The St. Louis Board of Aldermen on Friday with a 17-10 vote took a decisive step in a "quest to remain an 'NFL city' by giving approval to fund construction of what would be the city’s second football stadium in less than two decades," according Nicholas Pistor of the ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH. The city "would finance" $150M of the overall $1.1B project, with the rest of the funding coming from the state, the NFL and Rams Owner Stan Kroenke. Friday’s meeting "lasted more than two hours and was interrupted by protesters singing special Christmas carols such as, 'We want a new Board of Aldermen for Christmas.'” The funding approval "is far from the final step," as NFL team owners "will make the ultimate decision, which is expected next month." Kroenke "hasn’t shown any interest in staying in St. Louis." For the new stadium to be built, he "would have to agree to the financing package." Alderman Sharon Tyus said, "We’re like at the strip club … and the stripper is throwing the money back at us" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 12/19). In California, Scott Reid noted the vote "closed one significant hole" in the St. Louis stadium task force’s plans for a downtown stadium "while also bolstering, at least to some in the NFL, the argument against the Rams being approved for relocation" (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 12/19). Also in St. Louis, Benjamin Hochman wrote the approval was St. Louis’ "biggest NFL win this season: though, in a way, it was the Rams’ worst loss, in regards to its ownership trying to bolt" for L.A. This deal "doesn’t save the NFL in St. Louis, but if it didn’t pass, it might have ended it" (ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, 12/20).
CALIFORNIA LOVE: In Boston, Ben Volin wrote a "clear favorite has emerged" for L.A. relocation -- the Chargers-Raiders joint stadium effort in Carson. There is "still plenty of back-room politicking to be done over the next three weeks between the three teams and the other 29 owners, but the sentiment appears to be that the NFL would prefer to let the current California teams move within the state instead of adding the Rams back into the state." Not to mention, if the Rams’ project is the one approved, it "does nothing to mollify the stadium woes in San Diego and Oakland" (BOSTON GLOBE, 12/20).
PHANTOM FUNDS: PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Mike Florio noted the race to L.A. is "careening toward a potentially ugly fight in January." The latest "example of dysfunction comes from the phantom" $100M from the NFL that the St. Louis Board of Aldermen "included in the stadium financing package." A source said that the extra contribution was "suggested to the St. Louis stadium task force by one of the six members" of the league’s Committee on L.A. Opportunities. While "unable to bind the league," the committee members indicated that the extra $100M "would come from the redistribution of relocation fees paid by the team(s) that move to L.A." It is "unknown which committee members were involved" in making the suggestion. Regardless, the committee is giving Kroenke "plenty of ammunition for pushing back against the final recommendation of the committee -- either in the meeting room or, eventually, in a courtroom" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 12/19).
MIX & MATCH: Fox' Jay Glazer said, "Owners right now are pretty sure that the team that's going to move to L.A. is the San Diego Chargers. That's the only team that everybody seems to be in agreement with, but nobody is in agreement with who they are going to partner with. Half the league right now is saying that it has to be the Raiders and their deal with (Disney Chair & CEO) Bob Iger, and the other half is saying, 'No, we need Stan Kroenke here'" ("Fox NFL Sunday," 12/20). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Florio noted a swap of the Chargers and the Rams "could be the cleanest way out of the league’s sudden L.A. clusterfudge." Making Inglewood "even more attractive is talk of Kroenke building new studio space for NFL Network there, which would be available to the league for the right price," being that it is free. The numbers "quickly will pile up" in favor of Chargers Chair Dean Spanos if he would "trade the Chargers for the Rams." The "deeper question" is whether owners like the Panthers' Jerry Richardson and the Texans' Bob McNair "would be willing to work with Kroenke to let him get to L.A. with a different team, or whether their opposition to a Rams move is less about keeping the team in St. Louis and more about pushing back against Kroenke, who has behaved to date in a way that has rubbed plenty of his partners the wrong way" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 12/20).
