Philadelphia to bid for 2026 All-Star Games/Super Bowl, per Ed Rendell

By Tim Kelly, Sports Talk Philly editor

While Philadelphia appears to have done the best job of hosting the NFL Draft in recent memory, the city may just be scratching the surface in terms of hosting major sporting events over the next decade. 

Former Philadelphia mayor and Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell appeared on SportsRadio 94 WIP this morning and said that the city is targeting 2026 to host the three major All-Star games and the Super Bowl:  

This isn't the first time that we've heard that the Phillies want to host the 2026 MLB All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park. James Wagner of The Washington Post reported in April of 2015 that the Phillies were waiting until 2026, which is America's 250th anniversary, to bid on hosting Citizens Bank Park's first All-Star Game. 

The last time that the Phillies hosted an All-Star Game was in 1996 at Veterans Stadium, which was America's 220th anniversary. It feels rather likely that if there is an understanding that the Phillies want to host the All-Star Game, they will be awarded it. 

The Eagles, on the other hand, are another story. After snow concerns overshadowed much of the week leading up to Super Bowl 48, which was held in MetLife Stadium, the league may be hesitant to come to Philadelphia in 2026 for Super Bowl 60. 

Unlike the Phillies, there may be more competition to host the Super Bowl in 2026. 2026 may be one of the final years of FedEx Field in Washington D.C., and it's possible that New York could again be interested in hosting the event. Philadelphia may be the most historical city on the East Coast, but it wouldn't be inappropriate for either of the other two cities to host the Super Bowl in America's 250th anniversary. 

Philadelphia has hosted the NBA All-Star Game once since the Wells Fargo Center opened in 1996, but that was back in 2002. The arena has never held the NHL All-Star Game, with Philadelphia last hosting the event in 1992. While it would be nice to host both of these All-Star Games, they seemingly would fall lower on the totem pole than hosting the Super Bowl or the MLB All-Star Game. 

It's not clear if these events would all be allowed to be in Philadelphia this year. In theory, there's no reason why Philadelphia couldn't host all the All-Star Games and the Super Bowl in the same year, but perhaps in such a historical year Philadelphia will be limited to hosting just one of the events. 

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