The Oakland Raiders’ plans to relocate to Las Vegas are in jeopardy after billionaire casino mogul Sheldon Adelson pulled out of the deal on Monday.
After months of back and forth between the two parties, the precarious relationship faltered after terms could not be agreed upon. Adelson released a statement to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, saying that his family “will no longer be involved in any facet of the stadium discussion.”
With the stadium’s cost of approximately $1.9 billion, Adelson was believed to be contributing a hefty sum of $650 million. The Raiders organization and the NFL were to contribute $550 million. The remaining $750 million was believed to be coming from tax increases on Las Vegas hotels.
In a statement released in the wake of the collapsed negotiations, the Raiders graciously thanked Adelson.
“The Raiders deeply appreciate the efforts of the Adelson family to bring the Raiders to Las Vegas. We know this project could not have advanced to that point without them. The Raiders remain steadfast in honoring Mark Davis’ commitment to Governor [Brian] Sandoval and the state of Nevada to pursue relocation in Las Vegas.”
The Raiders anticipated Adelson’s exit from the deal as early as January 11th, when they presented the NFL with an alternate stadium funding plan that omitted Adelson’s $650 million contribution. This alternative plan instead included Goldman Sachs helping finance the remaining sum.
