Irsay Says Los Angeles Could Host 2016 Super Bowl Even Without Its Own Team

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay raised the possibility that Los Angeles could host the Super Bowl in 2016, despite having gone without a team since 1995. Irsay has a home in the area and serves on the NFL's Super Bowl Committee. He discussed the possibility in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.

Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, a member of the league's Super Bowl committee, raised the possibility of L.A. playing host to that landmark game.

"In L.A., it's there for the taking," Irsay, who spends a lot of time here and is a member of Riviera Country Club, said in a telephone interview.

"People there are going to have to make it happen, make it work. But I know right now people are ready to put their time and effort into making this work."

There is a historical reason for staging that game in L.A. The first Super Bowl, pitting Kansas City and Green Bay, was played at the Coliseum in January 1967. In the years that followed, one more Super Bowl was played at the Coliseum, and five were played at the Rose Bowl.

The full story is here.

Better luck next time?

Dallas won the 2011 Super Bowl by a narrow vote, but was it close enough to give Indianapolis a leg up to win the 2012 game? The experts think Indy should give it a shot. Check out this story from Indianapolis Business Journal:

City boosters emerged after the decision disappointed but not deflated. The vote in the final balloting was as close as it could be-17-15, according to Colts owner Jim Irsay.
Indianapolis held its own against a competitor with a larger stadium in a bigger market, factors that gave Dallas' bid an estimated $23 million edge.
"I spoke with a whole lot of owners after the vote, and this was close," said Marc Ganis, president of Chicago-based consultancy Sportscorp Ltd., which works closely with several NFL teams. "Even people who voted for Dallas said Indianapolis was close."
And that, he said, speaks volumes about the city's ability to win the big one eventually. His advice: Get back in the game as soon as possible.

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