Football - Pro Bowl Not To Leave Hawaii

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell decided to finish his first year as commissioner in a grand style. Goodell arrived in Honolulu to spend a working vacation in Hawaii.

This is not Goodell’s first visit to Aloha Stadium. He has been to Pro Bowl many times but this is the first time he is coming as the Commissioner of NFL.

Speaking in a news conference, the commissioner said NFL had no intentions of shifting future Pro Bowls’ venue from Hawaii. He further added that he has been involved in the Pro Bowl for number of years in different capacities and NFL has always had good working relationship with Hawaii, and now NFL was working on improving that relationship even further.

According to experts, Aloha Stadium is 32 years old and is now facing some major structural problems and a lot rust damage. The State Comptroller, Russ Saito, had recently said that Aloha Stadium would have to be shut down in a few years on safety grounds if precautions were not taken.

The state legislature is even considering passing a bill that states the stadium should be dismantled and a new one should be built from the money that is received after the land on which the current stadium is standing is sold.

The fans have been worried that NFL would take away the Pro Bowl from Hawaii to some other part of America. However, Goodell has assured them that NFL is not interested in shifting the Pro Bowl out of Hawaii. He further added that NFL would be open to discussions regarding building of a new stadium as it was important to ensure that the game is played in a safe venue.