By Oregon Small Business Association

Portland worked hard to nab a location for the NCAA women’s Final Four but lost their bid as it was awarded to Tampa in 2025 and Phoenix in 2026.

In Baseball, Las Vegas looks like a winner—and Portland a loser—in the effort to recruit the Major League Oakland Athletics to the community to play games.

The A’s are looking to pay games in the Las Vegas Ballpark, home to a minor league affiliate, until a privately financed 54,000-seat ballpark is constructed at the Port of Oakland’s Howard Terminal—or until a permanent home is built in Nevada, according to the San Francisco Business Times.

The news comes as blow to the Portland Diamond Project, which was formed in 2017 by Craig Cheek, a former Nike executive, and former Portland Trail Blazers broadcaster Mike Barrett with the goal of recruiting a major league ball team to the Rose City. It has signed a deal with the Port of Portland to build a baseball stadium along the Willamette River, estimated to cost as much as $2 billion, according to KGW8.

Portland Diamond organizers had hoped to land the Athletics if the franchise decided to move from Oakland.