New York Mets owner Steve Cohen is back in the headlines, and it has nothing to do with his team or getting steam rolled by GameStop apes. This time Cohen is in the headlines for proposing a historical addition to NYM home stadium Citi Field that can very well change the landscape for Major League Baseball stadiums nationwide if it works out. Cohen wants Citi Field to be the first field to have a casino directly across from the stadium.
What may seem as a longshot, Cohen is receiving support from local politicians include Mayor Adams who has mentioned he was willing to listen to any proposals Cohen has when Cohen hosted Adams at the field back in January. With the new state budget being discussed, awarding casino permits in NYC has been a huge topic of discussion making this more realistic than some may think. There have also been reports dating back to October 2021 that Cohens company Point 72 Asset Management has been in talks with Las Vegas Sands about teaming up to create the casino.
Why I like this idea:
1) Cohen is a multi-billionaire that has purchased the Mets for 2.4 billion, the most an owner has ever paid for a MLB team, showing hes got plenty of capital behind him especially with all the road blocks he is going to face by the state in putting this casino up
2) There are currently not a lot of options for New Yorkers to hit the casino. New York, New York is the most densely populated city in the world with over 8.8 million people living there. The next closest is Los Angelos, California with only 3.9 million. There are currently less than 10 casinos in NYC and 0 in Queens where Citi Field is located. If Cohen was able to make this happen, the foot traffic would be extraordinary and I believe it would boost attendance at Mets games giving people the opportunity to catch a game in addition to going to a casino a stones throw away.
3) While the Mets look like they have some potential this year to be good, they have been largely disappointing the past couple years. Attendance has been down significantly since 2006-2010 era and adding a casino could help to revitalize the area and create a ton of jobs for people especially those still struggling to recover from the pandemic.
With Sports Gambling adaptation on the rise throughout the United States especially NY, it is very possible we see politicians use this as an opportunity to boost recovery efforts and make this idea a reality. This has some serious potential to bring some life to Queens could turn out to be the ultimate post-game hangout spot for Mets fans.
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