The Raiders played their last home game in Oakland against the Jacksonville Jaguars in December, losing 20-16
Thursday 23 January 2020 11:25, UK
With help from Nevada governor Steve Sisolak, the formerly Oakland Raiders announced their official name change to become the Las Vegas Raiders on Wednesday, at the site of their new home.
"I do hereby proclaim January 22, 2020, as the day to celebrate the renaming of the Las Vegas Raiders," Sisolak said from Allegiant Stadium before the team unveiled a banner with the new name.
"The Raiders were born in Oakland, and played 13 seasons in L.A. Both cities will always be part of our DNA but, today, we begin a new chapter in our storied history," owner Mark Davis said from the podium.
"For today, January 22, 2020, we are now the Las Vegas Raiders. And, today, Las Vegas officially becomes our nation's capital."
Several players, past and present, were on hand for the announcement, and they took turns on stage to help hammer a stake holding a sign that read: "Las Vegas Raiders est. 2020". The group included quarterback Derek Carr and former Super Bowl-winning quarterback Jim Plunkett.
The Raiders were approved to relocate from Oakland in March of 2017 and played the last three seasons in Oakland during the construction of their $1.9bn stadium in Las Vegas.
The team is expected to officially move its facilities and operations to Las Vegas sometime this offseason. The NFL draft will be held in Las Vegas at the end of April. Construction on the stadium is expected to be complete in July.
The relocation is the third in the Raiders' history, after they moved from Oakland to Los Angeles in 1982 and then back to Oakland in 1995. Since the NFL merger, there have been only six other relocations.
The Raiders owe a $378m relocation fee. Sports Business Daily reported last month that NFL owners gave the team permission to exceed the league-mandated debt limit of $350m as it goes through the relocation process.
