Mark Davis admits Raiders face uncertain future after LA move failure
Wednesday 13 January 2016 08:10, UK
Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis has admitted his team faces an uncertain future after the failure of their bid to move back to Los Angeles on Tuesday.
NFL owners voted to allow the St. Louis Rams to move back to the Los Angeles area and gave the San Diego Chargers the option to join them in Inglewood.
The Raiders had hoped to move to Carson with the Chargers, but were left out of the high-stakes game of musical chairs.
Davis said: "We made a commitment to try to get to Los Angeles. That didn't happen for us. We came in third."
The Raiders could still get the chance to join the Rams at their stadium in 2017 if the Chargers remain in San Diego.
But for now, the Raiders can negotiate with Oakland on building a new stadium or look to other cities such as San Antonio, or possibly San Diego or St. Louis for a new home.
The Raiders' lease at Oakland Coliseum, where they have played since moving north from Los Angeles 1995, has expired and the city has not expressed willingness to contribute public money for a new stadium.
"I don't know where we'll be (in 2016)," Davis told reporters. "We're trying to figure that out."
The league says it will contribute £69m ($100m) towards the cost of building a new stadium for the three-time Super Bowl champions, a figure that did not impress Davis.
"I don't believe that's going to fill the gap that we have right now," Davis said, referencing the lack of public funds from the city of Oakland to help build a stadium for the Raiders.
Davis ruled out moving the Raiders to St. Louis to fill the void left by the Rams but said all other options would be considered, including a move to San Diego should the Chargers vacate the city.
"America, the world, is a possibility for the Raider nation," Davis said. "We're going to find a home."
The Oakland Coliseum, which opened in 1966, is not a football-specific stadium. It has been home for Major League Baseball's Oakland Athletics since 1968.
