UNLV football helmet in the air at a football game.

UNLV Sports Innovation Institute News

The UNLV Sports Innovation Institute aspires to be a nationally recognized hub that integrates sport science and sport business to provide cutting-edge solutions to unique challenges and drive the future of sport. The institute also aims to be a leader in training the next generation of sport scientists and sport business professionals through interdisciplinary education and research.

Current Sports Innovation Institute News

Andrew Woods with Las Vegas Strip in background
Research |

As Las Vegas evolved from a desert outpost into a global hub, UNLV’s Center for Business and Economic Research has offered insights into the region’s growth.

Cordero Roche wearing a UNLV polo shirt
Athletics |

Integrated Health Sciences graduate Cordero Roche returns to educate the next generation of sports scientists.

UNLV Golf
Research |

UNLV’s PGA Golf Management University Program partners with Las Vegas-based AI technology company Evenplay to study the effects of rewards on skill level.

overview of conference venue with panel speakers on stage
Business and Community |

Co-hosted by the UNLV Sports Innovation Institute, the inaugural SEICon event brings together dozens of sports, entertainment, and innovation leaders — including several with Rebel ties.

students in spring
Campus News |

News highlights starring UNLV students and faculty who made local and national headlines.

Spring Flowers (Becca Schwartz)
Campus News |

A roundup of the top news stories featuring UNLV students and faculty.

Sports Innovation Institute In The News

Local Profile

For years, North Texas has been attracting companies looking to relocate, expand and tap into the region’s growing workforce. On May 20, that conversation landed in McKinney as Plug and Play, the McKinney Economic Development Corporation, SEICon and NTT DATA hosted the Batch 5 Expo at The Clubs of Stonebridge Ranch.

Christian Science Monitor

The Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) keep breaking attendance records – by a lot. Eight new professional leagues have launched since 2020, including softball, volleyball, and lacrosse. The optimism around women’s pro sports is so high that accounting firm Deloitte predicts the global women’s sports industry will surpass $3 billion in revenues this year – an increase of 340% since 2022. By all accounts, it’s not a fluke or a fad. And that’s largely because of one key reason: venture capitalists are pouring money into the burgeoning business of women’s sports for the long haul. Notably, many of them are women investors with decades of experience and capital to spend.

KSNV-TV: News 3

Las Vegas is set to host another Super Bowl at Allegiant Stadium, with the NFL naming the city the site of Super Bowl 63 in 2029 — a return that comes on a relatively short timeline by Super Bowl standards.

KSNV-TV: News 3

Las Vegas is shedding its "Sin City" moniker as it transforms into a major sports hub, boosting tourism and the local economy.

Las Vegas Sun

UNLV’s Sports Innovation Institute has signed a memorandum of understanding for a research partnership with the Enhanced Games, an Olympic-style sports competition coming to Las Vegas in May with a major twist: The athletes’ use of many performance-enhancing drugs is legal.

Global Gaming Business Magazine

Let’s agree to skip the pleasantries and fast-forward through the classic buzzwords and information everyone knows. Artificial intelligence is here, and it reaches its tendrils into every area of modern life, including—of course—gambling.

Sports Innovation Institute Experts

An expert on psychiatric and mental health nursing.

Recent Sports Innovation Institute Accomplishments

The paper, "Self-selected movement patterns during lateral locomotion with body weight support," was published in Human Movement Science and the result of work done by Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences undergraduate (Natalia Pravica, Emma Foley) and graduate (Matthew Heninger, Katsiaryna Afanasyeva) students as well as by post…
Graduate student Cyanea Davies has published her thesis: Lower extremity muscle activity during walking with blood flow restriction and body weight support. The publication appears in the latest issue of Biomechanics 2025, 5, 72 and includes co-authors Alina Swafford (Sports Innovation Institute), Keoni Kins (Physical Therapy…
Juha Yoon (Educational Psychology, Leadership, and Higher Education) in Intercollegiate and Professional Sport Management, participated in the UNLV Sport LEAP executive advancement program, June 16-21. Nancy Lough (Educational Psychology, Leadership, and Higher Education) led the program along with Bo Berhhard (Foundation) for the second year.…
Alina Swafford (Sports Innovation Institute), along with co-authors James Navalta (Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences). Julia Freedman-Silvernail (Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences), Nancy Lough (Intercollegiate and Sports Professional Management), and John Mercer (Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences) published "Physiological and Biomechanical…
Alina Swafford (UNLV Sports Innovation Institute), Dr. Nate Hollister (Medicine), undergraduate student Scott McDonald, and John Mercer (Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences; UNLV Sports Innovation Institute) published a perspective paper representing a call to action to research circus movements. The focus of the paper is on the use of wearable…
Postdoctoral fellow Cordero Roche (Sports Innovation Institute) has been selected to serve on the board of directors for the Mobile Laboratory Coalition (MLC). The MLC is an international organization dedicated to delivering STEM educational experiences and outreach programs.   As the coordinator of the UNLV Sports Performance, Education, and…