If you’ve bought tickets to see a big fight, there’s a very good chance that you’ll be heading to Las Vegas to see it. No matter whether it’s boxing, mixed martial arts, or even wrestling, there are always plenty of events taking place in the middle of the Nevada desert.
Of course, it’s not the only place you can watch fighters go toe-to-toe. There are plenty of places in the world and the rest of the United States where matches are hosted such as Jacksonville, Florida but, more often than not, the biggest bouts take place in Vegas.
Why is this and how did it happen? Let’s take a look.
The Rationale for Hosting Combat Sports in Vegas
Through most of the 20th century, Las Vegas had a monopoly on casino gaming. It attracted people from across the United States and the rest of the world who travelled to the city to enjoy traditional games like blackjack, roulette, and the more modern offering of slot machines.
Towards the end of the century Vegas was beginning to face competition from other cities both at home and abroad. Atlantic City was one of the first of these, with officials there hoping to create a “Las Vegas of the East” on its famous boardwalk. Other cities like China’s Macau also got in on the action, becoming a regional hub for casino gaming.
Today, that competition still exists but players can now also enjoy casino games from the comfort of their own homes thanks to the internet. Their options are broader online too, with thousands of different titles to choose from, including Lightning Fortunes, Spin and Win, and Power Play Gold.
Fans can also find fantasy sports online, either through dedicated sites or informal competitions organized by people that really love the sport.
To stay relevant in this changing environment, Vegas has opted to diversify its offering.
Combat sports are just one element of this. They complement a wider program of events, activities, and attractions, including some that are offered year round and others that take place periodically.
Vegas’ repertoire of entertainment includes live performances, major league sports teams, conferences, conventions, thrill rides, shopping, and music festivals, all of which helps to attract a different type of visitor.
How Did Vegas Become the Center for Combat Sports?
Vegas hasn’t always been home to combat sports. The spiritual home of boxing was New York in a time long before the UFC had even been dreamed up. Its popularity was helped by live broadcasts of bouts on early TV networks in the US but as rival stations tried to cash in they saturated the market and degraded the quality.
Around the same time, a few scandals also plagued the sport. The two events combined meant it needed a fresh start and Las Vegas helped to provide that.
Although not the first boxing match to take place in Sin City, the 1950 bout between Archie Moore and Nino Valdes was the first step in Vegas becoming the combat capital.
Spotting an opportunity, the casinos began funding the events, realizing that they could make a sizable return on their investment.
This set the stage for UFC to also make Las Vegas its home. This didn’t happen right away with the first event taking place in Denver, Colorado in 1993. It then moved around to other locations as it slowly matured into the competition we know today.
The first to take place in the city was UFC 33: Victory in Vegas in late September 2001. Despite it being somewhat of a damp squib in terms of the action in the octagon, it was the start of a mutually beneficial relationship for the sport and the city.
Today, no city on earth has hosted more UFC events than Las Vegas. It’s put on 192 of the 430 to take place in the United States, more than just about every other country combined.
The infrastructure and funding that Vegas can offer makes it the ideal place to host UFC events. It’s also got the history and prestige that make it a place where fighters want to compete, meaning few places can offer as many big name title bouts.