Sheldon Adelson Pulls Out of Las Vegas Stadium Plan
January 31 2017 - 1:22AM
Dow Jones News
By Chris Kirkham
Billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson said he has pulled
out of a plan to invest $650 million in a new Las Vegas stadium
intended to house the National Football League's Oakland Raiders,
dealing a setback to efforts to move the team in the coming
years.
Mr. Adelson's investment, alongside money from the Raiders and
$750 million from additional Las Vegas hotel room taxes approved by
Nevada lawmakers last fall, was a key component of the $1.9 billion
stadium-financing deal.
The Oakland Raiders earlier this month filed paperwork with the
N.F.L. stating its intention to move, but the team still needs the
approval of 24 of the league's 32 owners before any move is
possible.
Mr. Adelson, a Republican donor who controls casino giant Las
Vegas Sands Corp., said in a statement that his family would "no
longer be involved in any facet of the stadium discussion."
The decision to pull out comes after the Raiders last week
presented a proposed use agreement for the stadium that upset some
local officials by placing restrictions on how the stadium could be
used for other events such as college football games for the
University of Nevada-Las Vegas. The proposal said the Raiders
needed to be consulted for all scheduling of UNLV games, and that
field markings and decorations for the Raiders could not be removed
for college football games.
"I was deeply disappointed for the disregard the Raiders showed
our community partners, particularly UNLV, through the proposed
agreement," Mr. Adelson's statement said. "It's clear the Raiders
have decided their path for moving to Las Vegas does not include
the Adelson family."
Mr. Adelson's decision increases pressure on Raiders owner Mark
Davis to come up with the money to pay for the project beyond the
public outlay that Nevada officials have committed. In Oakland Mr.
Davis had offered to contribute $500 million to a new stadium
project.
Steve Sisolak, chairman of the board of commissioners in Clark
County, Nev., said Mr. Adelson's announcement is a "big blow" to
the stadium project. "It's not necessarily insurmountable, but it's
going to be difficult to overcome," he said. "$650 million is a big
hole to fill."
The Raiders declined to comment on the stadium beyond a
statement saying the team remains "steadfast in honoring Mark
Davis' commitment to [Nevada] Governor [Brian] Sandoval and the
State of Nevada to pursue relocation to Las Vegas."
Mr. Adelson's exit from the project makes life simpler for the
NFL, which does not allow investors in the league to hold casino
interests. Also, in general, the NFL prefers that teams control
their stadiums without the intervention of a third party.
--Matthew Futterman contributed to this article.
Write to Chris Kirkham at chris.kirkham@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 31, 2017 01:07 ET (06:07 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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