The Alamo City is a place that is defined by its history, so it is fitting that the NCAA will mark the end of an era in the Alamodome with its 2008 men’s Final Four.
San Antonio last hosted the marquee event in 2004, putting nearly 50,000 fans into an expanded Alamodome basketball configuration. City leaders said at the time that San Antonio could have filled thousands more seats. If the event makes it back to San Antonio, the city would have that chance.
Sunset Station will host a number of Final Four
events for the NCAA and its sponsors in the
shadow of the Alamodome.
Next year, the Final Four moves to Detroit’s Ford Field and the NCAA will move the basketball court into “the round” to accommodate crowds in the 60,000 to 70,000 range. The new arrangement will boost capacity by moving the court to the middle of a stadium’s floor, using a transportable seating system provided by the NCAA. Indianapolis and Houston will host similar setups in 2010 and 2011, respectively.
So there will be some sense of nostalgia in San Antonio as this 2008 Final Four may be the last staged in a somewhat more intimate environment. But San Antonio leaders and NCAA officials are complementing that smaller setting with bigger plans and an expanded fan footprint that connects the Alamodome with a pair of important, nearby destinations.
The NCAA will change seating configurations
after this year’s Final Four in San Antonio.
Sunset Station, situated immediately north of the Alamodome, is anchored by a repurposed train depot and an adjoining entertainment pavilion. It will host a number of Final Four events for the NCAA and its sponsors.
“Sunset Station has worked with our Corporate Champions and Partners and us throughout the process to assure a great activation occurs in that complex complementing all of the festivities for Final Four weekend,” said Greg Shaheen, senior vice president of basketball and business strategies for the NCAA.
HemisFair Park, site of the 1968 World’s Fair, is located immediately west of the Alamodome. It will serve as the backdrop for one of the NCAA’s newer Final Four events — the Big Dance. The free block party will be a gathering spot for thousands of hoops fans, including those without tickets to the Final Four, to celebrate with a fiesta flair that is uniquely San Antonio.
San Antonio plans to make another
run for a Final Four in the next
bidding cycle.
“Even though we were in San Antonio only four short years ago,” Shaheen said, “[fans] will notice an immediate difference throughout the city.”
While the NCAA is expanding its Final Four footprint outside the Alamodome, it is also expanding its show inside the stadium.
On the eve of the first day of Final Four action, the NCAA’s nationally televised public practice will include a variety of fan contests and experiences. It also will be, according to Shaheen, the first time that the College All-Star Game is integrated into the public practice event.
“We’ve got more events, more opportunities for people to be involved — with or without tickets to the games. That’s the biggest difference,” Shaheen said about the 2008 Final Four.
San Antonio officials believe opportunities exist for the NCAA and the Alamodome beyond 2008.
Michael Sawaya is director of convention, sports and entertainment facilities for the city of San Antonio. He said the city, the Alamodome and the NCAA have evolved together since that first Final Four staged in San Antonio in 1998.
Sawaya said the city has spent millions of dollars over the years in an effort to keep the Alamodome in Final Four shape. The city is now spending millions more to ensure that the Alamodome remains a viable venue for future NCAA events.
The recent to-do list has included an exterior face-lift and a new roof. But the city also has upgraded the Alamodome’s lighting, sound and video systems and is making additional improvements to the stadium’s sports clubs and luxury suites.
 Home Sweet Dome |
This year’s NCAA men’s basketball championship game will mark the 21st time the event has been played in a domed stadium. The NCAA began permanently hosting the Final Four and championship game in bigger venues in 1997. The year before that, 19,229 fans watched the event at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J., the last time a traditional basketball arena played host to the event.
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“The NCAA is our biggest client,” Sawaya said. “And the Final Four is our most impactful event.”
While the Alamodome does not have a permanent tenant, it is home to the Valero Alamo Bowl and the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, which features the top high school seniors in the nation. The venue also regularly hosts Texas state high school championships.
Sawaya said the lack of a permanent sports tenant can work to the venue’s advantage for special events. “We can make the investments in the building that meet our goals and not a [team] owner’s goals.”
That, he said, allows the city to do what it needs to keep the Alamodome Final Four-ready.
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| Final Four host cities |
| The first NCAA men’s basketball championship game was held in 1939, in Evanston, Ill. Since that time, the following cities have hosted the championship game at least five times. |
| Kansas City | 10 |
| New York | 7 |
| Louisville, Ky. | 6 |
| Indianapolis | 5 |
| Seattle | 5 |
| Source: NCAA Men’s Final Four Record Book |
Susan Blackwood is executive director of the San Antonio Sports Foundation and is an executive member of the San Antonio Local Organizing Committee. She said San Antonio City Manager Sheryl Sculley has brought the focus of the Final Four and the Alamodome to a new level since moving to the city from Phoenix in 2005.
“Some people might take this event for granted,” Blackwood said. “[Sculley] sees the importance and has empowered people to help make this event successful so that it will come back.”
Shaheen said the NCAA likes what it sees in San Antonio. “Alamodome preparation — from ongoing renovations to décor to layout — is on schedule and we’re pleased with the progress.”
The Alamodome opened in 1993. By 2012, the next available Final Four date, the Alamodome will be nearly 19 years old. But the NCAA isn’t ready to put the venue out to pasture. Shaheen said NCAA officials look forward to receiving new proposals from San Antonio for the next cycle of Final Four bidding covering 2012 through 2016.
If the Alamodome gets another Final Four it likely will be played in front of thousands more fans. Blackwood and Sawaya have met with NCAA officials and have seen the preliminary designs for a reconfigured Alamodome using the new “in-the-round” seating system.
“We were very pleased. It’s a very good fit,” Blackwood said.
W. Scott Bailey writes for the San Antonio Business Journal, an affiliated publication.
