AT&T Stadium's Special Events Organizing Committee has "decided to pass" on bidding for the CFP Championship between '18-20, according to Chuck Carlton of the DALLAS MORNING NEWS. The bid "would have been only" for the '20 game. Organizing Committee Chair Tommy Bain said, "We came to the conclusion that the game was going to be rotated around the United States and probably wouldn’t return that soon. We felt we were best served with focusing on those and the next bid cycle." Bain said that his group -- which is comprised of the Cowboys, AT&T Stadium and the Goodyear Cotton Bowl -- "broke even financially on title game hosting." He suggested that future bidders "will need a local investment" of $15-16M before inflation to "deliver and stage the game properly." Carlton noted AT&T Stadium "joins several other prominent venues -- including the historic Rose Bowl Stadium and Indianapolis’ Lucas Oil Stadium -- that won’t host the title game." New Orleans' Mercedes-Benz Superdome "has yet to make a decision on a bid" (DALLASNEWS.com, 5/13). In Jacksonville, Gene Frenette reports the city and EverBank Field also have "decided not to bid" for the '18-20 CFP games due to "escalating costs ... and wanting to take advantage of an improved downtown riverfront when the Shipyards development is complete." However, Jacksonville "intends to pursue future title games." Jacksonville Sports Council President & CEO Rick Catlett said that any bid on the city's behalf "would be stronger" when the bidding for the '21-23 games comes up, "likely in two or three years" (FLORIDA TIMES-UNION, 5/14).
MOTOR CITY MADHOUSE: ESPN.com's Brett McMurphy reported Detroit "will bid on the next round of title games" from '18-20, joining Atlanta, Charlotte, Houston, Miami/South Florida, Minneapolis, San Antonio and Santa Clara. The deadline to turn in the CFP's RFP "is in a couple of weeks." The CFP "will officially announce which cites are bidding for the games by the end of the month, with the three championship sites expected to be announced in October" (ESPN.com, 4/13). In Detroit, Mark Snyder cites a source as saying that the city's bid will "likely" be for the '19 game. Minneapolis is the "only other cold-weather city known to be bidding in the period," and an announcement was made May 5 that it "would focus" on the '20 game. Detroit's Ford Field has a "history of producing big football events," including Super Bowl XL. The facility "also has hosted a bowl game every year since opening" in '02 and last year produced the Quick Lane Bowl run by the Lions' administration. The MAC title game "also has been played" at Ford Field since '04 (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 5/14).
