Report: Steelers Bid to Host NFL Draft

Could it happen? The Steelers have officially submitted a bid to host either the 2026 or 2027 NFL Draft, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports. This comes a month after Adam Crowley of 93.7. The Fan believed that the city of Pittsburgh would get the 2026 NFL Draft. A team and city have to officially submit for a bid with the support of the local officials on top of the team having the desire to host.

It will take a while for this to get confirmed. Generally, the NFL announces two years out, but it took them until May to announce that Green Bay would host the 2025 NFL Draft. So, if it does happen, the NFL will not disclose it until May 2024 at the league owners’ earliest. But where it would be located and hosted is anyone’s guess.

Steelers spokesperson Burt Lauten confirmed that the Steelers and the city would like to host the event in 2026 and 2027 for several reasons.

“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,” Lauten said in a statement to the Post-Gazette. “The NFL draft will draw hundreds of thousands of fans and out-of-town visitors, 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.”

In 2025, Green Bay will host it near Lambeau Field. But in Kansas City, for example, it was held in a train station. Of course, whenever they were in New York City, Radio City Music Hall hosted the event. It is anyone’s best guess, but inside and outside venues have worked for the NFL Draft in the past.

New York City hosted every NFL Draft from 1965 to 2014 before the NFL shifted gears and made the festivities an event that fans of all 32 teams could come and enjoy themselves. Since 1936, 12 different cities have hosted the NFL Draft. These include Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Kansas City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Milwaukee,  Nashville, New York City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Washington, D.C.. Detroit and Green Bay will add to that number. But Pittsburgh could be where the event comes back after a long drought. They have not hosted the draft since 1948.