In St. Louis, the Rams still must decide on where to train
and how to accommodate ticket-holders for their first few games
that will be played at Busch Stadium, a smaller facility than the
dome they will eventually inhabit. Rams President John Shaw says
the team will most likely train this summer in St. Louis, but
that they might "eventually" choose a permanent training camp
site outside the city. The WI "Cheese League" could be a
possibility, as "July and August temperatures are more moderate"
there than in MO or IL. The team is still looking for a site for
its St. Louis HQs. FANS Inc. Chair Thomas Eagleton says the team
will be "more inclined to look at sites where the land was
available free of charge," after an agreement last week to cap
FANS' obligation to fund the facility at $12.5M. The team will
now pay the rest of the cost of a new facility, estimated at
$19M-20M (Jim Thomas, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 4/14).
STADIUM PROBLEMS: The team will need to play two to three
games at Busch Stadium before the new domed stadium is ready in
October. Busch, which seats 55,000-60,000 for football, will
accommodate "barely" the 46,000 PSL holders, 6,200 club seat
purchasers, 2,000 luxury box-holder seats and 1,700 tickets for
Rams sponsors, the team and visiting team. Sportscorp's Marc
Ganis, a Rams consultant, says the "immediate priority" will be
to create a stadium manifest. Ganis: "That's basically taking
every seat at Busch Stadium that's available for football and
coding them so that we can have our ticket holders in the new
stadium a location at Busch" (Jim Thomas, ST. LOUIS POST-
DISPATCH, 4/14).
RADIO DAZE: KMOX, the rights-holder for the Blues and
Cardinals, is considered "a long shot" in the race to land the
Rams radio broadcasts. KSD and WIL have emerged as the front
runners, according to Dan Caesar in this morning's ST. LOUIS
POST-DISPATCH. Sportscorp's Ganis, who is also charged with
negotiating with the stations, will not name the three finalists
but says "several factors" will play a roll in deciding who will
win the rights, including: The ability to market/promote the
team, a strong signal, a high-quality technical production, and
money. Sources say the team wants $3M annually (ST. LOUIS-POST
DISPATCH, 4/14).
