Pro Bowl will stay in Hawai'i through '09
By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
It's official, the Pro Bowl will remain in Hawai'i through 2009.
Tickets for the 2005 Pro Bowl at Aloha Stadium will go on sale today at 9 a.m. They can be obtained at: Ticketmaster outlets: Aloha Stadium box office, Blaisdell Center box office, Times Super Markets, Panda Travel (Downtown and Kapahulu), BYU-Hawai'i ticket office, and Mokihana Travel. ONLINE: ticketmaster.com PHONE: (877) 750-4400. Prices: Range from $30 to $150.
A new contract was signed this week by the state and the NFL, keeping the all-star football game at Aloha Stadium for at least the next five years.
Pro Bowl tickets on sale
"We've had a 25-year relationship with Hawai'i," said Jim Steeg, the NFL senior vice president for special events. "It wasn't hard for us to say, let's make it 30."
The Pro Bowl has been played at Aloha Stadium every year since 1980.
Steeg described the new contract as "a win-win-win situation for everybody involved."
Most significant, the Pro Bowl will come at a lower cost to the state. Steeg did not have specific figures, but estimated that the new deal will cost the state $21 million over the five years of the contract, an average of $4.2 million per year.
The state paid more than $5.3 million for the 2004 Pro Bowl.
In exchange for the lower payout, the NFL will be allowed to control the concessions, parking and advertising signage at Aloha Stadium during the Pro Bowl.
"For our merchandise, that means we'll offer a more diverse product line," Steeg said. "We also want to do something more with the food concessions — create more selection, more points of sale."
The stadium lost control of the concessions and parking under the new contract, but will still receive a contribution from the NFL.
According to Steeg, the NFL will pay $250,000 per year for the next five years for "capital improvement of the stadium."
Steeg said the NFL will also donate $1 million for the creation of an NFL Youth Education Town — educational and recreational facilities for at-risk children.
A tentative agreement to keep the Pro Bowl in Hawai'i was reached in February, and then unanimously approved by the NFL owners in May. This week's completion of the contract was the final step to securing the game.
Hawai'i Tourism Authority officials have estimated that the Pro Bowl brings in 18,000 visitors to Hawai'i, accounting for more than $25 million in visitor spending.
Twenty-four of the 25 Pro Bowl games in Hawai'i have been sellouts.
The 2005 Pro Bowl is scheduled for Feb. 13, and will be televised live nationally on ESPN.
Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.
