Former NFL Quarterback Matt Ryan Wants to Host Your Fantasy Football Draft in Las Vegas

One fantasy football league is about to get a dose of star power when former All-Pro quarterback Matt Ryan hosts their draft party in Las Vegas this Labor Day weekend. 

“There’s just so much energy in Las Vegas that time of year, with football season just getting ready to kick off,” the former NFL MVP and current CBS Sports analyst told Travel + Leisure on Friday afternoon. So he’s teamed up with Marriott Bonvoy and BetMGM to throw the ultimate draft event for one winner plus 11 of their friends at the BetMGM Sportsbook at ARIA Resort & Casino, Autograph Collection. He said he’s excited to see “the passion of the group,” as well as “put on my analyst hat and talk about the picks and help lay down the strategy.”

That said, when we asked the four-time Pro Bowl quarterback to rate his own fantasy football skills, he admitted: “They’re very, very poor compared to what I could do as a football player.”

After all, he’s spent more than two decades on the gridiron, playing for Boston College, and then the Atlanta Falcons and Indianapolis Colts. “Fantasy football really exploded into this cultural phenomenon while I was in the NFL,” Ryan said. “I got left in the dust by people who’ve been doing it for the last 15 to 20 years—I have no idea what I’m doing, but I’ll have a ton of fun!”

While football is at the core, fun is indeed the name of the game. The winner of the contest will receive up to 12 round-trip domestic economy flight vouchers to Vegas and three-night hotel stays at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas for the 12 guests in six king rooms. They’ll also be spoiled with a happy hour at the hotel’s The Barbershop Cuts and Cocktails, a four-course dinner at The Mayfair Supper Club at Bellagio Resort & Casino, $6,000 in MGM Resort credit, and, of course, the two-hour fantasy football draft party with Ryan, known to fans as “Matty Ice.”

The NFL alum is thrilled to be bringing the winning league to Las Vegas, a city he loves since it’s “self-contained, and there’s just so much to do.” On recent trips, he’s played golf at one of his favorite courses, Shadow Creek, indulged in the city’s restaurants, bars, and pools, and even saw U2 play at the Sphere when he was in town for the 2024 Super Bowl.

His 15-season pro career took him around the country, where he especially loved away games at Lambeau Field in Green Bay. “It’s like going back in time,” he said of the Wisconsin stadium, which opened in 1957. “You can really feel the history when you play there.” While he was always laser-focused on the game during those trips, he had more time to enjoy Seattle, where they’d stay a few days, calling it an “amazing town,” especially “when you catch it in early-to-mid fall when the weather is gorgeous.”

Ryan continues to call Atlanta home, enjoying taking his seven-year-old twin boys and two-year-old son to the Georgia Aquarium and College Football Hall of Fame, which he said is a “phenomenal experience” for kids. Other favorites in his adopted hometown are the Atlanta Beltline and its restaurants, as well as the up-and-coming Old Fourth Ward neighborhood. 

Despite hanging up his cleats in the spring of 2024, Ryan is still always on the go, flying up to New York City every week for CBS Sports. On those solo business trips, he’s got his routine down, settling into a hotel room by putting his bags on the bed and unpacking them. “I like to get organized first,” he said. “It just makes me feel a little bit more comfortable.”

When it comes to room service, he goes for the classic. “A good cheeseburger is hard to beat,” he admits. “I don’t drink soda very often, but a Diet Coke every once in a while from room service is about as good as it gets.” 

However, when he travels with his wife Sarah and their three kids, it’s a whole different ball game. Usually, he’ll take the boys down to the lobby for about half an hour while Sarah gets the room settled. “You throw your habits out and figure out what works for the collective,” he admits, adding that the twins are in a “pretty good stage” now, but the toddler is more of a “wild card,” as the family of five piles into one room. “It’s a little more chaotic.” 

Still, they’ve had memorable getaways the last two years, going to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, last summer and Big Sky, Montana, earlier this month. 

Despite all his travels, there’s nowhere he’d rather be than Vegas for the final long weekend of the summer to host the fantasy draft party. “It’s the start of college football in earnest, and we’ll be a week away from the NFL rolling into full gear,” he says. “There’s no place better to be than in Las Vegas!”

To enter the Marriott Bonvoy Vegas Fantasy Draft with Matt Ryan, simply log into your BetMGM account and opt in to the promotion. Then link your BetMGM and Marriott Bonvoy accounts. The final entry period ends at 11:59 p.m. on July 30, 2025. Full details and rules can be accessed here.