On Sunday February 11, the city of Las Vegas, Nevada, will become the focus of the American sporting world as it hosts the National Football League's (NFL) championship game—the Super Bowl.
The event comes at an opportune time for the city and the state famous for its casinos and resorts that power the region's economy. Las Vegas and it surrounding metropolis area was one of the hardest hit by the COVID-induced economic crisis. The unemployment soared to 34 percent in April 2020, according to the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED). The local economy, hugely reliant on tourism, was decimated by pandemic-related lockdowns.
The Las Vegas metro has recovered somewhat with the jobless rate falling considerably since those gloomy days of 2020 and was at 5.3 percent in December, according to FRED. But this is slightly higher than the national unemployment rate of 3.7 percent and a full percent higher than it was right before the pandemic hit in February 2020.
But analysts say that the Super Bowl, which tends to incorporate days of events that attracts tourists and football fans across the country leading up to the game on Sunday, will be a boon for the city's local economy.
Some estimates suggests that the cost of attending the Super Bowl, which includes a ticket, flights, hotel, daily expenses, and memorabilia, could come to more than $10,000.
"Tourism spending increases as a result of visitors from all over the world flocking into the metro to watch the game, either at the stadium or one of many bars, restaurants or casinos," Wells Fargo economists said in a note shared with Newsweek.
Those visitors will be welcomed in the city as they are likely to push up occupancy rate that are struggling to recover from the COVID shocks.
Wells Fargo economists point out that the 12-month average occupancy rate
was at about 78 percent in September 2023, below the 81 percent levels seen at the same time in 2019. But in a sign of some progress, that September rate was 4.3
percentage points up from the previous year.
One thing that has happened post-pandemic is Las Vegas is trying to diversify its local economy beyond just tourism, Wells Fargo economists say.
"[Las Vegas] is aiming to become a hub for technology and business services, sectors which have seen robust hiring growth recently," they noted. "Las Vegas and the state of Nevada as a whole have also benefited from the 'affordability migration' toward Sun Belt metros with lower costs of living. Vegas's growing population has fueled hiring in health and education services, which rose strongly over the year."
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Omar Mohammed is a Newsweek reporter based in the Greater Boston area. His focus is reporting on the Economy and ... Read more
