So It Begins...

Last week, new plans for a football stadium to be built in Los Angeles were released. Coincidentally, the model prominently displays the color purple in the stadium seats. Before reading too much into that, know that the guy who is building it, billionaire Ed Roski, Jr., is also a part owner of the Lakers and Kings, both whom feature the color purple in their logos and uniforms.

But the obvious thought is that this will put pressure on the state of Minnesota to figure out their stadium situation soon. I assume this stadium is pretty much a done deal since it's privately funded and there won't be the hassle of going to the California state legislature for public money. The Vikings are also fixing to be out of the Metrodome by 2011. They'll either be playing in the Gophers' TCF Bank Stadium while a new Vikings stadium is being built in downtown Minneapolis, or they will be playing in a different city and state.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out for a number of reasons.

First, I am anxious to see what team will actually be relocating to Los Angeles. The article mentioned not only the Vikings, but the Chargers, Jaguars, and Saints as other potential suitors. All of these teams are located in smaller media markets with less than desirable stadiums. If the Vikings do leave the Twin Cities, it does not necessarily mark the end of NFL in our state. The Twin Cities area is the 15th largest television media market in the United States. San Diego is the 27th largest. Jacksonville is 49. New Orleans is 53. If the teams in these cities can't get new stadiums built, then they'll keep looking to relocate. The Twin Cites would now be the largest market without an NFL team, making it the most attractive option.

The second thing that I'm interested in seeing is how Vikings owner Zygi Wilf uses this to his advantage. Being located in the 2nd largest TV market would be attractive, but ultimately you can build a state-of-the-art new stadium anywhere in this country and it will sell out every Sunday. I think he'll use the new stadium in LA as leverage to pressure the state into funding a new stadium here in Minneapolis. If it works, then great. We'll be seeing a new football venue here. If not, then I wonder if he actually will make the move or if it was just a bluff. Or maybe another team will make the move to LA and destroy his leverage while he's still lobbying for a new stadium here.

Last, I wonder if Edward P. Roski, Jr.'s new stadium will signal the end of publicly financed sports venues. Will cities all over America collectively show some backbone and now point to Los Angeles when team owners are asking for public money to fund stadiums? I hope this is the case. While I love pro sports and going to games in shiny new ballparks, arenas, and stadiums; I still feel like there should be a better way of getting these places funded privately.

As it stands, the total cost of the proposed Vikings stadium is about $1 billion total. Zygi Wilf is opposed to the idea of a retractable roof, but the Metropolitan Sports Commission wants it because it will enable them to use the stadium for more than just football and bring events such as the Final Four or Superbowl back to Minnesota. The cost of the retractable roof is about $250 million, or a quarter of the total stadium cost. In a perfect world, the Metropolitan Sports Commission would fund the cost of the roof with public money, and Zygi would pay for the rest of the stadium.

I guess we'll see what happens. Like I said, it will be interesting.