Published on: November 12, 2025, 11:15 AM.
Updated on: November 12, 2025, 11:34 AM.
- Las Vegas has received low ratings in a survey of top Sports Cities
- Las Vegas remains committed to sports
- The Oakland A’s are set to move to Southern Nevada
In the last ten years, Las Vegas has heavily invested in sports, attracting teams like the NFL’s Raiders and WNBA’s Aces, and launching the NHL’s expansion team, the Golden Knights. Southern Nevada recently hosted Super Bowl LIVIII and is expected to host this event again in the future. Allegiant Stadium is also scheduled to hold the Final Four in 2028.
Even though Southern Nevada has hosted numerous significant events and is home to two of the “big four” sports teams, with a potential third from the relocating MLB’s Athletics, a new survey suggests Las Vegas is still not recognized as a major sports city.
Spoiler alert: Las Vegas’s performance is lackluster.
In its quest to identify premier sports cities, researchers at WalletHub examined data from 399 cities based on over 50 criteria involving football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and hockey to rank the “Best Sports Cities.”
Las Vegas Falls Short
WalletHub found that sports enthusiasts have better choices than Las Vegas, despite the multitude of top-tier sportsbooks in the area.
Las Vegas ranked 25th for the Best Sports Cities, with a disappointing 203rd position in basketball dragging down its overall score. The city’s rankings are 23rd for football, 69th for baseball, 42nd for soccer, and 22nd for hockey.
The rankings for football and hockey are surprising, as Allegiant Stadium has become a haven for fans traveling to watch their NFL teams. The venue hosted the February 2024 Super Bowl, where the Kansas City Chiefs triumphed over the San Francisco 49ers in a thrilling 25-22 overtime game. Allegiant is also set to host the College Football Playoff National Championship on January 25, 2027.
Regarding ice hockey, the Vegas Golden Knights made an impressive debut by reaching the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural 2020-21 season, winning the Cup just two years later. The team has made the playoffs in four of the last five seasons, quickly rising to be one of the most popular franchises in the NHL.
Las Vegas achieved an overall score of 28.75, falling short of Tampa (29.19), Buffalo (29.25), Indianapolis (29.68), and Houston (30.29).
Boston tops the list as the “Best Sports City” with a score of 49.93, followed by top contenders like Los Angeles (49.45), Pittsburgh (48.38), New York (47.86), and Dallas (44.82). No city surpassed 40 points, with Philadelphia trailing at sixth with a score of 39.76.
Athletics on the Move
John Fisher, heir to the Gap retail brand, aims to follow the Raiders by relocating his Oakland Athletics from the San Francisco Bay Area to Southern Nevada. Fisher is optimistic about the A’s playing their inaugural game near the Strip on Opening Day of the MLB in 2028.
Concerns regarding the ballpark’s funding persist, as plans are focused on the site where the Tropicana once stood until its demolition in late 2024. Preliminary preparations for the site are currently underway.