[Elvis]

http://www.forbes.com/sites/leighsteinb ... l-drought/

Rams And Chargers End LA Football Drought

Leigh Steinberg

The twenty year absence of NFL Football in Los Angeles is about to come to an end. Three teams filed papers with the League on Monday asking for permission to relocate their franchises to Los Angeles. The Rams, Chargers, and Raiders have formally stated their intention to move. The Rams are intending to build a new stadium on an Inglewood site, the Chargers and Raiders as co-tenants in a stadium in Carson. The owners will vote later this month to approve a plan for Los Angeles football. I think that the Rams and Chargers as joint tenants in Inglewood is the most likely scenario.

None of these moves have the loyal fans of the teams as a primary focus. Los Angeles is the second largest market in the United States, with fifteen million people within driving distance of a stadium on a Sunday afternoon, and major corporations to buy luxury boxes and sponsorships. These moves are about doubling franchise value and the construction of state of the art stadia with multiple ancillary revenue streams. The loyalty of fans is being disregarded, which is not a long term positive for any league.

Stan Kroenke, the owner of the Rams has made it clear he is moving his team out of St. Louis notwithstanding their eventual relocation site. He is the wealthiest of all team owners and has the backing of the most powerful owners in the league.

I was Chairman of “Save The Rams” which fought to keep them here back in 1994. They have a large fan base remaining from their many years of heritage of winning teams and high profile stars in Southern California. The Inglewood site is centrally located. Look for them to move this year.

The Chargers may prefer their own site in Carson, but I believe the League will push them to become the second tenant in the Inglewood stadium. Their fan base extends into Orange County and the Inland Empire. They have loyal fans in San Diego who have followed them through thick and thin, but the relationship between ownership and the city is nonfunctional.

The Raiders were popular in Los Angeles, but the environment inside the Coliseum was often toxic. There were more fights perpetually breaking out in the stands than on the field. They have a passionate following in the Bay Area but a substandard stadium that neither works for baseball or football. They need the Mayor of Oakland to be a leader, put a coalition together, dedicate land currently available, and let the stadium be built privately. I helped Mayor Elihu Harris keep the Oakland A’s in town, he was an active leader and a coalition was built with business leaders. Oakland lives in the shadow of San Francisco and keeping the Raiders should be a priority.

[Elvis]

Didn't Leigh write pretty much this exact same piece for Forbes a few months ago?

[BuiltRamTough]

Didn't Leigh write pretty much this exact same piece for Forbes a few months ago?

Yup, basically.

[Hacksaw]

Didn't Leigh write pretty much this exact same piece for Forbes a few months ago?

Which leads me to believe that those in the know or at least closer to it, have known for a while.
Or he is trying to tip the call right before the real call.

Feels good today. Tomorrow and Thursday will shed more light.

[Stranger]

Didn't Leigh write pretty much this exact same piece for Forbes a few months ago?

Which leads me to believe that those in the know or at least closer to it, have known for a while.
Or he is trying to tip the call right before the real call.

Feels good today. Tomorrow and Thursday will shed more light.

I beleive those in the know have known for a while. Didn't Bradshaw pretty much tell us straight out a few months ago.

No way a business as large and important as the NFL let's a decision like this wait until January of the same year that the teams are to move and commence stadium construction. Now, that would be irresponsible. And what did the NFL have to gain by letting the public know the decision prior to this? The last to know had to be the public, and the fans, in order to keep the machine rolling while plans were assebled.