KJZZ's Empty Seats

KJZZ's Sun Up is a weekday morning podcast giving you the Arizona news you need to start your day. It’s the biggest stories of the day from KJZZ News.

Download Episode 6 to hear more about how online and mobile sports wagering would mean more revenue for everyone involved. This story is part of a six-part podcast project called Empty Seats, the pandemic versus a sports capital.

This is the offseason for every major pro sport except football. The trio not playing now have to work with health officials to figure out whether fans can safely go to games when play resumes. The answer has huge implications for Arizona.

A huge advantage to owning a business near one of metro Phoenix’s sports shrines was that you were guaranteed crowds for a certain number of days each year. Download Episode 4 to hear more from Westgate, plus game-day visits to State Farm Stadium next door and Chase Field in downtown Phoenix.

Tuesday of the week in March when COVID-19 crashed the sports industry — and started to shut down the United States — was also supposed to be a really important point in metro Phoenix’s yearly sports bonanza.

This story is part of a six-part podcast project called Empty Seats, the pandemic versus a sports capital. Download Episode 2 to hear more from Jerry Colangelo about his role transforming the city into the home of teams from each of the top four sports leagues in America. Visit emptyseats.kjzz.org to get a new episode every Monday through Nov. 9, 2020.

This story is part of a six-part podcast project called Empty Seats, the pandemic versus a sports capital. In part one, hear how Phoenix Raceway and three other home-grown major events made metro Phoenix a destination for sports tourism. Visit emptyseats.kjzz.org to get a new episode every Monday through Nov. 9, 2020.