Steelers, Pittsburgh issue request to host NFL Draft in 2026, 2027

The NFL Draft now is a three-day football festival. And the Steelers want to host the party.

News broke Thursday that the Steelers and the city of Pittsburgh have placed a request to host all seven rounds of the draft for either the year 2026 or 2027.

Steelers spokesperson Burt Lauten confirmed the desire of the team and the city to stage the 2026 or 2027 draft in Pittsburgh.

“We believe our city will be an excellent host to showcase the great history that connects Western Pennsylvania to the early roots of professional football and the evolution of the game through the decades,” Steelers spokesman Burt Lauten said in a statement to the media

“The NFL draft will draw hundreds of thousands of fans and out-of-town visitors,” Lauten said. “And we look forward to working with local and state officials and community leaders to ensure we craft a successful bid to host the 2026 or 2027 NFL draft.”

Steelers and city officially alert NFL they want to host NFL draft in 2026 or 2027. https://t.co/v5RBW21wjo

— Gerry Dulac (@gerrydulac) November 30, 2023

Detroit and the Lions host the draft next April, followed by Green Bay and the Packers.

For decades, the NFL conducted its annual draft in New York City. It made sense to keep it there, since the league offices were there as well. Fans could watch the draft on TV for the first time in 1980. But the NFL decided to bring the draft to different NFL cities starting in 2015,

NFL Draft cities serving as hosts to festivities

2015	Chicago
2016	Chicago
2017	Philadelphia
2018	Dallas
2019	Nashville
2020	Virtual
2021	Cleveland
2022	Las Vegas
2023	Kansas City
2024	Detroit
2025	Green Bay

Steelers will stage draft near Acrisure Stadium

So why host? Well, it’s worth a ton of money. You probably watched this year’s draft, which came live from Union Station in Kansas City. It’s where commissioner Roger Goodell introducted Bryce Young as the first pick of the draft. There were Steelers fans on hand to cheer on Georgia offensive tackle Broderick Jones, Pittsburgh’s first rounder.

Jerad Bachar, president and CEO of VisitPITTSBURGH, told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette that hosting the draft could generate an economic impact of up to $160 million on the city.

The KC Sports Commission said the city’s impact this April was a $164 million.

“That’s substantial, having an impact like that for our city and our other businesses,” Bachar told the Post-Gazette.

But where would the draft be if the Steelers landed the show, which stretches from Thursday through Saturday. The current plan would be to stage the draft near the Steelers home place, Acrisure Stadium. However, it wouldn’t be inside the stadium.

The Steelers should learn fairly early next season whether they’ll host. In the meantime, the city will send a delegation to Detroit during next April’s draft.