NCAA officials coming to Phoenix to explore another Final Four host bid
May 29, 2018, 7:58 AM | Updated: 11:19 am
A fan takes a pictures outside of University of Phoenix Stadium before the finals of the Final Four NCAA college basketball tournament between Gonzaga and North Carolina, Monday, April 3, 2017, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
(AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
PHOENIX — A year after Arizona hosted its first Final Four, NCAA officials were scheduled to be in Phoenix this week to explore the state’s bid for another college basketball championship.
NCAA representatives, including Southland Conference Commissioner Tom Burnett, will tour hotels and proposed sites for ancillary events in downtown Phoenix on Wednesday.
The Phoenix Local Organizing Committee, the nonprofit that worked to bring the Final Four to University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale in April 2017, wants the Valley to host the event again in 2024, ’25 or ‘26.
According to a study by Arizona State University’s W.P Carey School of Business, the 2017 Final Four generated more than $324 million in economic impact for the Phoenix area.
RELATED STORIES
More than 150,000 people attended the national semifinal and championship basketball games in Glendale, making the event the second most-attended in the series’ history. More than 50,000 fans went to the Final Four Fan Fest in downtown Phoenix.
Nationally, 23 million viewers tuned in to watch the University of North Carolina defeat Gonzaga University in the championship game.
Last week, the NFL awarded Super Bowl LVII in 2023 to the Phoenix area. Arizona last hosted the Super Bowl in 2015.
