Oakland Raiders Apply To Relocate To Las Vegas

Las Vegas may soon finally have an NFL team.

Oakland Raiders Apply To Relocate To Las Vegas

The Raiders have filed their relocation paperwork with the NFL to move from Oakland to Sin City, the league revealed in a statement Thursday.

“Today, the Oakland Raiders submitted an application to relocate their franchise to Las Vegas, as is provided for under the NFL Policy and Procedures for Proposed Franchise Relocations,” the statement read.

“The application will be reviewed in the coming weeks by league staff and the Stadium and Finance Committees. The relocation of a franchise requires the affirmative vote of three-quarters of the NFL clubs.”

The move, which comes a week after the Chargers announced their decision to relocate from San Diego to Los Angeles– was expected. NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Saturday the Raiders would file the paperwork within days.

At least 24 of the 32 NFL team owners will need to approve the relocation bid, however. The earliest the owners are anticipated to vote is late March, when they convene in Phoenix for the Annual League Meeting.

The Raiders have until Feb. 15 to file relocation papers. If the team’s relocation application is accepted, they likely wouldn’t move to their proposed, 65,000-seat stadium in Las Vegas until 2020.

The city of Oakland has made no progress to keep the team, sources told Rapoport.

The NFL has long shunned the idea of placing a team in Las Vegas, a city highly associated with gambling. However, that stance has softened in recent years with the proliferation of daily fantasy sports and other types of wagering. Although the league remains wary of gambling’s potential influence on games, many players, coaches, and even some owners– most notably the Dallas Cowboys’ Jerry Jones– have dismissed these concerns.

“The unique thing about Las Vegas is it’s a jewel for our country,” Jones said in a recent interview. “It really can be a plus for the ‘wow’ factor and for the N.F.L.”

The Raiders have said they want to move to Nevada because they have failed for years to find a replacement for their aging home, the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, one of the oldest and most decrepit stadiums in the league.

Furthermore, a hockey expansion team of the NHL will begin play in Las Vegas in the next season later this year. Thus, many people will surely wonder whether the city can manage to sustain both teams. With about 2.5 million residents, the Las Vegas metropolitan area, is bigger than several others with N.F.L. teams, including Buffalo, Green Bay and New Orleans.

KANSAS CITY, MO – DECEMBER 8: Quarterback Derek Carr #4 of the Oakland Raiders throws a pass against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium during the first quarter of the game on December 8, 2016 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)