NFL owners yesterday voted unanimously to "shift Super Bowl LV" from Inglewood to Tampa's Raymond James Stadium after heavy rainfall in southern California has "delayed construction and pushed the opening" of the Rams/Chargers venue back a year to '20, according to a front-page piece by Rick Stroud of the TAMPA BAY TIMES. The league prohibits stadiums "from hosting a Super Bowl until they have been operational for at least two seasons." As a result, L.A. is now scheduled to host Super Bowl LVI in February '22. Both Tampa Bay and L.A. have 90 days to "meet certain conditions for hosting the game." Because the area was "turned down in their bid" for a Super Bowl in '19 and '20, which went to Atlanta and Miami, respectively, the Tampa Bay Sports Commission must "receive renewed commitments for the bid package, which includes the use of Raymond James Stadium, hotel rooms and considerations presented by the city and county." The $150M renovation of Raymond James Stadium "will have been completed" by the time of Super Bowl LV. Tampa Bay's "aggressive efforts to bid on all Super Bowls gave them an advantage when L.A.'s weather problems pushed back the stadium's availability" (TAMPA BAY TIMES, 5/24). New Orleans was "considered as a potential backup option" to host Super Bowl LV, but the city has "conflicts with Mardi Gras (Feb. 16) and a national convention" in '21. These same scheduling conflicts "prevented New Orleans from originally bidding" on Super Bowl LV last year (New Orleans TIMES-PICAYUNE, 5/24).
RISK VS. REWARD: In L.A., Sam Farmer notes L.A. would have "needed a waiver from the league" to host the '21 game, but the idea of getting a waiver "was not seriously discussed" yesterday. The decision gave L.A. some "breathing room, and it rewarded Tampa, which had fallen short in multiple Super Bowl bids in recent years" (L.A. TIMES, 5/24). ESPN.com's Alden Gonzalez noted the NFL ultimately felt L.A. was "too risky to host a Super Bowl so close to the target date." NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said that Rams Owner Stan Kroenke was "'incredibly cooperative on this' and remains focused on 'creating a quality stadium for the long term for the fans in Los Angeles.'" Goodell: "What we felt is the right thing, is don't put any risk to the Super Bowl, which is an incredibly complex event. God forbid if there's some other natural disaster, or some other thing that might affect the schedule ... It would put an undue risk to the Super Bowl and to our fans. So from our standpoint, we thought this was the appropriate thing to do" (ESPN.com, 5/23).
LOOKING AHEAD: The next round of Super Bowls to be awarded are '23 and '24, and Raiders Owner Mark Davis said that he "intends on pursuing the game for Las Vegas in one of those years." In Las Vegas, Ed Graney writes a Super Bowl at the Raiders' new venue is "eventually going to happen, because when you build the NFL a fancy new stadium nowadays, you are ensured of being awarded its grandest party." NFL owners "could make a decision at their spring meetings" in May '18 for the '23 and '24 Super Bowl games. How much the news regarding the Inglewood project might "affect the Raiders’ ability to land a Super Bowl during that two-year cycle is unknown, but there is no question the league will re-examine granting the game to teams in the process of building new facilities" (LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL, 5/24).
