The Raiders’ new stadium in Las Vegas isn’t expected to be ready to open until the 2020 NFL season, so it’s possible the franchise could continue to play in Oakland until then.
This week, in fact, Raiders owner Mark Davis told ESPN the team would "seriously consider it" if "they want us." Davis reiterated his team would play at the stadium in Oakland in 2017 and 2018 and perhaps another season.
But it doesn’t sound as if some in Oakland would want the Raiders to stick around another season.
Scott McKibben, executive director of the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority, told Brent Schrotenboer of USA Today he doesn’t “believe there is any appetite for a third season” in Oakland.
If that comes to pass, that could force the Raiders to play at a temporary venue in the Las Vegas area in 2019, perhaps Sam Boyd Stadium where UNLV plays its home football games. The Raiders also could play a final season in the Bay Area at another venue, such as Cal’s Memorial Stadium, the 49ers’ Levi Stadium or the Giants’ AT&T Park, noted ESPN.com.
Davis says he’d rather not play his first season in Las Vegas in anything but a new stadium.
“I want to come into Las Vegas clean,” Davis told ESPN.
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McKibben told USA Today the costs of keeping the stadium in Oakland operational for football in 2019 would outweigh the benefits of a third Raiders season after announcing their move.
“It’s actually financially to our benefit if they didn’t exercise the options and play here even in the two years they’ve got (2017 and 2018),” said McKibben.
