When NFL commissioner Roger Goodell attended a recent press conference to promote the Cleveland Browns’ new stadium, it sent a signal that some big events would be coming its way after it opens a few years from now. One of those almost certain to be held at the new covered venue would be an upcoming NFL Draft.
While Goodell pretty much guaranteed that would happen, he had previously hinted at an even higher-profile possibility. The new stadium, which is scheduled to open in time for the 2029 NFL season, could be the site of a future Super Bowl. However, after the latest assignment was announced, Cleveland was not the choice.
Leila Atassi, the manager of public interest and advocacy at Cleveland.com, recently revealed why the city may never host a Super Bowl, saying it does not currently have the necessary infrastructure for such a huge event.
“Cleveland’s chances of hosting a Super Bowl seem roughly on par with the Browns’ chances of winning one. Yes, the Haslams’ dome checks an important NFL box. But Super Bowls are less about football than corporate spectacle, and Cleveland lacks the infrastructure that spectacle demands: hotel rooms; flights; transit; and now, apparently, even promised parking. If booming Nashville needed years of upgrades to seal the deal, count Cleveland out,” Atassi wrote.
That, of course, can change. For example, despite being one of the most popular tourist cities in the country, Nashville still needed to make some improvements in hotel rooms and airport capacity before being granted Super Bowl LXIV for its new stadium in 2030. It will be the first Super Bowl played in Tennessee, after it hosted the NFL Draft in 2019.
In addition to that announcement, NFL owners said the 2028 NFL Draft would be held in Minneapolis, surrounding the Minnesota Vikings’ U.S. Bank Stadium. That still leaves the 2029 and 2030 drafts in play for Cleveland, which was the host of the draft in 2021.
The Browns’ new stadium is currently under construction at its Brook Park site. It is expected to have a capacity of 67,500 for football, with seats that are touted as being the closest to the field of any NFL team, including the traditional “Dawg Pound” section.
The new Huntington Bank Field looks to be more than worthy of holding the biggest sporting event of the year; now it will likely depend on potential upgrades to the surrounding area and the city overall.
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