NFL: St Louis Rams linked with a return to Los Angeles
Tuesday 6 January 2015 10:46, UK
St Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke has fuelled speculation about the team’s return to Los Angeles with his ambitious proposals for a new NFL stadium in the area.
Kroenke, who is also a major shareholder in Arsenal, is planning a new 80,000-seat venue on the site of the former Hollywood Park horse racing circuit at Inglewood, which could be completed by 2018.
This is the latest in more than a dozen schemes to take the NFL back to LA following the departures of the Rams and Raiders, who both left the city in the 1990s.
Mayor of Inglewood, James T Butts said: "You have a developer, Stan Kroenke, who has invested in Inglewood, and regardless we’re glad to have him here. This will allow, if they choose to, to build an 80,000 seat stadium."
The Rams are currently based at St. Louis' Edward Jones Dome, but reports suggest they will convert the lease to a year-to-year agreement later this month.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed in December that no teams would be moving to Los Angeles for the 2015 season.
The earliest possible date for relocation would be January 2016, with a team likely to share other venues in LA until the new stadium is completed.
Chris Meany of the the Hollywood Park Land Company said: "The Kroenke group develops sports entertainment venues for teams they own and teams they don’t own.
"There is a lot of talk about a lot of sites that have been out there for a very long time, for years and years. I don’t see shovels in the ground on those projects and we’re putting our shovels into the ground and going forward.
"I also note a couple of other things. This is the location in Los Angeles that for decades was the best location for sports entertainment."
