JAI ALAI TAMPA
Jai alai, dubbed the “fastest sport in the world” by
the Basque Government of northern Spain, is a game
involving a small rubber ball (called a pelota) that’s
flung against a wall at speeds of up to 175 miles per
hour from a curved wicker basket (a cesta). This exciting
sport lured thousands of gamblers and spectators to the
huge jai alai fronton on Dale Mabry Highway just south
of Gandy Boulevard.
The Tampa jai alai fronton opened in 1953 and would
enjoy the sport’s immense popularity during the 1960s,
1970s, and early 1980s, when weekend nights would
bring standing-room-only crowds to the indoor facility.
The sport declined throughout the rest of the 1980s, as
other gambling ventures came onboard, including the
Florida Lottery. The rock-hard pelotas flew for one last
time in 1998, and the fronton was soon demolished to
make way for Sam’s Club and The Home Depot.
WHEN WEEKEND NIGHTS WOULD
BRING STANDING-ROOM-ONLY
CROWDS TO THE INDOOR FACILITY
MARCH/APRIL 2015 TAMPA BAY MAGAZINE 45