LAS VEGAS -- The NHL is now officially the first major professional sports league to gamble on Las Vegas.
On Wednesday, the NHL's board of governors approved expanding to this city, making the franchise the 31st team in the league.
The team will start play during the 2017-18 season.
Businessman Bill Foley, a West Point graduate, paid the $500 million expansion fee to bring NHL hockey to Las Vegas and the announcement is the culmination of two years of hard work for him that included a successful season ticket drive to prove local interest.
"I know there's a lot of work to do now," Foley told ESPN's Scott Burnside in an interview shortly before the board of governors agreed to expand to Las Vegas.