Oakland Raiders rescind rent offer for 2019
ALAMEDA – In response to a federal antitrust lawsuit, a Raiders executive said Wednesday the club has rescinded a rent offer for the 2019 season to play at the Coliseum.
Raiders CEO Marc Badain told reporters at the NFL owners meetings in Dallas a $7.5 million offer was off the table, but gave no indication where the franchise will play its games.
“We do not have an an answer on where we’re going to play next year,” Badain said. “We have a number of options, and when we have an answer we’ll share it with you.”
The City of Oakland filed a federal antitrust lawsuit Tuesday against the Raiders, the NFL and its 31 other teams over their impending move to Las Vegas.
Raiders owner Mark Davis, asked by reporters about Oakland as well as other potential destinations such as San Diego, Santa Clara, San Antonio and Nevada, said “all options are open” although he expressed doubt about the possibility of playing on artificial surface at San Antonio’s Alamodome.
Regarding returning to Oakland, Davis said, “Emotionally, I don’t want to pay for my own lawsuit, but for the fans, it’s something I’ve got to think about.”
With that as a backdrop, it’s conceivable the Raiders’ Christmas Eve game against the Denver Broncos could be their last game at the Coliseum if they seek a temporary home in 2019 with their Las Vegas stadium scheduled to open in 2020.
“I’ve spent five years playing in that stadium,” Raiders quarterback Derek Carr said. “We have people talking trash about it and whatever they want, but I love it. It’s ours. It’s been fun. The fact that it could be
the last one is crazy.”
Commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters the league would need to know by “early January, February” where the Raiders were going to play in 2019 for scheduling purposes.
In an interview with Paul Gutierrez of ESPN. com, Davis called the suit “meritless and malicious” and said, “My feeling is we’re 3-10 and we’re still relevant. It’s a legal issue and I’ll let the attorneys make further comment.”
With the NFL announcing Tuesday the Raiders would play one “home” game in either London or Mexico City, the team could be on the lookout for a nine-game (two preseason games, seven regular season games) stopover home site which would likely include remaining in their Alameda practice facility during the week.