During the rancorous debate over public subsidies for the Q’s current expansion — about which please don’t hesitate to read up — the promise of an All-Star game was a prominent talking point among the deal’s proponents. At the time, winning the rights to host the festivities in 2020 or 2021 was said to be a lock if arena construction began on time. The NBA, for its part, said that if construction began on or before Sep. 15, 2017, Cleveland could still be considered, but that winning the game in 2020 or 2021 was by no means a guarantee.
Chicago and Indianapolis were thereafter selected, and it looked like Boston was the favorite for 2022, but Boston ultimately elected not to put forth a bid. As Kleps notes, Cleveland last hosted the All-Star Game in 1997, and 2022 would mark the 25th anniversary.
In 2018, the NBA All-Star weekend was held in Los Angeles and was estimated to have produced $116 million in spending, including 27,000 nights booked at L.A. Hotels. $100 million had been the round number that local leaders were throwing around as the projected economic impact for the event in Cleveland.
Cleveland will host the MLB All-Star Game in 2019 — projected economic impact: ~$60 million — and continues to seek an upcoming NFL Draft.
This article appears in Oct 24-30, 2018.
