LAS VEGAS, NV - NOVEMBER 20, 2022: The Las Vegas Desert Dogs defeated the Colorado Mammoth 12-9 at Michelob ULTRA Arena on Sunday afternoon. (Photo by Candice Ward/Las Vegas Desert Dogs)
The professional sports teams just keep on coming to Las Vegas, the final frontier for new teams and new sports venues.
The newest team is the latest addition to the National Lacrosse League, an indoor lacrosse circuit in the U.S. and Canada.
The club is called the Desert Dogs and they’ve drawn some attention because of their well-known owners — hockey legend Wayne Gretzky, Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai, former Nets coach/NBA player Steve Nash and golfer Dustin Johnson.
LAS VEGAS, NV – NOVEMBER 20, 2022: The Las Vegas Desert Dogs defeated the Colorado Mammoth 12-9 at Michelob ULTRA Arena on Sunday afternoon. (Photo by Candice Ward/Las Vegas Desert Dogs)
The Las Vegas Desert Dogs, the NLL’s 15th team, play at Mandalay Bay’s Michelob Ultra Arena — the venue used by the WNBA Las Vegas Aces. The Desert Dogs’ home-opener is Dec. 16.
We caught up with Mark Fine, the Desert Dogs CEO, to get the business facts on Las Vegas’ newest pro club.
LVSportsBiz.com: What do tickets go for and how much is the average ticket price? What is capacity?
Mark Fine: The majority of seats go for $25 to $99. On average, it’s in the mid 30s, from $35 to $39. Capacity is 9,300. We’re backing up an end zone area called the ‘Dog House,’ which will be a party zone. Tickets are available for the Dog House for games two to nine, with a single ticket costing $58 for single and $53 for groups. It includes a free beverage.
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LVSB: Who will be your typical fan?
MF: The VGK fan. Five teams in the league are owned by NHL teams. The VGK fan is our fan.
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LVSB: In a market with so much competition in your price range like the G League Ignite, Aces, UNLV sports, minor league hockey, baseball how will your team make its product distinct and original from the others?
MF: The game is original and distinct from the others. Most fans have not seen it before. The majority of crowd isn’t familiar with the sport so they will be seeing the sport for the first time.
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LVSB: What role will well-known co-owners like Wayne Gretzky and Joe Tsai play in trying to market the team?
MF: All four owners are passionate about the sport of box lacrosse and the game of lacrosse. They’re passionate about growing it out West. Joe Tsai was part of a clinic back in July. He was participating in the drills with the kids.
There’s Desert Dogs co-owner Joe Tsai at a Desert Dogs kids clinic a few months ago. Photo: Desert Dogs
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LVSB: Will there be any unique or funny in-game promotions and what will the in-game presentation be like?
MF: In Vegas you have to go pretty big big in game presentation. The Knights set the standard for that. We’re putting it together right to the last minute. I suggest fans be in their seats for the 7:10 PM inaugural ceremony. The games are 7:30 PM.
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LVSB: When does the season end and how many games are there?
MF: The last game is April 29. There are 18 games, nine home and nine away.
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LVSB: What will be the team’s rivals?
MF: You have Colorado as the defending champions. You have San Diego as well out West. Those are some naturals. We’ll see. The rivals will form as we take the field. (LVSB Add: First ever National Lacrosse League (NLL) Outdoor Game between the San Diego Seals and Desert Dogs at Snapdragon Stadium on March 4, 2023.)
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LVSB: How big is the Desert Dogs staff?
MF: We’re lean and mean. We have 11 full-timers and nine of us on the business side.
Alan Snel brings decades of sports-business reporting experience to LVSportsBiz.com.
Snel covered the business side of sports for the South Florida (Fort Lauderdale) Sun-Sentinel, the Tampa Tribune and Las Vegas Review-Journal. As a city hall beat reporter, Snel also covered stadium deals in Denver and Seattle.
In 2000, Snel launched a sport-business website for FoxSports.com called FoxSportsBiz.com.
After reporting sports-business for the RJ, Snel wrote hard-hitting stories on the Raiders stadium for the Desert Companion magazine in Las Vegas and The Nevada Independent.
Snel is also one of the top bicycle advocates in the country.
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