Las Vegas pursuing 2027 CFP national championship game

Las Vegas, fresh off hosting the Super Bowl in February, could be in line for another championship football game.

Steve Hill, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority president and CEO, said Monday the LVCVA is going through the bid process to potentially host the 2027 College Football Playoff title game at Allegiant Stadium.

But Hill shot down a report that Las Vegas is a “lock” to host the game, writing in a text message “… we’re certainly not at the point we could say we are set to host.”

The Action Network reported Monday that the 2027 game is all but set to be played at Allegiant Stadium, with New Orleans (2028), Dallas (2029) and Miami (2030) also in line to host future championship games. The story said the deals weren’t finalized, and if any of those sites were unsuccessful in their bids that Houston, Phoenix and Tampa, Florida, were considered backup sites.

If Las Vegas’ bid is successful, it would mean the NCAA’s championship games for its two marquee sports would be played at Allegiant Stadium in consecutive years, joining the 2028 men’s Final Four.

Las Vegas has become a major player in landing prime sporting events, topped by the Super Bowl in February. Other events that took place here include the 2022 NFL draft, two NFL Pro Bowls, the Formula One Las Vegas Grand Prix, the 2022 NHL All-Star Game and this year’s NHL draft.

Allegiant Stadium, home to the Raiders and UNLV football, was completed in 2020, but it wasn’t open to fans until the summer of 2021 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then, more than 4.46 million fans have attended events at the 65,000-seat capacity stadium as of March 31, according to Las Vegas Stadium Authority data.

A crowd of 61,629 attended the Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers, according to the stadium authority report.

After the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in 2018, the NCAA started to eye Las Vegas as a potential host site for its championship events.

Las Vegas hosted the men’s NCAA basketball tournament West Regional in 2023 at T-Mobile Arena. The 2026 Frozen Four for Division 1 hockey will take place at T-Mobile Arena.

Allegiant Stadium has also hosted several one-off college football games and Pac-12 championship games. It will host the Vegas College Kickoff Classic between Southern California and Louisiana State on Sept. 1.

Contact Mick Akers at makers@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2920. Follow @mickakers on X.