Industry News

Oakland Raiders purchase land for Vegas stadium

NFL American football franchise the Oakland Raiders has purchased the land on which it intends to build its $1.9bn (£1.5bn/€1.7bn), state-of-the-art stadium in Las Vegas.

The team has paid $77.5m to buy the 62-acre site, which is located close to the famous Las Vegas Strip.

The team received approval to relocate to Las Vegas in March, with NFL teams having voted 31-1 in favour of the move.

The deal for the land was brokered by real estate firm CBRE, whose vice-president Michael Parks said this particular site was chosen due to its prime location.

Parks told the Las Vegas Review-Journal newspaper: “The site selection was a very public process, and there was a lot of speculation and media reports on where the stadium would go.

“This site wasn’t one of those originally mentioned. The Raiders were looking for a site in close proximity to the east side of Interstate 15. Through many months of reaching out to the Raiders directly and making sure they were aware this site was available, they decided this was their preferred site.”

The stadium is set to serve as a prime viewing location for the Las Vegas Strip, while also proving accessible for pedestrians travelling to games.

The Raiders currently share the Coliseum stadium with Major League Baseball franchise the Oakland Athletics. The Raiders will continue to play at the stadium while work on the team’s new home is carried out. It is hoped the Raiders will move into the 65,000-seat Vegas stadium by no later than the 2020 NFL season.