Scottsdale will host the Historic Old Town ESPN Main Street Tailgate — a five-day Old West-style football pre-game party — in the days leading to the Super Bowl.
The free event will run from Wednesday, February 8, to Super Bowl Sunday, February 12, in Old Town Scottsdale on Main Street between Scottsdale Road and Brown Avenue.
Additionally, multiple ESPN programs like “NFL Live” and “Sunday NFL Countdown” will be shot live from the Historic Old Town, near the renovated Civic Center.
That’s good news for city tourism officials and the Scottsdale Civic Center, which will be mostly complete with its expansive renovation by the time ESPN rolls into town.
“Scottsdale will be the stage for ESPN’s broadcasts during one of the busiest sports weeks of the year,” Mayor David Ortega says. “Historic Old Town is the ideal showcase — the perfect blend of historic Southwestern charm and modern appeal.
“Residents and visitors alike will love the ESPN experience located on Main Street surrounded by our vibrant arts and world-class shopping and dining.”
The sentiment was echoed by Scottsdale Arts CEO and President Dr. Gerd Wuestemann, who will manage the Civic Center once most of the construction is completed in late January.
“I couldn’t be more excited about it. I think it’s a wonderful opportunity for all of us in Scottsdale, and we’re just thrilled to play a tiny part in this,” Wuestemann says.
Wuestemann says he has been working on hosting a Super Bowl event at the art campus for nearly four years.
“My first involvement with the Super Bowl predates me being in this job,” Wuestemann recalls. “After I was offered the job around February 2018, I was asked if I would write a letter to support this whole thing for us to apply it to the Arizona Super Bowl host committee and play a role in it.
“As soon as I started here, we were touring this campus with people and I said ‘We want to renovate this’ and, in the end, what ESPN was wanting to have was on one side this amazing cutaway shot of Old Town and this Western ambiance and then to the other side have this glimpse into the new Civic Center with this beautifully renovated spaces.”
Karen Churchard, Scottsdale’s director of tourism and events, confirmed that this was the vision ESPN had headed into the Valley’s third Super Bowl in 15 years.
“In 2008, ESPN was along the canal, and in 2015 they selected Scottsdale Fashion Square because they wanted the background of Camelback Mountain. But this year they liked Main Street specifically between Brown Avenue in Scottsdale Road in Historic Old Town that has the facades of the Western buildings, some cacti, feels quaint and has that Western feel,” Churchard says.
Upping the ante, entertainment and events with live music acts like Gary Sprague — Arizona’s Singing Cowboy, Arizona Music & Entertainment Hall of Fame member Mark Zubia, Jesse Valenzuela of the Gin Blossoms, and Desert Dixie.
Other acts like the Bronze Cowboy living statue and Johnny Hotshot — a trick roper and gunslinger — will perform throughout the week in between tapings for ESPN’s programming.
Because of this, several surrounding businesses are expected to expand their premises.
Churchard says she reviewed 20 special event applications, mostly from bars and restaurants.
Churchard, Wuestemann and Downtown business owners are bracing for big crowds come February.
“If we land these two events, each of those events will be about 7000 people on campus for a couple of days each and then we also anticipate spillover traffic of 2,000 to 3,000 people every day on this campus throughout this entire stretch,” Wuestemann says.
“We’re talking probably in the neighborhood of 30,000 or so people trafficking this new Civic Center and discovering it in those five or six days ESPN is here on-site.”
Churchard says she and her team have been in close contact with the Scottsdale Police Department to ensure that the crowds stay controlled and patrons stay safe.
“We’ve had a lot of great conversations with our police department and Chief Jeff Walther since the focal point during that time of the year has always been the WM Phoenix Open as well as the entertainment district, because those are the two biggest places where the most people are congregating at one time,” Churchard says.
“In the case of ESPN, we’re working with that entity to hire their security to manage that space, as our police department is pretty maxed out with the Open and the entertainment district.”
The Historic Old Town ESPN Main Street Tailgate will run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, February 8, to Sunday, February 12.
“The bars and restaurants that are in the historic town area are excited about this opportunity to have ESPN there,” Churchard says.
ESPN Main Street Tailgate
WHEN: 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, February 8, to Sunday, February 12 (8 a.m. to noon on gam eday)
WHERE: Old Town Scottsdale on Scottsdale Road between Main Street and Brown Avenue, Scottsdale
COST: Free
INFO: azsuperbowl.com/events
