Team USA’s victory in the gold medal match of the 2018 Olympic Winter Games has propelled the US program to a whole other level in the world of elite curling. 

 

Correspondingly, the level of fan interest across the entire nation – and well beyond – has gone from encouraging to enormous!  Curling on live television has been welcomed with open arms into millions of homes, clubs and retail establishments, with absolutely unprecedented passion.

 

The next step for fans is to experience the excitement in the live arena, and that opportunity presents itself March 31 to April 8 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas, for the World Men’s Curling Championship.

 

This will be the fourth international curling event at the Orleans in the past five years, the previous three being the highly-entertaining Continental Cup.  According to event manager, Jon Killoran, this event – and the events of the past week – open the door for something very special.  “For the Continental Cup, the format is North America versus the world.  Our fan base has been thousands of Canadians and hundreds of Americans, all raucously cheering for Team North America.  For the World Men’s, it’s USA versus the world and it’s going to be magical to see Canada and fans of the other countries engaged with USA fans in the kind of friendly rivalry that is unique to curling events”.

 

Can the tables be turned in USA favor for a decided home ice advantage?  “Why not?”  Killoran says that the peak in overall interest during the Olympics is also being witnessed at his box office.  “Of course, we already have a very strong base of multi-day package sales from Canada, around the US and several other world countries.  But we’re still five weeks out and the rush for single draw tickets is way ahead of the same time-frame for the Continental Cups.  Olympic curling has clearly motivated fans to want to sample the live experience, and we have a big building with still plenty of seats available for all 25 draws”.

 

This year, 13 teams compete for the championship title and will include the United States, Canada, China, Japan, Korea, Scotland, Norway, Netherlands, Italy, Sweden, Germany, Russia and Switzerland.  Team USA and Team Canada representatives will be decided on March 10 and 11, respectively, at their national championships. Sweden will be represented by the Niklas Edin team whom USA defeated in the gold medal final at the Winter Games.

 

Tickets start at $25 plus tax and fees, and can be purchased online at www.LasVegasCurling.rocks or www.orleansarena.com; or in-person at gift shops inside The Orleans, Suncoast, Gold Coast and Sam’sTown. Tickets may also be purchased the day of the show (depending upon availability) at the venue box office. Four-day packages are also available, starting at $199 plus tax and fees.