The National Football League officially announced Wednesday morning that Super Bowl LVII will be held in Arizona in 2023.
The announcement came by league Commissioner Roger Goodell at the NFL Owners Meetings in Atlanta. The owners voted unanimously to award University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale the game in 2023.
Arizona Cardinals team president Michael Bidwill said he is thrilled about the unanimous vote.
"We look forward to making this the most fan-friendly Super Bowl in the history of Super Bowls," Bidwill said, "and bigger and better than any Super Bowl."
While the game and its surrounding events, which will include the Pro Bowl, won’t take place for four and a half years, Glendale City Manager Kevin Phelps says preparations are already underway.
“We still have some work to do within the city of Glendale with our hotels and venues to add to the experience, add to the amount of available rooms, but we like where we’re at.”
Other Valley cities are likely to see a large influx of visitors for the game and surrounding events. Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey, who was also on hand in Atlanta for the announcement, is eager for the extra tax revenue:
"We couldn't be happier to do this," Ducey said. "This is a tremendous economic impact for the state of Arizona."
Arizona State University’s W.P. Carey School of Business estimates that in 2015, Super Bowl 49 generated an economic impact of more than 719 million dollars, the most for any special event in the state history.
This will be the fourth Super Bowl to be played in Arizona, after Super Bowl XXX in 1996 at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe, and Super Bowl XLII in 2008 and Super Bowl XLIX in 2015, both at University of Phoenix Stadium.
The league also announced that New Orleans will host Super Bowl LVIII in 2024. Before Arizona hosts its next Super Bowl, the game will be held in Atlanta, Miami, Tampa and Los Angeles over the next four years.