Stadium proponents made their case to the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee, a group commissioned by Republican Gov. Brian Sandoval to evaluate projects that would keep Las Vegas’ tourism industry competitive.
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Davis, Adelson and others want to put $650 million into the stadium, with the rest being generated by tourism taxes. The Raiders have an option of moving to Los Angeles if the Chargers decline, but Davis now has cast his eyes east toward Las Vegas. Besides approval from 24 of 32 NFL owners and a blessing from state lawmakers, such a move would challenge the league’s reluctance to have a franchise in proximity to legalized gambling.
The Raiders have agreed to a one-year lease to play in Oakland for the 2016-17 season with options to extend the lease for two additional seasons.
Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis and former soccer player David Beckham laugh as they attend a Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee meeting at UNLV.
“We’re excited, and we got the group here”, said Richard Cervera, president of the Las Vegas Raider Nation booster club.
David Beckham thinks a new stadium will bring more soccer to Las Vegas.
Leiweke predicted that the economic impact of the stadium could be similar to that of the mixed-use L.A. Live development that includes Staples Center and Microsoft Theater.
The Raiders owner seems to be serious about getting the other owners to allow the move from the city of Oakland to Las Vegas.
“To bring a great organization like the Raiders to Las Vegas is wonderful, but it’s bigger than that”.
Plus, Las Vegas does offer a good location and some sex-appeal. “It’s real. We’ll give them an offer they can’t refuse”. They will look at the stadium alternatives.
He talked about building on the legacy of his father, the late Al Davis, and finally giving the team a new stadium to match those of the richer teams in the league. Posing with fans behind a Las Vegas Raiders banner with black and silver coloring on Thursday, Mark Davis soon spoke about a commitment to a new stadium of $500 million in Las Vegas for the Raiders.
“We’re not using Las Vegas as a bargaining chip”, he said. At that point, the A’s and the Oakland Coliseum Joint Powers Authority can start planning around the Raiders as they head out the door for a new stadium out there, wherever there may be. It would also need to be approved by the state Legislature, which they will ask the governor to call into special session in August for a vote. However, the Chargers get first choice and plan on pursuing a long-term solution in San Diego over the next year.
The entire process could take three years to be completed but the NFL’s view of Las Vegas and the city’s legal sports betting might pose a problem for the plan.
It is the inclusion of the Raiders that is pushing the Las Vegas stadium forward, and the appearance of Davis before the committee was the most solid commitment to date to moving an National Football League team to the city.
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Despite that, the one thing that’s clear here is that the city with the longest odds right now is the city that the Raiders are already in: Oakland.
