By Alan Snel
LVSportsBiz.com
Two professional Mexican soccer teams from a top league called Liga MX are playing each other at Sam Boyd Stadium Wednesday, with organizers hoping 20,000 fans will attend the championship game of a new North American tournament that had four Major League Soccer teams and a quartet of Liga MX clubs.
From a tourney that featured eight teams from North America’s two most prominent soccer leagues emerged a title match-up of Cruz Azul vs. Tigres Uanl. The four MLS teams — Chicago Fire, Houston Dynamo, LA Galaxy and Real Salt Lake — didn’t make the “Leagues Cup” final. But it is an opportunity for Las Vegas to showcase its soccer infrastructure because the city is trying to get Major League Soccer to expand to Sin City.
LVSportsBiz.com spoke with Dale Eeles, vice president of development for Las Vegas Events, about how the eight-team, single-game elimination tourney came about. Las Vegas Events, the non-profit arm of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority tax-supported tourism agency, worked with Las Vegas Lights owner Brett Lashbrook, Sam Boyd Stadium, UNLV Soccer and MGM Resorts International to pull the tourney together.
Las Vegas Events gave $175,000 for the Leagues Cup final event, while Eeles estimated $200,000 was spent on installing grass in Sam Boyd Stadium, which usually has an artificial surface for the UNLV football team. Here’s our Q and A with Eeles.
LVSportsBiz.com: How did you come up with the idea of an MLS and Liga MX soccer final event in Las Vegas?
Dale Eeles: Major League Soccer and Liga MX has developed this annual new competition to unite North American soccer fans. They picked four teams from MLS and four from Liga MX to participate. They were looking for a neutral site for the championship. How did this happen? MGM Resorts is a new sponsor with Major League Soccer at a pretty big level, which gives them influence. They have a lot to do with it. Also, (Lights owner) Brett Lashbrook worked at MLS as an attorney. And then you have to look at Sam Boyd Stadium and its availability. They needed to put natural grass in there. And the UNLV football team is on the road for 21 straight days. It worked. Las Vegas has a good activation around Mexican Independence Day and was trying to build entertainment around Mexican Independence Day. Las Vegas Events was able to help provide the support. It was probably at least $200,000 for the grass (field). And we gave $175,000 for the event. With that, we also received sponsorship benefits throughout the games leading up to the final in all those other markets.
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LVSB: Will this Leagues Cup final and event help Las Vegas land an MLS team?
DE: I don’t know how to answer that. The commissioners of Major League Soccer and Liga MX participated
in a press conference at the Bellagio (in July). Having two of the most prominent people in North American soccer in Las Vegas for the press conference helps. It doesn’t hurt. We began to build a relationship with Major league Soccer and Liga MX.
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LVSB: How many Mexican soccer fans do you expect will travel for this final and what’s the economic spending impact?
DE: The challenge for us into entering an agreement is that we’re entering an agreement for two teams we don’t know. It was a tournament. We’re curious to see how many will come from out of town. It’s the first time doing it. Let’s take a chance with this.
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LVSB: How many locals do you think will attend the game?
DE: I hope a lot. It’s a big deal. Soccer-educated people will know there will be a mass of soccer. We’re anticipating 20,000.
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LVSB: What’s the future potential for more soccer friendlies/events at the Raiders stadium that opens in 2020?
DE: I know Soccer United Marketing, they are the affiliated special events marketing arm of Major League Soccer, wants this event to continue and wants to grow this Leagues Cup. They’re interested in making Las Vegas the home for this event. This was not an outside promoter. The promoter was Soccer United Marketing and Major League Soccer. They were going to put their best foot forward because they are selling the tickets.
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