For Derek Stevens, the best thing about the NFL draft in Las Vegas is the excitement.
While it’s great that there are hundreds of thousands of fans in southern Nevada this weekend, the Circa owner said what’s special about the draft is the people it’s brought — and how they’re spending their time.
“It’s been a great week for all of our properties,” he said on Friday.
Stevens noted the many special events that took place around the draft.
“That made things a little bit different,” he said. “Ten thousand crates of beer, that’s what we do every week. It’s all the special events and coordination. Stadium Swim demands a lot of big, private dinners and cabanas – there are just a lot of celebrities in town and that really makes it a lot of fun for everyone.”
Look no further than Kayvon Thibodeaux, the New York Giants’ fifth overall pick. The former edge rusher for the Oregon Ducks was spotted at Circa’s rooftop bar Legacy Club and Stadium Swim — a dayclub-like venue with six pools and a 143-foot-tall LED screen — to celebrate his draft.
fans excited
Downtown tourists happily joined in the excitement.
Ryan Grapentine of Chaska, Minnesota said that he and friends visit Las Vegas for most NFL drafts and were excited to hear that the actual event would be in Vegas this time. The five Vikings fans spent three days at Circa, dividing their time between downtown and the NFL Draft Experience events on the Strip. They did not see any celebrities during their stay, he said. But being with other fans was enough.
“It’s a lot of fun hanging out with all the fans, there’s a lot of twittering,” Grapentine said. “We see Packers fans and as Vikings fans we hate each other but it’s still friendly banter.”
The effects of the design could be seen beyond the pools and casino floors of Circa and in other casino properties. Many tourists walking through the Fremont Street Experience on Friday afternoon wore team jerseys and shopped at sports retailers.
BigBallsLasVegas.com, a Fremont Street Experience provider, sells more than just NFL gear. Medallions can be seen in other leagues’ logos, along with necklaces featuring honking chickens and giant disco balls, the latter of which gives the stand its name. But it’s the $54.99 soccer team torso-sized necklaces that are catching shoppers’ attention this week.
“It’s lighter than I thought it would be,” said Jake Kline, a Colts fan who bought the sports chain.
“We have never experienced anything like this”
The larger lockets can be detached from the chain and hung on the wall or used as a magnet. Supervisor Ruben Ascencio said the necklaces are often a big seller during football season when away fans travel to Raiders home games, but are even more popular during the draft. Lions gear in particular was a hit this week, he said.
“In the last few days, our sales have skyrocketed,” Ascencio said. “We’ve never experienced anything like this, but we have our inventory here.”
It’s this welcome sports fandom that gives Stevens hope for the future growth of the Las Vegas sports market. He said the influence of the Golden Knights, Raiders and success at major sporting events has shown a strong appetite for the industry coming to southern Nevada.
“I’ve always been someone who thought Las Vegas was an underserved sports market,” Stevens said. “I still think Vegas can support more professional teams. Not just with her Vegas community, but with the tourism she creates. This is the best city in the world for sports tourism and that affects jobs and so much in the community. I don’t want to say it’s here. Tourism in Las Vegas is still in its infancy.”
McKenna Ross is a Corps member with Report for America, a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms. Contact them at [email protected] Follow @mckenna_ross_ on Twitter.
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