It Happened in Vegas: Sports and Sin City Through the Years
1953
The PGA Tour comes to Vegas when the Tournament of Champions debuts at the Desert Inn Country Club.
1955
Archie Moore beats Nino Valdés to take a heavyweight title—the first marquee fight in what became boxing’s unofficial home city.
1964
In Vegas’s first pro football game, the Oakland Raiders beat the Houston Oilers in an AFL preseason matchup at Cashman Field.
1973
The Shark arrives: UNLV hires Jerry Tarkanian.
Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame coach Tarkanian became head coach at UNLV in 1973.
Ken Levine/Getty Images
1976
Lefty Rosenthal opens the first Vegas sportsbook, at the Stardust casino.
1977
The NASL’s Las Vegas Quicksilvers debut; the franchise moves to San Diego after one season.
1981
Formula One arrives on the Strip: The Caesars Palace Grand Prix runs in ’81 and ’82, but F1 doesn’t return to Sin City until 2023.
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1983
The Las Vegas Stars are born, bringing Triple A baseball to town.
1984
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar breaks the NBA’s all-time scoring record at the Thomas & Mack Center, then the temporary home of the Utah Jazz because of poor attendance in Salt Lake City.
On April 5, 1984, the Lakers' Abdul-Jabbar scored the 31,420th point of his career to break the NBA's all-time scoring record held by Wilt Chamberlain.
Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE/Getty Images
1990
In his third trip to the Final Four, Tarkanian finally gets his ring when UNLV destroys Duke in the NCAA final.
1992
The Las Vegas Bowl is created; Bowling Green beats Nevada 35—34.
1994
The Las Vegas Posse debut in the CFL; they fold after one season.
1996
The A’s start the MLB season with six games at Cashman Field while Oakland Coliseum is being renovated; they go 2–4 there.
1996
Las Vegas Motor Speedway opens, soon making the city an annual stop on the NASCAR Cup series.
In 1996, a new $72 million superspeedway opened in Las Vegas.
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1996
Tiger Woods, 20, gets his first pro victory at the Las Vegas Invitational.
2001
The Las Vegas Outlaws defeat the New York/New Jersey Hitmen—and Rod “He Hate Me” Smart becomes a star—in the first XFL game, at Sam Boyd Stadium.
2004
The NBA Summer League launches, with six teams playing at the Thomas & Mack Center.
2017–18
The NHL’s Vegas era dawns: The Golden Knights make a run to the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season.
2018
The WNBA’s Las Vegas Aces play their first game, at Mandalay Bay.
The Aces won back-to-back WNBA titles in 2022 and ’23, giving Las Vegas its first pro championship.
Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
2020
Allegiant Stadium opens, and the Raiders begin their Vegas residency with a win on Monday Night Football.
2022
At the first Vegas NFL draft, the red carpet floats outside the Bellagio.
2022
The top-seeded Aces win the WNBA title, giving the city its first major pro championship.
2023
The Golden Knights make it two titles for Vegas with a Stanley Cup win; the Aces repeat to make it three.
2023
The Nevada legislature approves public funding for a $1.5 billion stadium on the Strip, paving the way for the A’s to relocate from Oakland.
