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Not too long ago, we were extolling Las Vegas as a prime host of NFL, having landed this year’s Super Bowl LVII , as well as the 2022 NFL Draft, the 2022 Pro Bowl and the significantly altered format of the 2023 Pro Bowl Games.
But now here comes Atlanta, which not only has been tapped to host Super Bowl LXII in 2028 but also a series of other marquee sporting events between 2025 and 2031. They include the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship, the 2025 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, multiple matches of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup (a new international competition), eight matches of the FIFA World Cup 2026™ (including a semifinal) and the 2031 NCAA Men’s Final Four.
All of them, save one, will be held at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, home of the NFL’s Atlanta Falcons and Major League Soccer’s Atlanta United FC. MLB’s All-Star Game will be played at Truist Park, home of the Braves.
“This is a huge statement about this community, the leadership in both the public and private sectors,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told Front Office Sports in mid-October, after the league’s owners voted unanimously to bring the Super Bowl back to Georgia’s capital city. “Atlanta has been known on a global basis as a city that can make things happen.”
This will be the fourth time Atlanta welcomes a Super Bowl; the others were Super Bowl XXVIII (1994) and Super Bowl XXXIV (2000) — both in the Georgia Dome — and Super Bowl LIII (2019) at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“There’s a lot of things that go into the decision of where a Super Bowl is going to be, and this really shows [the league’s] belief in our franchise, their belief in the city, their belief in the stadium and their belief in our ability to support another Super Bowl,” Falcons owner Arthur Blank told Front Office Sports.
Meanwhile, the FIFA Club World Cup, which will be held next June and July, will be the largest stand-alone global club football event ever staged, with the best 32 clubs from all over the world participating and representing each of the six international confederations: AFC, CAF, Concacaf, CONMEBOL, OFC and UEFA. Matches and exact dates are expected to be determined in December, when the draw is set.
“Being named a host city for FIFA’s Club World Cup in 2025 is yet another great accomplishment for our city,” Dan Corso, president of the Atlanta Sports Council and Atlanta World Cup Host Committee, said in a statement. “Our region continues to build its reputation as a global destination for international soccer events, and this will be a great way to celebrate being one year out from hosting the FIFA World Cup 2026.”
Speaking of which, the dates of the World Cup group stage matches in Atlanta will be June 15, 18, 21, 24 and 27, 2026. The round of 32 match will be July 1, the round of 16 on July 7 and the semifinal will take place on July 15. The tournament draw will take place in December 2025.
Hosting the FIFA World Cup 2026 will continue to build upon Atlanta’s growing legacy as the epicenter of soccer in the United States, according to Discover Atlanta officials. Atlanta United FC launched as the most successful expansion franchise in MLS history since beginning play in 2017, they say, and the team holds nearly every attendance record and has won every major trophy in the league. What’s more, U.S. Soccer is building the first-ever National Training Center just south of the city in Fayette County, which will be the new headquarters for all U.S. Soccer teams, coaches, referees and players.
An economic impact analysis conducted by the Boston Consulting Group during the initial World Cup bid process in 2017-18 found that the tournament is expected to contribute $5 billion in new economic activity. Of that, $415 million alone is estimated to benefit Atlanta, according to Discover Atlanta.
Meanwhile, Atlanta on Jan. 6 will host the CFP National Championship for the second time in less than a decade (the first was in 2018), and next summer will be the third time for Atlanta to welcome MLB’s All-Star Game — but the first at Truist Field. And the 2031 Final Four will be the sixth one Atlanta was awarded, including the canceled event in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The city also will host the 2025 NCAA Men’s Basketball Division I Southeast Regional in March.
No wonder Atlanta ranked fourth on this year’s Sports Business Journal’s list of “Best Sports Business Cities” for event hosting — behind only Orlando at No. 1, Las Vegas at No. 2 and Los Angeles at No. 3. Indianapolis rounded out the top five. The editors cited not just Mercedes-Benz Stadium and Truist Field, but a host of other venues that make the city so appealing:
The city’s venue portfolio, among the best in sports, includes Mercedes-Benz Stadium and Truist Park (both opened in 2017); State Farm Arena (a $192.5 million renovation wrapped up in 2018); Gateway Center Arena at College Park, home of the WNBA Atlanta Dream and NBA G League College Park Skyhawks (2019); and Georgia Tech’s 1,900-seat McAuley Aquatic Center, which was built for the 1996 Summer Olympics and has hosted many NCAA and ACC swimming and diving championships. Additionally, the Georgia World Congress Center (the world’s largest LEED-certified convention center) and the Georgia International Convention Center combine for two million square feet of exhibit space, trailing only Las Vegas, Chicago and Orlando for the most such space in a city.
The city with the busiest airport in the U.S. also boasts a current hotel construction pipeline of 151 projects, or 18,730 rooms (only Dallas has more ongoing projects), according to Lodging Econometrics. The 976-room Signia by Hilton, owned by the Georgia World Congress Center Authority, opened in January next to Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The hotel’s 40,000-square-foot ballroom is the largest in Georgia, and there are now 13,000 hotel rooms within a mile of the stadium’s campus. Additionally, the U.S. Soccer Federation’s headquarters and 200-acre training center for all 27 of its men’s and women’s national teams is being built about 20 miles from downtown after Atlanta Falcons and United owner Arthur M. Blank announced a $50 million contribution for the project last fall. USSF is relocating from Chicago after more than two decades.
Meanwhile, about one hour north of Atlanta, the Alpharetta Sports & Entertainment Group hopes to bring a National Hockey League franchise back to the metro area. It would be the third, after the Flames (1972-1980) and the Thrashers (1999-2011).
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