseball team, Ganis said.

 

"It's the best unserved market in the U.S.," Ganis said. "It has a growing population, low housing costs, low tax base and moderate incomes so there's more discretionary spending available, and one of the highest cable (TV) penetration markets in the country. Las Vegas should already have a major league team."

 

You forgot to bold that part :plain

635423[/snapback]

Same man that moved teams from LA claiming the market was too small....he is pretty bright ain't he? :plain

635428[/snapback]

 

Yeah because the Rams and Raiders are real bottom feeders when it comes to fans.

 

I mean they call it the black hole cause no one shows up right?

"I don't think there's a likelihood for the NFL to be in Las Vegas for the foreseeable future because the NFL is appropriately much more sensitive to gambling issues than other sports," said Marc Ganis, president of Chicago-based Sportscorp, Ltd., the consultant that helped move both the St. Louis Rams and the Oakland Raiders out of Los Angeles.

Yeah because the Rams and Raiders are real bottom feeders when it comes to fans.

 

I mean they call it the black hole cause no one shows up right?

635432[/snapback]

 

The man claimed Los Angeles (the #2 media market in the country) was too small to support a single team. So he helped move both teams to smaller markets....smart moves man.

Yeah because the Rams and Raiders are real bottom feeders when it comes to fans.

 

I mean they call it the black hole cause no one shows up right?

635432[/snapback]

 

The man claimed Los Angeles (the #2 media market in the country) was too small to support a single team. So he helped move both teams to smaller markets....smart moves man.

635436[/snapback]

 

He owned the Rams and the Raiders and moved them? I must have missed that.

 

If you get hired to help move a team you don't give reasons why they stay. Instead you should look at the good job he did by moving them. He found a good spot for both teams in smaller markets.

He was brought in to look at the options, but instead helped them move. He took the easy way out along with the owners of those 2 teams, therefore creating a big hole in the NFL. LA is very important to sports.

Here are some qoutes from the SI article on Vegas:

 

 

Goodman makes the odds 1 to 5 that he'll have a major league baseball team with five years. Though it might put off potential tenants, he says that he has no interest in institutuing a pro-sports version of the old UNLV rule (rescinded in 2001), which barred sports books from posting lines or taking bets on games involving Nevada colleges.

 

 

So take it or leave it: There is no better place to grow. "Our conservative model was that the Expos would bring in $160 to $170 million if they moved to Las Vegas, which would rank it in the upper quartile of baseball revenues," says consultant Michael Shapiro of Centerfield Management Group, whick worked with two groups that wanted to move the Expos to Las Vegas and build a privately funded 38,000-seat stadium one block from the Strip. The projection was based on selling 35% to 45% of the team's tickets to the 36 milllion tourists who visit Las Vegas anually, making up for the market's relatively small population..."

 

 

35 to 45%?!? How the hell are you gonna build a fan base when basically half the people in the stadium will be tourists? That is fatally flawed long term.

He was brought in to look at the options, but instead helped them move. He took the easy way out along with the owners of those 2 teams, therefore creating a big hole in the NFL. LA is very important to sports.

635446[/snapback]

 

Then why haven't the Colts moved there? Or the Chargers? Or anyone else? If the owners wanted to move then they wanted to move he couldn't change that. instead you should look at what he helped them do. He helped make the Raiders the single most terryfying team to play at and the Rams don't struggle getting fans at all.

He was brought in to look at the options, but instead helped them move. He took the easy way out along with the owners of those 2 teams, therefore creating a big hole in the NFL. LA is very important to sports.

635446[/snapback]

 

Then why haven't the Colts moved there? Or the Chargers? Or anyone else? If the owners wanted to move then they wanted to move he couldn't change that. instead you should look at what he helped them do. He helped make the Raiders the single most terryfying team to play at and the Rams don't struggle getting fans at all.

635450[/snapback]

 

 

PP not many NFL teams have trouble bringing in the fans. It can't be compared to baseball. One game a week compared to sometimes 6 or 7 games a week. The main reason LA hasn't gooten a team yet is again the stadium issue long term. The NFL wants to be guaranteed a brand new park.

Ganis, the Chicago sports consultant, says while an NFL team is unlikely to land here, it is only a matter of time before Major League Baseball comes to town. Las Vegas is the most ripe city in the nation for a baseball team, Ganis said.

 

"It's the best unserved market in the U.S.," Ganis said. "It has a growing population, low housing costs, low tax base and moderate incomes so there's more discretionary spending available, and one of the highest cable (TV) penetration markets in the country. Las Vegas should already have a major league team."

 

You forgot to bold that part :plain

635423[/snapback]

Same man that moved teams from LA claiming the market was too small....he is pretty bright ain't he? :plain

635428[/snapback]

 

Yeah because the Rams and Raiders are real bottom feeders when it comes to fans.

 

I mean they call it the black hole cause no one shows up right?

635432[/snapback]

that was cold :lol

PP not many NFL teams have trouble bringing in the fans. It can't be compared to baseball. One game a week compared to sometimes 6 or 7 games a week. The main reason LA hasn't gooten a team yet is again the stadium issue long term. The NFL wants to be guaranteed a brand new park.

635460[/snapback]

 

 

I know, but Cape makes it sound like Ganis is a complete m00ktard for not throwing himself at the owners to make the teams stay and is using that to discredit him. Meanwhile if you google up Ganis you see how widely respected he is and how much his opinion matters because he is asked about so many things and I have't found an article yet where they speak bad about him.

 

Cape just can't handle the fact teams can move out of "bigger" media bases and into smaller ones and succeed because that is his base of why the Marlins can't move, going from a bigger base to a smaller one, if they decided to look at Vegas seriously.

Are the Marlins going to the NFL now? :whistle

Interesting....

Here are some qoutes from the SI article on Vegas:

 

 

Goodman makes the odds 1 to 5 that he'll have a major league baseball team with five years. Though it might put off potential tenants, he says that he has no interest in institutuing a pro-sports version of the old UNLV rule (rescinded in 2001), which barred sports books from posting lines or taking bets on games involving Nevada colleges.

 

 

So take it or leave it: There is no better place to grow. "Our conservative model was that the Expos would bring in $160 to $170 million if they moved to Las Vegas, which would rank it in the upper quartile of baseball revenues," says consultant Michael Shapiro of Centerfield Management Group, whick worked with two groups that wanted to move the Expos to Las Vegas and build a privately funded 38,000-seat stadium one block from the Strip. The projection was based on selling 35% to 45% of the team's tickets to the 36 milllion tourists who visit Las Vegas anually, making up for the market's relatively small population..."

 

 

35 to 45%?!? How the hell are you gonna build a fan base when basically half the people in the stadium will be tourists? That is fatally flawed long term.

635449[/snapback]

I was in Vegas last summer and people are too busy going to casinos and stuff to go to a Major League game in real life. If someone went to Vegas why wouldn't they just stay home and go to their own team's games? Plus, the sportsbook has all the games on at once.

What everyone is failing to realize is that the casinos run Las Vegas. If a major sports franchise, like the NFL were to go to Vegas, the NFL would not allow gambling on the sport. The revenues that the Casinos bring in with the sportsbooks is incredible. They would never allow that to happen, there will never be a major sports franchise in Las Vegas. How would any sport justify allowing casinos to take bets on these sports when their is a franchise in the only city that allows sports gambling. This mayor is a bit over his head, it will never happen.