INDIANAPOLIS (WRTV) — Indianapolis has established itself as a premier host city for major sporting events.
The city has welcomed the NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four nine times. It hosted the Super Bowl in February 2012 and the College Football Playoff National Championship in January 2022. Recent events include the 2025 WNBA All-Star Game and 2024 NBA All-Star Game.
The city also hosts annual events like the Big Ten Football Championship and the Indianapolis 500. But one major event remains absent from Indianapolis' resume: the NFL Draft.
"That's something that's long been on our radar, and an event we really think we're in a front position to host," Executive Vice President of Visit Indy Chris Gahl said.
Indianapolis maintains strong NFL ties. The city has hosted the NFL Combine annually since 1987. Officials announced earlier this year that the Combine will continue through at least 2028.
"What that provides us is easy access and routine access to the NFL ownership and the brass to showcase the city and how things are evolving," Gahl said.
Gahl called the Combine hosting arrangement "critical" for pursuing the Draft.
"We do not believe the Combine and the Draft are mutually exclusive," Gahl said. "We could, and should, host both simultaneously. Can you think about a prospect arriving for the Combine and then completing his journey by walking across the stage in Indy to be drafted?"
The city believes it's taking proper steps toward that goal.
"We have $3 billion in new, tourism-related infrastructure coming online, record-setting number of flights arriving daily from non-stop destinations," Gahl said. "This city looks different than it did even two or three years ago."
Indianapolis won't host this April's Draft. But city representatives will attend the Pittsburgh event this week.
"This is the time in which we want to send a delegation to Pittsburgh," Gahl said. "We've traveled before as a group – Team Indy – to go see other events, including the draft. And this year, we feel the timing is right to send an official delegation to kick the tires, to take notes and then come back and really refine our pitch for Indy into the future for the NFL Draft."
Indianapolis has sent individuals to at least five NFL Drafts over the past decade. This year differs because the city has held in-depth NFL discussions about the event.
"Our hope is that we will be asked to officially bid on this event," Gahl said.
The city hasn't received a bidding invitation yet. Officials hope this week's Pittsburgh attendance helps reach that milestone.
Colts General Manager Chris Ballard supported the hosting idea.
"Everything's so centrally located," Ballard said. "It's easy to navigate. Look, my feelings on this city are nobody does it better. You just saw it with the Final Four. Like the big events we have, nobody does it better."
Indianapolis targets the 2030s for hosting a future Draft.
"We are putting our collective energy as a city and Team Indy behind some specific days and years that we believe we have not only the capacity and creativity, but also, physically, the space," Gahl said.
This year's NFL Draft begins Thursday. You an watch it right here on WRTV.
