The Raiders are set to leave Oakland a second time, and will move to a publicly-funded stadium in Las Vegas in 2020. Now, the city of Oakland is reportedly ready to file a lawsuit against the team.
The Oakland City Council approved an antitrust lawsuit against the Silver and Black, as well as the NFL, over the Raiders' eventual move to the desert, according to a report Tuesday from the San Francisco Chronicle. In turn, the Raiders would not sign a lease extension to play at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum beyond this season, Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority executive director Scott McKibben said.
"They told me we might as well take the contract and rip it up," McKibben told the Chronicle Tuesday.
Oakland councilman Noel Gallo told the Chronicle the lawsuit will be filed in the coming days, and likely before the Raiders' season opener against the Los Angeles Rams at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum. The suit will "likely seek millions of dollars in damages for the team's exit," and three outside firms will handle the case in exchange for a cut of the damages, according to the paper.
The Raiders' lease with the Coliseum expires after this season. They have been working on a deal to stay in the Coliseum through 2019 -- and potentially 2020 if the Las Vegas stadium isn't ready -- according to the report. McKibben said last year that he [didn't believe] there is any appetite for a third season" after the Raiders announced their move to Sin City.
Oakland and Alameda County still have to pay off $75 million in bond debt on renovations to the Coliseum. Those renovations brought the Raiders back to Oakland from Los Angeles.
