Circa CEO Stevens Says Las Vegas Should Host First Week of CFP

Posted on: August 25, 2024, 06:02h. 

Last updated on: August 26, 2024, 10:15h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.

Circa founder and CEO Derek Stevens believes Las Vegas is one of four cities that should be hosts to the first round of the College Football Playoff (CFP).

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Circa Casino owner Derek Stevens says Las Vegas should be one of the host cities for the first round of the College Football Playoff (CFP). (Image: Las Vegas Review-Journal)

This is the first year of the expanded 12-team playoff bracket format. Under the new system, the teams seeded one through four get byes into the quarterfinals. The four games between the other eight teams will “take place at either the home field of the higher-seeded team or another site designated by the higher-seeded program during the week of Saturday, Dec. 21,” according to the NCAA.

In an interview on the Vegas Sports Information Network (VSiN) last week, Stevens cautioned fans about falling in love with the idea of playoff games on college campuses, noting that there could be “pretty tough economics” associated with the plan and weather could loom large.

Everybody loves the thought ‘OK, Notre Dame is going to play at home the week before Christmas,’” said Stevens. “Maybe Ohio State or Michigan is at home. But you’ve got issues with stadiums, with turf, with student bodies.”

Stevens, a Michigan native and a devoted fan of the University of Michigan, used that school as an example, noting it would be difficult to fill “the Big House” just days before Christmas because students would be home on holiday break.

Stevens Says Las Vegas is a Credible Alternative

In addition to his stake in Circa, Stevens is the co-owner of the D Las Vegas and Golden Gate. All three casino hotels are in downtown Las Vegas.

Skeptics or those critical of his idea to move the first week of the CFP away from college campuses might assert he’s “talking his book” in advocating that Las Vegas be a host city. However, there’s arguably some purity in his comments because he believes Las Vegas should be one of four cities to host the first-round CFP games.

In the VSiN interview, Stevens said Allegiant Stadium — home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders — should be joined by SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, and Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta as hosts of the four first-round CFP contests.

Allegiant Stadium has experience hosting college football games as it’s the home field for UNLV and the host of the Las Vegas Bowl.

Stevens hinted that there may be factors at play in attempting to bring the first-round CFP contests to the quartet of aforementioned venues at some point.

CFP Game Could Be Economic Boon for Las Vegas

Las Vegas hosted the Super Bowl in February and it’s estimated that event had a positive economic impact for the city of more than $1 billion, including more than $230 million in wages and salaries paid to workers.

A first-round CFP game, which would be akin to an NFL wild-card playoff game, likely wouldn’t generate that much money for the city, but the event would be helpful because it would allow casino operators to boost hotel rates for that weekend, and the added influx of fans would likely support elevated gaming and food and beverage spending.

To date, the NCAA hasn’t publicly floated the idea of playing the first four CFP tilts at neutral sites.