Devon, the winner of the BetMGM/Marriott Vegas Fantasy Draft Sweepstakes, brought his 11 league members, a group of childhood friends from Minnesota who have played fantasy football together for 14 years but had never been able to hold their draft together in person, to Las Vegas for their first-ever live draft.
For a group that had spent more than a decade drafting from afar, getting everyone together required a little teamwork of its own.
“It was a fire drill of adult men [some with kids] trying to shift responsibility as quickly as possible, and they did a pretty good job of mobilizing. It was pretty impressive,” Xander, one of Devon’s friends, said of the group’s scramble to make the trip happen.
Hosted by actor and comedian Rob Riggle, the weekend transformed the group’s annual fantasy football tradition into a once-in-a-lifetime experience combining sports, entertainment, travel and hospitality.
The celebration kicked off with a welcome party and sports trivia showdown at ARIA Resort & Casino, where Riggle helped determine the league’s draft order. For the friends, simply being together made the long-awaited event feel special.
On draft day, the group took over the BetMGM Sportsbook at ARIA for a live fantasy football draft, with Riggle bringing his signature humor and energy through commentary, reactions, and plenty of friendly competition.
He even raised the stakes by selecting a five-minute stand-up comedy performance as the punishment for the league’s last-place finisher.
“Everything with him was great. It felt like he wasn’t there to check the box. It felt like he was there to hang out, be one of the guys,” Devon said. “Obviously, as a comedian, he’s pretty funny, but just getting to chat with him about his career, upcoming movies, what he’s up to, football, obviously, just all sorts of stuff like that was really good. Nothing felt forced throughout the weekend at all.”
Riggle also joined in on the draft itself, offering commentary and helping the league navigate some of its toughest decisions as the clock ticked down.
“Ryan Noonan [of 4for4 Fantasy Football] was great too, especially talking football. Obviously, he was the expert there,” Devon said. “Both him and Rob helping people out when they weren’t sure who to select and the time was running down on the clock, and they’re just unsure about who to pick or who they liked was pretty good.”
The league even found a way to incorporate a little friendly flattery into the proceedings. With Riggle (a Chiefs fan) in the room, some members made Chiefs selections earlier than they typically would.
“Some of our league mates had some Chiefs picks earlier than they typically go, just kind of sucking up to Rob with some of their picks,” Devon joked. “So that was pretty funny to see too.”
Xander added: “Rob couldn’t have been more gracious, just funny as well as pretty cutting in his commentary on some of the draft picks. He also spent a little extra time with us after the [trivia]. I know he’s only obligated to be there 30 minutes for the trivia night. He spent a bunch of extra time afterward and then spent additional time with us after the draft. So you couldn’t ask for a better host.”
Beyond the draft, Devon and his guests received a two-night stay at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, Autograph Collection, round-trip airfare, dinner at Carbone Riviera and $4,000 MGM Resorts credit for dining and spa experiences.
From the moment the group arrived, the hospitality helped make the weekend feel like something far beyond a typical trip to Vegas.
“The hospitality was great. I mean, right when we checked in, they served us glasses of champagne. Once we got to our rooms, we had a knock at the door, and someone came by with some BetMGM gift bags,” Devon said. “So looking through those was pretty cool to see all that BetMGM swag we got.”
He said the itinerary struck the right balance between planned events and time for the friends to enjoy Las Vegas on their own.
“I thought the weekend was just planned out really well, kicking it off with that happy hour and trivia on Friday night and a crazy penthouse at the ARIA was sick,” Devon said. “And then being able to look forward to the next day for the actual draft and then the celebratory dinner the next night. Everything was just put together so well in terms of having events, but also giving a little bit of free time for people to explore and do what they want, but always having that next event to look forward to.”
That attention to detail extended throughout the experience.
“Everyone was just on point at all times, like, ‘What can we help with? Anything we can do? How can we make this better?’” Devon said. “It was a well-oiled machine, but it also felt like it had personal touches to it. So it wasn’t just like, ‘Hey, copy and paste these guys into a celebration.’ It was like, how can we continue to make this experience bigger and better type of thing.”
The weekend brought to life the shared goal of BetMGM and Marriott Bonvoy to turn fandom and loyalty into memorable real-world experiences. For a group of friends who had spent 14 seasons drafting from afar, the experience gave them the opportunity to finally celebrate their longstanding tradition together — and created a memory that extended far beyond fantasy football.
In fact, Devon isn’t sure the group can ever top it.
“I kind of joked, but half serious, like, ‘Well, I don’t know if we can actually ever have an in-person draft again because nothing’s ever going to live up to this experience,’” he said.
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