[Elvis]

http://mmqb.si.com/2015/07/09/rich-mcka ... mqb-100/3/

8. Stan Kroenke, Owner, St. Louis Rams



On the last Sunday of May, a few minutes after 6 a.m., an explosion of dynamite pierced the thick smog and rumbled throughout Inglewood, Calif. The Hollywood Park grandstands, the last remnants of an iconic track, crumbled. Horse racing fans across the country mourned, reminiscing on the glamorous past. Triple Crown winner Seattle Slew raced there; stars like Cary Grant, Elizabeth Taylor and Alfred Hitchcock once mingled among the masses. All lasting evidence had vanished, now rubble in a mostly deserted parking lot.

And yet, 75 people lined the fence to watch. Many of them clapped. They took cell phone videos and cheered, as if they were at a rock show. “As sad as it was for some,” says Tom Bateman, who drove up from Anaheim for the occasion, “it was a great day for us. It was the first real evidence that football is finally returning to Los Angeles.”

Bateman, director of Bring Back the Rams, a fan club in Southern California, is right: St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke has plans to build a futuristic 80,000-seat stadium here and bring his team back to the city the NFL abandoned 20 years ago. On a clean lot, construction can now begin.

Though the Chargers and Raiders have eyed a joint stadium in Carson (presumably as leverage to secure new deals in their respective cities) it is Kroenke who commands the most realistic opportunity for the NFL’s return to the City of Angels. The Rams have not reached an agreement with St. Louis officials to make improvements to the outdated Edward Jones Dome, and the team has an opt-out clause if no deal is made. Kroenke, a billionaire and real estate mogul, bought 60 acres of land in Inglewood and partnered with the neighboring developer to secure nearly 300 acres of prime stadium-building space. Kroenke has the means, the blueprint and, most importantly, the momentum as owners convene for a special meeting in Chicago on Aug. 11 to discuss if a team (or teams) can relocate. Talks at the session should dictate the plan going forward, as the Rams can officially apply for relocation in the coming months.

Rumors and fleeting attempts to bring an NFL team back to Los Angeles have waxed and waned over the last two decades. Under Kroenke’s watch, there is now concrete proof that something tangible is in the works.

—Emily Kaplan (@EmilyMKaplan)

[BuiltRamTough]

I missed this post yesterday it's weird.

It's tough to trust media members but Peter King is tapped in. I trust him.