Your Public Dollars At Work In Las Vegas: LVCVA Gives $6 Million To WWE For 2026 WrestleMania, Buys $1.25 Million In F1 Tickets For Its ‘Customers’
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
By Alan Snel, LVSportsBiz.com Publisher-Writer
LAS VEGAS, Nevada — In Las Vegas, is there any other local government that spends so little time approving so much public money?
It’s the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, the publicly-funded tourism agency that serves to promote mostly the big hotel-casinos on the Strip.
The LVCVA board (made up of elected and private company officials) approved spending $6 million in public money to give to sports promoter WWE, which is putting on WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium April 18-19 next year.
LVCVA board members did not ask LVCVA CEO Steve Hill a single question.
But LVSportsBiz.com did after the 70-minute board meeting.
Hill said reaching a $6 million number to give to WWE is part science and part art. Hill said staff looks at the economic spending created from the event and the marketing value to Las Vegas of having the market mentioned as part of the event coverage. He also said the art part comes in on whether the event “polishes” the Las Vegas brand.
Then, the board greenlighted the LVCVA spending $1.25 million on F1 race tickets for “LVCVA customers, destination partners and stakeholders.”
At a previous LVCVA board meeting, the board also approved spending $20 million for an F1 “sponsorship.”
A board member did ask Hill about the return on investment of buying $1.25 million worth of F1 tickets.
After the meeting, Hill told LVSportsBiz.com that LVCVA staff will come up with names of people who will receive the free F1 tickets and he expects 100 to 120 “customers” to get the Las Vegas Grand Prix tickets for free.
The 2025 race is set for Nov. 2022. Here’s a look part of the 3.8-mile race course.
PSA
