2020; the deadline for Don Garber’s plan to have twenty-four teams in Major League Soccer. However, as of now, that coveted final spot remains open. There is a short list of cities that have expressed an interest in landing an MLS franchise and that list consists of Minneapolis, San Antonio, Sacramento and Las Vegas, yes, Las Vegas, otherwise known as “Sin City”.

MLS Las Vegas: A real possibility?

An investor group led by Justin Findlay has been working aggressively to bring a major league sports franchise to Las Vegas and believes that with his plans, MLS would be a perfect fit for the city of “high stakes”. The name Findlay carries a lot of weight in Las Vegas. Justin’s grandfather founded a popular car dealership franchise called Findlay Automotive, and his father was a well regarded basketball player in the 1960’s with the University of Nevada Las Vegas Running Rebels.

Findlay and his investors have manufactured a plan to build a Soccer Specific Stadium six miles north of the famous Las Vegas Strip. The stadium would seat 24,000 and have a retractable roof and misters every three rows to allow the fans to be comfortable during the hot desert summers that Las Vegas is known for. The estimated cost of building this stadium is between $150- 200m, quite staggering for a venue that would prominently be used for soccer. September 1st is the deadline for Findlay to have a financial plan in place for covering the cost of constructing this stadium, as he will go in front of the Las Vegas City Council with his proposal.

Las Vegas is a very unique city that attracts a lot of attention with its outlandish casinos, over-the-top shows and fabulous restaurants. Through this whole circus, can this city possibly support a major league sports franchise? The city has a successful minor league baseball team and an arena soccer franchise, but these are clubs that draw anywhere from 3,000 to 9,000 fans, not 24,000 that Findlay is expecting at his home games.

Las Vegas is a wonderful city with many attractions that vacationers love; it is also a transient city that is always in flux. The individuals that live in Las Vegas are not there that long, they are there on business for a year or two and then they leave for their next assignment. The individuals that do live in Las Vegas, are they interested in soccer? There are families with children that live within the city and the question arises, “how do you get these children interested in soccer and, will their parents take them to games if the city gains a soccer franchise?”

It is an intriguing contender to land an MLS Franchise, but, to compete against legalized gambling and the scorching summer days is an uphill battle that Findlay may not be able to conquer. There have been many failed franchises in the city’s illustrious history from arena football, CFL Football, basketball and even indoor soccer franchises. The market in Las Vegas is a tough road to travel on and bringing in an MLS franchise is risky, especially with two MLS franchises only four hours away in Los Angeles.

Soccer in America is growing, perhaps this is the one sport that breaks the streak of failed franchises in Sin City and succeeds. Findlay is laying all his chips on the table in hopes that MLS grants him a franchise and the citizens of Las Vegas attract soccer fever. The stakes are high for this gritty gamble.

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