NFL franchise owners have scheduled a meeting in January to vote for one of the two 20-year vacancy proposals for a stadium in Los Angeles. The San Diego Chargers have partnered with the Oakland Raiders to propose a $1.75 billion stadium in Carson while the St. Louis Rams desires to build a $1.86 billion stadium Inglewood, according to the LA Times.
Cities of St Louis, Oakland, and San Diego must submit their plans to keep their franchises by Dec. 29. The franchise owners will deliberate the two plans on January 12. If 24 owners approve on the same plan, the franchise or franchises involved can move. If the vote ends in a stalemate among the owners, the vote could be set aside, The New York Times reports.
Houston Texans owner Bob McNair noted that the NFL does not have a “firm deal” with the cities trying to keep their teams, the LA Times reports.
Rams owner E. Stanley Kroenke lobbied the Chargers for the Inglewood stadium, according to the Orange County Register. Kroenke bought the Rams for $750 million in 2010. The city of Inglewood approved his plan to buy land for an 80,000-seat stadium, Bloomberg reports.
Kroenke expressed via letter to the NFL terms to share the Inglewood stadium with another team, however he did not mention a particular team. In the deal, both teams would pay half of the construction fees and earn half of stadium revenue, according to the LA Times.
Kroenke will hold control of venue design and collect revenues from the development that surrounds the site, LA Times reports.
The city of Los Angeles released the design for the stadium in Carson in August. Amenities include a farmers market, an eight-acre campus for the NFL, and premium seating on the field, SB Nation reports.
In November, the Chargers and the Raiders appointed Walt Disney Company Chief Executive and Chairman Robert Iger to lead the Carson stadium efforts. Iger is a non-executive chairmen of Carson Holdings LLC, the joint project the two franchises started to work with the city to build a stadium, Fox San Diego reports.
The Chargers and Raiders also had their proposals approved by city council. The National Football League players union (NFLPA) usually pays some of the stadium finances through stadium credits. Stadium credits are exchanged in a collective bargaining agreement. NFL players have used up the credits until 2020, according to Bloomberg.
The players see the benefit in having a stadium in the second highest market in the country, according to union spokesperson, George Atallah.
“When we signed the deal in 2011, we considered our role in growing the game,” he said. “We review every investment opportunity and proposal carefully.”
The families who own the Chargers and the Raiders requested the public help pay part of the costs for the stadium, Deadspin reports.
All three teams have more losses than overall wins this season, The Chargers are 0-3 in the AFC Western Division and 3-9 overall. The Raiders are doing slightly better at 1-2 in the AFC West and 5-7 overall. The Rams are third in the NFC West with a 4-8 overall record, according to the NFL. Rams coach Jeff Fisher and Chargers coach Mike McCoy could be fired at the end of this season due to the teams’ performance. If their teams move to Los Angeles, the coaches could possibly be spared for a few more seasons, according to Bleacher Report.
