The Indianapolis Super Bowl bid committee later this summer is “expected to formally approve a motion that would allow the formal bidding process to begin” on Super Bowl LII in ’18, according to Michael Marot of the AP. The vote for the '18 game is expected to be held next May. Indiana Sports Corp. President Allison Melangton said that she “expected Indianapolis to join the 2018 Super Bowl fray later this year.” New Orleans already has “announced its intention to bid, trying to incorporate the big game into the 300th anniversary of the founding of the city." Denver also “has expressed interest,” but may have to "make its formal bid before reviews come in from this year's Super Bowl” in N.Y./N.J. South Florida also could make another bid after failing yesterday to land either Super Bowl L or LI, but Melangton noted that when the Florida state legislature “failed to pass a stadium-funding measure, it may have cost the city the Super Bowl” (AP, 5/21).
BOSTON COMMON: Patriots Owner Robert Kraft yesterday at the NFL owners’ meetings discussed the possibility of hosting a Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium pending the results from this February's game at MetLife Stadium. Kraft said, “We would love one day to hold it here, if it’s a good experience there. Let’s see how it goes.” NFL Senior VP/Events Frank Supovitz said that the league has “heard from several cold-weather owners wanting to get in on the Super Bowl process.” In Boston, Ben Volin notes Giants President & CEO John Mara “knows that owners in Boston, Denver, Philadelphia, and elsewhere will be paying close attention to New York’s performance.” Mara: “I assume that if we do a good job with ours, that other cities will put bids in. Why not?” (BOSTON GLOBE, 5/22). But in Boston, Ron Borges writes a Super Bowl at Gillette Stadium “won’t be happening any time soon for several reasons.” Many of the cities receiving the game "got it in part as payback for the public funding of new stadiums or massive stadium renovations.” Meanwhile, the “spirit of cooperation between business and political entities that was praised by those representing the winning bids” from S.F. and Houston “seldom seems to exist here.” That is “the same problem that derailed Miami” (BOSTON HERALD, 5/22).
BIRDS NESTING: Falcons Owner Arthur Blank after receiving $200M in funding yesterday for a new stadium said that he “expects Atlanta to bid” for Super Bowl LIII in ’19, the “first Super Bowl that the new retractable-roof stadium will be eligible to host.” Blank said, “We will be bidding. We will be in the bidding process. We think that is the year that makes the most sense for us at this point.” In Atlanta, Tim Tucker notes a "decision on the 2019 game probably won’t come for two years.” Under league rules, a stadium “cannot host a Super Bowl until it has operated for at least one full year.” The new Falcons stadium is “scheduled to open in 2017, making the 2018 season -- or the February 2019 Super Bowl -- its first opportunity for the mega-event.” Bidding for a Super Bowl “long has been part of the plan for the new Falcons stadium, but Blank was more specific about the target year than the franchise had been previously.” He said that the team has “notified the league of Atlanta’s interest in bidding” (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 5/22).
TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING? ESPN's Tim Hasselbeck noted communities seemingly need a new or upgraded stadium to "get a shot" at hosting a Super Bowl, and he asked, "How long should these stadiums last?" He noted Blank "is looking for money from the NFL for a new stadium, and that's a 20-year-old stadium." Hasselbeck said he did not know if it is a "healthy trend" to build new stadiums frequently to attract a Super Bowl ("NFL 32," ESPN2, 5/21).
