Countdown is on! KC beginning final preparations for NFL Draft in April

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KCTV) - The Chiefs and 31 other NFL teams are 100 days away from one of the biggest event weekends Kansas City will ever see — the 2023 NFL Draft.

The NFL Draft extravaganza will kick off on April 27 between Union Station and the World War I Museum and Memorial. For a few days, teams and fans will have hope and excitement, or anger and frustration, during one of the year’s biggest annual guessing games.

It’s exciting for fans and foes gathering to see who their next star player could be. Will the Chiefs add an offensive weapon or look at their defense? Will we see youngsters replacing stars we see every Sunday? Only time will tell.

Members of the Kansas City Sports Commission attended the draft in Las Vegas last year to go behind the scenes – learning the ins and outs of the presentation as well as the safety and entertainment opportunities.

The NFL and commission plan to hire hundreds of local workers to assist in a variety of roles over this three-day event in late April. “Teammate workers” must be 18 years old and eligible to work in the U.S.

Registration is closed, but those who applied will have the opportunity to select shifts and responsibilities in March.

The city is working to help including appropriating $3 million from the Convention and Tourism Fund for the KC Sports Commission for the draft. That extra cash could be approved at their meeting Wednesday.

This year’s draft is focusing on empowering and connecting women, minorities, LGBTQ+, and veteran-owned providers.

The applications are closed for the NFL Business Connect program as many area businesses and organizations await approval from the league to help with the draft. The goal is to link diverse KC suppliers to contracting opportunities for the draft.

It’s a partnership between the NFL and KC Sports Commission.

Commission President and CEO Kathy Nelson said event planning had kicked into high gear when this was announced in September.

They are actively working with the NFL to ensure those names and voices get heard and out there for the world to see when all eyes are on KC.

Those entities applying need to be more than 51% owned by a minority, woman, veteran, or LGBTQ+ individual and be certified. They have to have a physical office and have been in operation in Kansas City, Missouri, since April 2019, along with other measures of accomplished work in the city.

Nelson expected more than 100 businesses to apply.

Those businesses selected will be showcased this year at the draft, but will continue reaching more people by being part of the Business Connect Network even after the draft is over.