NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Green Bay hosting 2025 NFL draft: 'I can't think of a better place'
GREEN BAY – NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, who is used to getting booed by football fans ― It's become sort of a thing — slipped up once Monday and got a hearty cheer instead.
Goodell who was at Lambeau Field to talk about Green Bay hosting the NFL draft in 2025, mentioned how many TV viewers the draft attracts.
"We have been getting closer to 70 million. We want to see the Green Bay Super Bowl get 70 million," he said, then quickly tried to correct himself, but not before the more than 125 people gathered in the Johnsonville Tailgate Village broke out in cheering and clapping.
The NFL in May selected Green Bay to host the 90th NFL draft, which will be in late April or early May 2025. Goodell was in town to meet sponsors and potential sponsors of the event, which it is estimated will cost the host committee at least $7.5 million. The Green Bay Packers, who are spearheading the project, contributed $1 million to the cause, and the state approved $2 million during the last legislative session.
Estimates are that the draft will draw 250,000 visitors over three days and generate $90 million in economic benefit for the state and $20 million locally, to say nothing of the exposure it would give to the state and region.
"It's going to be a two-year-long commercial about the benefits of Green Bay and Wisconsin," said Packers President and CEO Mark Murphy.
More: Green Bay named host city for 2025 NFL draft
More: Packers have invested $1 billion this century, thanks in large part to 2003 Lambeau renovation
Green Bay will be the 14th city ever to host the draft, which for most of its existence was held in New York City. This will be the second time the draft will be in Wisconsin. Milwaukee hosted the 1940 draft.
"I can't think of a better place to be able to do that than right here in really what is the heart of football," Goodell said.
The move to cities outside New York beginning in 2015 resulted in the draft becoming the NFL's second-largest event, outside of the Super Bowl. Kansas City reported 320,000 visitors for the 2023 draft held in April, a number typical of what other cities have reported.
"It's grown beyond any of our imaginations," Goodell said.
The 2024 draft will be April 25-27 in Detroit. The 2026 draft host has not been assigned.
Green Bay is the smallest market in the NFL, but it convinced the league it could host the event. Goodell acknowledged that Murphy was among the first to lobby for hosting the draft when the NFL decided in 2015 to put the show on the road.
"Everybody knows your love of football, but this is a chance to talk about the fact that you really do know how to do big events. You really do have a tremendous pride in this community well beyond football. And you should," Goodell said.
Monday's daylong rain deprived fans of the opportunity to see the commissioner participate in Green Bay's training camp tradition of riding a bicycle from Lambeau Field to the Ray Nitschke practice field east of Oneida Street.
More: How the Green Bay Packers bike tradition began, evolved over 60 years
Weather was a little on the commissioner's mind. He said snow during the draft would not be unwelcomed.
"The real beauty of it, it's a chance for you to put your community on the biggest stage. We think that's the real opportunity here for you all," he said. "Everyone is going to see Green Bay. They may see it with some snow, maybe not some snow. I don't know. We'd be happy to see a little snow, personally."
File that under be careful what you wish for.
Contact Richard Ryman at rryman@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @RichRymanPG, on Instagram at @rrymanPG or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RichardRymanPG/.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: NFL commissioner: 2025 draft will put Green Bay on 'the biggest stage'
