After a long, hard-fought battle for the Cleveland Browns, the struggling franchise was finally able to have its official groundbreaking ceremony for the new stadium that will be ready in 2029 on Thursday evening.
While there have been plenty of disputes regarding a new stadium for the organization, owner Jimmy Haslam was able to finally put the plan into motion, as the construction of a new stadium for the Browns will begin in Brook Park. And while many fans are excited about the team having a dome in the near future, the possibilities for new events to occur in the city could be an incredible draw in the coming years.
During the groundbreaking ceremony, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell discussed multiple events that could take place in the Browns’ newest stadium, including another NFL Draft and a potential Super Bowl.
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What did Rodger Goodell say on Thursday evening?
One of the largest attractions in Cleveland over the past few years was the 2021 NFL Draft, which the Browns hosted. Since the NFL Draft has quickly become a massive event in the city, Goodell said he “looks forward” to its return to Cleveland.
“Jimmy [Haslam] and I have talked about [the draft], and we’ve talked about it with our committees,” Goodell stated on Thursday evening. “We look forward to having the draft come back here, for sure.”
In addition to his remarks about the NFL Draft making a return to the city, Goodell also hinted at the possibility that Cleveland could host a Super Bowl in the future, depending on the development of the community.
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“On the Super Bowl, I have no doubt that this stadium will be Super Bowl-ready, zero doubt about that,” Goodell claimed. “I think the challenge now for this community, and hopefully this stadium and this development, is going to be transformative, is how the rest of the facilities and their community develop because we got 75,000 people coming to the Super Bowl, but it’s close to 200,000 people coming in, so airports, hotels, we have potential needs of close to 50,000 or 60,000.”
While the Browns were fortunate enough to host an NFL Draft recently, Cleveland has never hosted a Super Bowl. This is partly because the city has yet to reach the point of having enough resources to handle a massive crowd, along with the horrific weather in the month of February. However, with the new stadium featuring a dome, this now gives the franchise the unique opportunity to host one of the most important sporting events at some point in the future.
This article originally appeared on Browns Wire: Rodger Goodell discusses plans for NFL Draft, Super Bowl in Cleveland
