Billionaire Sheldon Adelson open to, but not desperate for, NFL stadium in Las Vegas
Billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson said NFL owners wouldn’t mount much of an opposition to a franchise relocating to Las Vegas, although he told Yahoo Finance that he’s not about to grovel for a team.
The Oakland Raiders seem to be the best candidate to relocate to Las Vegas, where Adelson is leading the effort to build a nearly $2 billion dome stadium with “only” 750 million in public funding. Raiders owner Mark Davis and Adelson have met on multiple occasions to discuss the plans.
“A guy in my position doesn’t need anything,” Adelson said the story published on Thursday. “I’ve got everything I need, I can do anything I want. I don’t need this. If I’m going to have to go out and beg Mark Davis or somebody else to do it, I’m out. If they want to find somebody who is desperate as a football fan and wants to be a part of a football club, then they picked the wrong guy. That’s not me.”
Adelson said Davis “can’t build a stadium himself, otherwise he would have built it in Oakland.” The Raiders lost out in a bid to move back to Los Angeles earlier this year, leading the franchise to spend at least one more season in the antiquated O.co Coliseum.
“He needs somebody to build it and he needs somebody with a deep pocket that can guarantee it and somebody with some political influence that can arrange to get the money from the room tax,” Adelson said. “I’m one of the four big operators in town, so it’s not difficult for me. I’ve done a lot of building and I can guarantee the construction. And if the local government knows I’m behind it, they can feel comfortable because I’ve changed the town, in regards to conventions.”
Public financing would come from a hike in room taxes, which would bring in $50 million over 15 years to finance a good chunk of the stadium.
“We’re only talking about $750 million,” Adelson said. “They’re not taking it out of taxpayers’ pockets. The local residents understand that the tourists will pay for it and they (locals) won’t even notice it.”
The NFL had long been resistant to putting a team in Las Vegas, although those views are changing. Adelson said the marketing deals most NFL teams have struck with daily fantasy sports companies is one reason he expects there to be less opposition to having a franchise in Nevada, the only state that where sports wagering.
“I’ve met with (Dallas Cowboys owner) Jerry Jones and I’ve talked to (New England Patriots owner) Bobby (Kraft)," Adelson said. “Bob is the chairman of the committee for relocation in the NFL. He’s in favor of it. It’s an old wives’ tales that they (the NFL) say gambling is no good. I’ve read that 28 of the 32 teams have interest in fantasy sports. Well, that’s gambling. So 28 teams are involved in gambling.”