Like many others, Oakland Raiders frontman Mark Davis and his fellow National Football League owners have a problem with Sheldon Adelson.
It seems that Adelson wants Davis to rent his Las Vegas stadium, which will be partially funded by the largest stadium subsidy, three quarters of a billion dollars from taxpayers, ever approved by a government in America history, the Nevada state legislature and the state governor.
That three quarters of a billion-dollar handout alone should be enough to disqualify Adelson from calling the proposed Las Vegas facility his stadium. But this is Sheldon Adelson and he has an awful lot of sway or his money does.
Adelson is not a charitable sort when it comes to sharing his money unless he gets something out of it and apparently, he wants something from Davis and the NFL, perhaps getting a piece of the team which is not going to go over well with the NFL owners.
Here is where Davis and the Raiders ownership group stand. Davis has failed to get Oakland to promise funding for a new stadium for his business. One of the stumbling blocks in Oakland is a $95 million debt that is still owed for the 1995 Oakland Coliseum renovation.
Oakland officials want the team to cover that debt and Davis’s people have said no. Davis could not get any deals done elsewhere including Carson, California. The Nevada costs will go up because debt is not included. Nevada will assume $750 million of the cost, Adelson and his Sands property $650 million with Davis and the NFL putting up $500 million.
Based on that financial breakdown, it would seem Nevada not Adelson should be running the show. But Adelson is ready to walk from the deal if Davis and the NFL stand up to Sheldon Adelson. Very few stand up to Adelson and win, which puts this deal in jeopardy.
By Evan Weiner For The Politics Of Sports Business
This article was republished with permission from the original publisher, Evan Weiner.