Page 66 - Las Vegas Golf & Leisure Magazine Spring 2020

SPORTS

Speaking of thriving, let’s check out the ice around Las Las Vegas Aces guard Kelsey Plum driving to the net with a layup.
David Becker / Getty Images
Vegas. The National Hockey League was the first to
fully adopt Vegas as a viable stop with the Vegas Golden
Knights coming into existence in 2017. The team got off to
a start that would be the envy of any fiction writer. They
played in the Stanley Cup finals in its first year of play.
The team plays in front of sold-out fans every single night
and the enthusiasm seems to be ramping up even more in
this third season.

You can also add the Golden Knights’ AHL franchise to
the list of professional teams that will be calling Las Vegas
(or in this case, Henderson) home in the near future. The
WNBA took a leap of faith and the Aces came to town in
2017. Will the NBA test the Vegas market? There’s been
plenty of talk, and the NBA All-Star game was held here in
2007, the only time it’s been held in a city without an NBA
franchise. Stay tuned.

Now it’s the NFL’s turn to put Vegas on the map with the
Las Vegas Raiders taking the field at Allegiant Stadium
in the fall of 2020 and bringing the enthusiasm of big-
time football to Vegas. If you’re a fan of another NFL team,
here’s your chance to see the action up close and personal.
If you’re a Raiders fan, this one in your wheelhouse. They’ve
tried Oakland and Los Angeles and then Oakland for a sec-
ond stint before the latest move to the bright lights and
enthusiastic fans of Las Vegas.

While we’re talking football, let’s talk futbol—as in soccer,
as in the Las Vegas Lights. The Lights joined the Vegas
sports landscape in 2018 and play in the USL Championship
League. Their coach, if you follow soccer, is Eric Wynalda.
He’s a legend in the sport and also claims the distinction of
scoring the first goal in MLS history back in 1998.

Now before you say those sports don’t mean professional
sports make Las Vegas a hotbed, let’s add a few more to
the mix and see if we can change your mind. Remember,
it doesn’t have to be one of the big-four to qualify as a pro-
fessional sport. It just needs to be professional athletes
earning a living and chasing dreams.

What better place to chase those dreams than Las Vegas.
How about NASCAR? The Las Vegas Motor Speedway is
now home to two races a year, and that’s just the big boys.

64 LAS VEGAS GOLF & LEISURE SPRING 2020 www.lasvegasgolfandleisure.com