Omaha Exploration

You may have noticed that this is Omaha’s 75th year hosting the Men’s College World Series. The City of Omaha hosted a party to celebrate the occasion last night with a concert and fireworks show at The Riverfront.

The CWS got its start in 1947 in Kalamazoo, Michigan which also played host in 1948 before moving to Wichita, Kansas in 1949. After building Municipal Stadium, Omaha aggressively pursued the baseball tournament. Later renamed Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium, the series was played there annually until 2010.

The CWS became a spectacle in south Omaha with its lively atmosphere, tailgating, pop-up beer gardens, merchandise shops and residents selling parking spots wherever they could be it the front yard, backyard or adjacent lots. Meanwhile the stadium itself offered an intimate experience with most seats having a pretty good view of the field. Some seats, however, were obstructed – not unusual for old stadiums. The outfield bleachers despite having a reputation for being a bit rowdy was a fun place to take in a game even if they were uncomfortable and crowded.

The NCAA was successful in getting Omaha to build a new stadium in North Downtown for the 2011 season in return for a 25-year contract. Since then, the tournament has been played at TD Ameritrade Park/Charles Schwab Field.

For its first decade starting in 1947, the tournament did not turn a profit but since then its popularity has skyrocketed and Omaha has become synonymous with the CWS. The tournament set a new attendance record in 2023 with 392,946 fans attending the 16 games. The previous record was set a year earlier in 2022. In 2024 the games had a $115M impact which included 22,429 jobs, 75,000 hotel rooms booked and $3.5M in tax revenue. Nearly a third of the visitors lived more than 60-miles away.

USC has won 12 times followed by LSU with seven championships; Texas with six, Arizona State with five; Arizona, Call State Fullerton, Miami with four; Minnesota and Oregon State with three; Vanderbilt, South Carolina, Stanford, Oklahoma, Michigan and California with two. Tennessee took home the trophy last year. Nebraska has made it to the CWS three times in 2001, 2002 and 2005 while Creighton qualified once in 1991. Neither has won the championship.

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