Nashville Officially Awarded 2019 Draft

The Tennessee Titans announced Wednesday that Nashville has been officially awarded 2019 NFL Draft.

The @NFL Draft is officially coming to Nashville in 2019! pic.twitter.com/I5LC7ziJ7g

— Tennessee Titans (@Titans) May 23, 2018

“Following an exciting and successful event in Dallas, we’re thrilled to take the NFL Draft to Nashville. The city has a passionate fan base and offers iconic locations that will enable us to expand the Draft in unique ways,” said NFL commissioner Roger Goodell. “We look forward to working with the Tennessee Titans, the City of Nashville, and the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp to deliver a memorable celebration of football to our fans and incoming players.”

“We are thrilled for the city of Nashville, our fans and our team, that we have been selected to host the 2019 NFL Draft,” said Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk. “The city and the Titans put a lot of effort into this proposal and we can’t wait to see it come to life next year. I personally would like to thank Commissioner Goodell and the NFL for this opportunity; Metro Nashville Government, led by Mayor David Briley; Butch Spyridon at the CVC; Scott Ramsey at the Sports Council; and all those who have contributed to this effort. Nashville is known as an entertainment destination and we look forward to showing the football world what that looks like on a very big stage.”

“Nashville is honored to host the 2019 NFL Draft. We are prepared to deliver a unique Music City experience and an NFL-caliber event,” said Nashville Convention & Visitors Corp President and CEO Butch Spyridon. “I would like to thank the Titans and owner, Amy Adams Strunk, for their support and the NFL for their confidence.”

Multiple reports have said in recent weeks that Nashville was expected to have the winning bid for the 2019 draft, so this shouldn’t come as big surprise.

The NFL has had a lot of success moving the draft around the country the past few years, starting with Chicago in 2015 and 2016 followed by Philadelphia in 2017 and Dallas last month, so it shouldn’t come as a big surprise to hear that it could land in a new location next year.

Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk was very confident about their proposal for the event and it looks like the NFL believes they’ll do a great job.

Butch Spyridon, the president and CEO of the Nashville Convention and Visitors Corp. previously told Cameron Wolfe of ESPN that he’s “cautiously optimistic” that Nashville would land the draft.

“If we can embrace it Nashville style, we got a shot,” Spyridon said. “It’d be a big party. You’d know you were in Nashville. I promise they wouldn’t be disappointed.”

The NFL cut the list of cities for the 2019 and 2020 draft down to Denver, Cleveland/Canton, Las Vegas, Nashville and Kansas City.