Mark Davis is still proving that moving the Raiders to Las Vegas was more than worth it for everything he needed
In 2017, the Oakland Raiders decided to move to Las Vegas, Nevada, ending their long history in Oakland, California. The move was approved by NFL owners after the team couldn’t get a deal for a new stadium in Oakland. The Las Vegas Raiders built Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, costing $1.9 billion, with $750 million coming from public funds.
For Las Vegas, it meant a new sports team, boosting the local economy. However, for Oakland fans, it was a tough change since the Raiders had been a big part of the community since 1960. The relocation raised questions about fan loyalty, the economic impact on cities losing teams, and the use of public money for sports stadiums.
This killed a lot of hope for fans. Oakland was once a die-hard sports city with the best fan bases in America sporting both the Raiders and Athletics. And, now, of course, neither is in Oakland. This hurt a lot of the fans. And, why wouldn’t it?
But, at the same time, owner Mark Davis was thinking about the bigger picture financially. Al Davis always said that the move would happen, too. And, both were right in wanting that, because since then, the Raiders’ stock has only risen when you talk about the financial implications.
Allegiant Stadium is the top stadium in the United States and the #2 stadium globally for live events, according to Billboard Magazine’s 2024 year-end report. It drew 657,000 fans and $119 million in ticket sales across 15 major events last year. – Las Vegas Locally on Twitter/X
The Raiders have one downside with this move — they can never seem to have more home fans at home games than there are away fans. And, until the team is good, that will likely always be a problem, especially in a tourist city like Las Vegas.
But, Davis is proving that the move was worth it for what he needs.
