Rams ask NFL for additional $500M in stadium financing amid concerns about 2020 revenue, per report
The NFL could be in for a season where stadiums are either empty or at least partially depleted of fans, which could have some obvious effects on team revenue in 2020. With that in mind, the Los Angeles Rams have made several requests to the league in order to finance Inglewood's SoFi Stadium, which remains under construction: First, an additional $500 million to offset cost overruns; and second, an extension of the time the Rams have to pay back the borrowed money. That's according to The Athletic's Daniel Kaplan, who reported Thursday that the Rams' request would have them borrowing up to $900 million for the completion of the stadium.
The team is also seeking to repay that money over 30 years rather than 15, per Kaplan, in anticipation of a "gut punch to gate revenue this fall." SoFi Stadium is expected to be completed this summer, he added, with the Los Angeles Chargers sharing the venue's initial $2.2 billion price tag, but a combination of steep budget increases and a "dramatic" dip in projected personal seat license sales for the 2020 season prompted the request for assistance.
It's possible the up-to-$500M request will ultimately be split with the Chargers, according to Kaplan. Either way, both L.A. franchises figure to be on the hook for more than anticipated -- and with less cash than anticipated -- amid the COVID-19 pandemic. "Pricey earthquake mitigation measures" bumped the SoFi budget all the way between $5-6 billion, per Kaplan, and the Rams and Chargers jointly expected to sell something like $850M in personal seat licenses (which give fans the right to purchase tickets to specific seats). Seat license projections are now "collectively considerably south of" expectations, hence the bid for more money.
At this point, it remains unclear if SoFi Stadium will even be permitted to open when construction is, in fact, complete. Los Angeles County announced this week that it would be extending stay-at-home orders through the end of July, and the state of California has been among the most vocal in terms of easing, not rushing, the reopening of the economy during the pandemic.
Read more: https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/rams-ask-nfl-for-additional-500m-in-stadium-financing-amid-concerns-about-2020-revenue-per-report/
= new reply since forum marked as read
