After last year’s success, the Pro Bowl is keeping its different look. Instead of an exhibition game, the event will once again feature a seven-on-seven flag football showdown between the two conferences, with Eli Manning and Peyton Manning coaching the NFC and AFC, respectively.
Leading up to the flag football games will be a series of skills competitions between the two conferences, including a best catch competition and some good old fashioned dodgeball.
Where is the Pro Bowl this year?
The NFL Pro Bowl is making its way back to Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla., for 2024.
The event will continue to be called the NFL Pro Bowl Games. The event changed its name ahead of the 2023 games due to the shift in format, which now includes a set off skill competitions and a flag football game instead of an exhibition game.
It’s a no-contact affair, meaning players won’t be a higher risk for injury in an event that does not have a direct effect on the regular season or the postseason.
Why did the Pro Bowl leave Hawaii?
The event used to be held regularly at Aloha Stadium in Hawaii, but that changed following 2015. Orlando and Las Vegas have hosted the event since 2016.
With ESPN airing the Pro Bowl Games, the event was moved to Orlando. ESPN, which is owned by Disney, can utilize local facilities throughout the week and let players feel like they are on vacation. With the event being held in February, the Pro Bowl needs to be held in a warm-weather climate, making Orlando an ideal spot.
The move to Las Vegas, where the Pro Bowl Games were held in 2021 and 2022, may have been similarly motivated. Las Vegas is one of the United States’ eminent travel destinations.
Hawaii’s Aloha Stadium, the former home of the Pro Bowl, placed a moratorium on new events in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, preventing the NFL from moving the Pro Bowl Games back to Hawaii for now.
There have been talks to demolish Aloha Stadium in favor of a new venue, though the timeline for that project keeps getting moved back.
