Linking Casinos to Olympic Bids

Chicago attorney Tim Epstein, who in January blogged here on Chicago's Olympic bid, had a related letter to the editor published by Crain's Chicago Business this week. Crain's shortened it quite a bit, but here is the original:

Could Gaming Help Chicago become an "Olympic" Kind of Town?

Is 2016 Chicago’s best chance at getting the Olympics since 1904? The 1904 games were given to Chicago, then taken away and given to St. Louis to coincide with the World’s Fair. While the U.S. Olympic Committee has yet to make any decisions on whether an American city will even be nominated to host the 2016 Games, Jim Scherr, CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee, stated in a press conference in Chicago that “[Chicago would] not only be an excellent host for an Olympic Games, but would have an opportunity to be a successful bidder if it chose to bid and if we chose to run.”

The biggest impediment to the Windy City’s bid: not having an appropriate venue for Opening and Closing Ceremonies (labeled as a “non-starter” by U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman, Peter Uberroth). Hosting the Olympics requires a venue that would seat at least 80,000 people (the recently renovated Soldier Field only holds 61,500). While the Mayor’s exploratory committee would seek out both financial and physical aid in hosting the Summer Games from other cities, states and universities, the “gem” of the ceremonies would most certainly be in Chicago.

The idea has been circulated of possibly bringing in a second NFL franchise to Chicago that would play in a venue constructed for said team’s home games as well as for use in the hosting of the 2016 Games. While the idea of Chicago supporting a second NFL team seems daunting, there is precedent (the Cardinals played in Chicago and the greater metropolitan area until 1960). However, with the Saints staying in New Orleans and Los Angeles next in line for a franchise, maybe City Hall should look to the Steel City for inspiration.

Mellon Arena, home to the Pittsburgh Penguins, is run down as is the surrounding neighborhood, which has great accessibility to downtown Pittsburgh. Mario Lemieux and the rest of the ownership group had threatened to leave the area, but recently announced partnering up with Isle of Capri casinos. If Isle of Capri, which owns fifteen casinos throughout the US, Europe, and the Bahamas, secures the state license to operate a Pittsburgh casino, it would build the casino in the lower Hill District, with a new facility for the Penguins in the same complex (Isle of Capri along with the Penguins is pledging $290 million for the arena). Along with this is a plan for redevelopment of the area. Of note, the Penguins CEO, Ken Sawyer, recently stated that the only way that the Penguins would certainly stay in the area is if “Isle of Capri wins [the license].”

Along with Isle of Capri, two other groups have entered into the bidding process for the Pittsburgh license, PITG Gaming LLC (headed by Don Barden, and supported by Smokey Robinson and Jerome Bettis) and Forest City Enterprises (Harrah’s). PITG has committed $7.5 million a year for 30 years under the alternative plan submitted by Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell. Forest City, supported by Franco Harris, is committed to the Governor’s plan only if the Penguins promise to stay in Pittsburgh.

Could the Pittsburgh proposals not be models for Chicago? It is no secret that Mayor Daley wants a casino in Chicago, so why not combine the ambitions for gaming with The Games? If the facility had a retractable dome, such a venture would not only provide Chicago with a venue necessary for host city consideration, but a site to host events like the Super Bowl, the Final Four, and a college bowl game, all consistent with the Olympic spirit for use after the games (a factor the International Olympic Committee looks to in choosing a host city), not to mention convention space. As to the presence of a casino being anathema to the Olympic spirit, London, which recently won its bid to the host the 2012 Olympic Games over New York City and Paris, has twenty-five casinos.

Timothy Liam Epstein is an attorney with O’Hagan, Smith & Amundsen in Chicago. He is a regular contributor to the national Sports Law Blog. He recently authored, “Splinters from the Bench: Feasibility of Lawsuits by Athletes Against Coaches and Schools for Lack of Playing Time,” published by the University of Virginia School of Law. He is currently working on an article regarding the effects of multipliers and other measures in high school sports.

Tim raises a good point about the presence of casinos in London, and how those casinos did not preclude London from obtaining the 2012 Olympic Games. As to his proposal for a retractable dome in Chicago, it is interesting and doubtlessly controversial. But as he notes, perhaps it could have important future uses, such as in trying to attract another NFL franchise to Chicago or hosting a super bowl.

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