Las Vegas is already set to host one big NFL event, and if the Raiders get their way, the city could soon be landing another.
According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, the Raiders are hoping to bring a Super Bowl to Vegas, and they're trying to make that happen by adding $40 million to the budget of their $1.8 billion stadium.
The new money is going to be used to build 20 new suites along with a 26,000-square foot field-level club area. Raiders president Marc Badain is hoping the addition of those two things will be enough to convince the NFL to award Super Bowl LIX to Sin City.
"The more suites you have, the better opportunity you have to bid for the Super Bowl," Badain told the Review-Journal. "So we wanted to be responsive to the NFL, as we're working on a bid for the 2025 Super Bowl."
The addition of the new suites means that the Raiders new stadium is now expected to have 128 total suites when it opens, which is currently scheduled to happen on July 31, 2020. The 20 new suites and the new field level club will add a total of $18 million to the price tag of the stadium.
The other $22 million will be spent on other upgrades that will range from better information technology ($4 million) to better internet capabilities ($4 million) to additional restrooms ($2 million). There will also be $10 million spent on making the architecture at the stadium look better and $2 million spent on "building operations systems upgrades."
The Raiders will be picking up the entire $40 million tab for all the improvements.
If Vegas does land the Super Bowl, that means the city would be hosting two of the NFL's biggest events in a period of five years. The city has already been awarded the 2020 NFL Draft, which is scheduled to take place next spring.
As for the Super Bowl, the reason the Raiders are going after the game in 2025 is because that's the earliest one that's available. The host cities for the next five Super Bowls have already been awarded, and you can see those below.
Super Bowl LIV: Miami (February 2020) on Fox
Super Bowl LV: Tampa (February 2021) on CBS
Super Bowl LVI: Los Angeles (February 2022) on NBC
Super Bowl LVII: Phoenix (February 2023) on Fox
Super Bowl LVIII: New Orleans (February 2024)
Super Bowl LIX: TBA (February 2025)
