The 2016 Major League Baseball All-Star Game will be coming to San Diego's Petco Park in 2016, the Padres announced Wednesday.

The Padres put in a bid to host the game in December, the same month city officials approved a measure to rubber stamp city funds for the event. Thursday Baseball Commissioner Allan H. Selig awarded the 2016 game to the Padres at the conclusion of its quarterly owners meetings.

Mayor Kevin Faulconer said in a statement that the event would bring "great things" to the city's future.

“San Diego is a city full of unlimited opportunities and this news is proof that great things are on the horizon," Faulconer said. "The 2016 MLB All-Star Game will once again put San Diego on the world stage, and give San Diego fans a front-row seat to some of today’s best ballplayers."

This will be the third time San Diego has hosted the game and the first time the game will be at Petco Park, which opened in 2004. The Jack Murphy Stadium hosted the All-Star game in 1978 and 1992.

Padres Executive Chairman Ron Fowler said the Padres are honored to host the game.

“Padres fans have been awaiting the return of the Midsummer Classic for more than two decades, and we are thrilled with today's news," Fowler said.

At the heart of the pitch the council approved last December was the projected economic benefit of having the game here, including the five ensuing days of fan activities.

MLB officials say it would bring in about $80 million to the city of San Diego. Officials with the San Diego Tourism Authority said it would draw more than $1 million in sales tax and $1.2 million in hotel taxes.

The exact amount of revenue the game would bring into the city is in dispute.

The president of the National University Institute for Policy Research said he suspects most of the people attending the game will be from San Diego. Also, the summer time is already peak tourism season here.

“The analysis that has been done after the fact of these games suggests that these economic projections that are made by people are a lot more hype than they are substance,” said Erik Bruvold of the National University Institute for Policy Research.

Bruvold said that ultimately the big winner could be the Padres, who could include an All-Star Game seating priority to season ticket holders.