Reports say request by Rams was approved unanimously at Tuesday's virtual owners meeting
Wednesday 20 May 2020 07:24, UK
NFL owners have approved the Los Angeles Rams' request to borrow an extra $500m (£407.7m) from the league to fund their new SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California.
Reports say the request by the Rams - which includes an extended period in which to repay the loan - was approved unanimously at Tuesday's virtual owners meeting.
The SoFi Stadium project is said to have suffered from cost overruns and a lack of revenue, with seat license sales - particularly for the co-tenant Los Angeles Chargers - falling well below expectations.
The Rams had already borrowed $400m (£326.2m) from the league for SoFi Stadium, the expected cost of which has ballooned to about $5bn (£4.07bn), around double the original projection.
The new stadium was scheduled to open for concerts this summer, but some events have already been postponed and more are expected to be pushed back, with the state of California and Los Angeles County enforcing strict bans on large gatherings amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Rams are scheduled to play the first home regular season game at SoFi Stadium on September 13, a Sunday night contest in Week 1, unless the NFL schedule is altered or pushed back due to the pandemic.
Last week, the NFL and team executives agreed on a proposal to raise debt limits for teams from $350m (£285.4m) to $500m, a response to expected revenue drops caused by the pandemic.
Rams owner Stan Kroenke agreed to host the Chargers as a tenant in the new stadium as part of the agreement to move the Rams from St. Louis to Los Angeles - and the Chargers from San Diego.
The Rams returned to Los Angeles for the 2016 season, playing at the Coliseum, while the Chargers moved to Carson, California, for the 2017 season.
