Anywhere but here for football

Anywhere+but+here+for+football

Louis LaVenture,
News and Sports Editor

Since 1995, when the Oakland Raiders returned from their brief hiatus in Los Angeles, the silver and black have been looking for a new home.

More than 20 years later, they are still seeking new facilities.

Oakland currently has no lease to play in any stadium and fresh off of their recent Los Angeles relocation rejection, it seems like anywhere but Oakland is fine for the franchise.

Owner Mark Davis recently visited officials from Las Vegas, San Antonio and San Diego to discuss the possibility of the team playing the upcoming season in one of those cities. All this despite fans at O. co Coliseum selling out every Raider home game for more than three consecutive seasons.

The Raiders haven’t made the postseason since 2003 when they lost to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the Super Bowl. Yet, every home game since 2013 has been a sellout, full of rabid fans dressed in costumes only appropriate on Halloween. The Oakland home field advantage is one of the best in the NFL thanks in large part to thousands of fans that support the team no matter how bad they are.

The thanks these fans get are relocation to another city.

The silver and black are one of the most iconic franchises in all of professional sports, yet the city that has helped them become that, Oakland, is getting completely shunned by the franchise.

The NFL has pledged $500 million to cover half of the $1 billion necessary to build a new facility in Oakland. However, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and city officials have not been willing to put the rest of the money on the taxpayers, seeking private investors instead. Oakland taxpayers still owe roughly $80 million from the renovations done to the coliseum when the team returned in 1995.

This leaves the city and the team at a standstill.

Davis wants a new facility that will highlight his franchise and he doesn’t seem to care which part of the country provides it. While the city does seem interested in keeping the team in the East Bay, they still have yet to provide a proper financial plan to do so, making a move increasingly more likely for the Raiders.

For fans that went through the relocation the first time, it is like a bad dream. It’s happening again, the team they love is on the verge of leaving.

You would think that Davis would listen to the thousands of fans who have protested and started the “Stay in Oakland” movement, which has generated a ton of local support.

However, with no plans in place and the season officially over, San Antonio, Las Vegas or San Diego could be the new home for the Raiders.