NFL Owners Approve Raiders’ Relocation To Las Vegas 31-1

Update:

Mark Davis told reporters that he has “mixed feelings” about relocating the franchise.

“I have mixed feelings, obviously. I love Oakland. I love the fans in Oakland,” Davis said.

According to Davis, they plan to play at least the 2017-2018 season in the Oakland Coliseum until their new stadium is built.

“We plan to play at the Coliseum in 17-18 and hope to stay as the Oakland Raiders until the new stadium opens,” Davis said.

Davis mentioned that they will refund any season-ticket deposits already made for anyone who wants one.

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Raiders owner Mark Davis has released a statement following the news that they’ve received conditional approval from the NFL to relocate the franchise to Las Vegas, Nevada.

“My father always said, ‘the greatness of the Raiders is in its future,’ and the opportunity to build a world-class stadium in the entertainment capital of the world is a significant step toward achieving that greatness. I would like to thank Commissioner Goodell, the National Football League and my 31 partners. I would also like to thank Governor Brian Sandoval and the Nevada Legislature for their commitment. Finally, I would like to thank Sheldon Adelson for his vision and leadership, without which this project never would have become a reality.

“The Raiders were born in Oakland and Oakland will always be part of our DNA. We know that some fans will be disappointed and even angry, but we hope that they do not direct that frustration to the players, coaches and staff. We plan to play at the Coliseum in 2017 and 2018, and hope to stay there as the Oakland Raiders until the new stadium opens. We would love nothing more than to bring a championship back to the Bay Area.”

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NFL owners officially approved the Raiders move to Las Vegas on Monday in a vote of 31-1, according to Adam Schefter.

Schefter adds that the only owner who opposed the move was Stephen Ross of the Dolphins.

The expectation had been that the Raiders had the necessary 24 votes to make the move to Las Vegas and recent attempts by the city of Oakland didn’t live up to the league’s expectations for a deal that would keep the franchise in the Bay Area.

Las Vegas agreed to pay a staggering $750 million towards a stadium project that would house both the Raiders and UNLV to go along with another $200 million to improve the area surrounding the stadium site.

Some reports have said that the NFL still has some reservations about placing a team in Las Vegas, but the league wasn’t going to pass up this kind of deal with nothing close to it on the table from Oakland.

This is the third team scheduled to relocate to another city in just the past 15 months.

You have to feel for the fans of Oakland, who have supported this team for years while they were rebuilding and just as they begin to put things together, they plan to move on to a new city.

We’ll have more regarding the Raiders’ move as the news is available.