Allegiant Stadium, the host of the 2024 Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco 49ers, is a very beautiful place.
Thanks to Raiders owner Mark Davis, the stadium also happens to have a nickname inspired by the Star Wars film series. That is because the first time Davis welcomed the players to the stadium back in 2020, he referred to it as the Death Star. Via ESPN, he said:
“Welcome to the Death Star, where our opponents’ dreams come to die.”
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ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez said that he told Davis that the Death Star was blown up multiple times throughout the Star Wars series. But that didn’t matter at all to Davis, who still thinks the $1.9 billion stadium bared a resemblance to the Death Star due to its sleek black and grey facade.
Despite the unfortunate fate of the Death Star in the Star Wars movies, this nickname is an identity that the team has embraced. During NFL games as recently as this season, the video board at the stadium has read “Welcome to the Death Star” with players holding light sabers.
Jon Gruden, who was the head coach of the Raiders (for the second time) from 2018 until 2021, said that it was a “cool name” for the stadium and that he did not “give a damn” about Star Wars.
Johnathan Abram, a former safety for the Raiders, also described the stadium as the Death Star when he discussed it with NFL.com’s Ian Rapaport.
Even if you think this place looks more like a giant Roomba vacuum, the team has landed on The Death Star as its chosen nickname.
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