SALT LAKE CITY — As Utah continues to grow, the state is elevating its position in the national sports landscape.
When the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League needed to find a new home quickly, Utah opened its doors and the Utah Hockey Club was born. The recent announcement awarding the 2034 Olympic Winter Games to Salt Lake City put Utah in the international spotlight.
Utah’s increased relevance in the sports world comes as no surprise to the chair of Southern Utah University’s economics department. “Population is growing, people have money, sports are entertaining,” said Professor David Berri. “This is what happens as you become a bigger and bigger city.”
But is all of this growth enough to eventually attract the National Football League to come to Utah through expansion or relocation?
“The big thing is going to be, can you give us [the NFL] the money that we want,” Berri said.
Aside from finances, cultural aspects could impact any decision to play professional football in Utah. The NFL dominates Sundays in the fall and winter.
Sundays in Utah feature many businesses with closed doors as people use the day to spend time at church or with family. Data from the Salt Lake Bees 2024 season shows a decline in attendance between Saturday and Sunday games. On Saturdays, the Bees averaged more than 8,600 fans. That number dropped below 5,200 on Sundays.
While this comparison isn’t perfect with several different variables like the number of games played, seasons of the year, and level of play – it shows a possible hurdle in any NFL to Utah talk. “I think there's going to have to be some serious discussions with people in Utah. Are you willing to go to a football game on a Sunday,” Berri asked. “If the answer is that a significant part of the population says, ‘I won't consider that,’ well, then that will pretty much kill an NFL team.”
FOX 13 News went to Liberty Park to ask Utahns if they would attend Sunday games. “I would,” answered Christine, a Salt Lake City resident. “But I am not sure others would.”
Mary Jane responded, “We just need to get people to be open to it and change and everybody will come together.”
One man who moved to Utah from another state believes the steady influx of new residents to the state would allow an NFL team to thrive. “In Utah there are so many people here, like me, who are not from Utah,” said Dario, who moved to Salt Lake from Seattle. “They are from the rest of the country.”
While the NFL in Utah is just a dream at this point, it isn’t out of the realm of possibility in the distant future. FOX 13 News asked Prof. Berri if he could envision NFL games played on Sundays in the Beehive State. “Sure, absolutely,” he said. “This is a growing place. This is becoming a bigger and bigger place.”
