NFL American football franchise the Los Angeles Rams is reportedly seeking an additional $500m (£410.8m/€461.1m) from the league to help finance its new SoFi Stadium.
The Athletic website said the Rams, which will share the 70,000-seat venue with the Los Angeles Chargers, have made several requests to the NFL to further tap into its G-4 stadium lending programme.
The SoFi Stadium project has already received $400m, but the Rams are said to be seeking up to another $500m, while also doubling the term in which this money will need to be repaid. “There’s a massive request for debt waivers and additional G-4 from those in L.A.” a team source told The Athletic. “And they’re asking to pay that over 30 years as opposed to 15 years.”
SoFi Stadium’s budget is now said to have risen from an initially projected $2.2bn to between $5bn and $6bn, with the Rams currently grappling with how COVID-19 will affect revenues for the new Inglewood venue, which is scheduled to open later this year.
A combination of significant budget increases and a major fall in projected personal seat license (PSL) sales for the 2020 NFL season is said to have led to the approach for extra funding from the League. The new loan could be split with the Chargers, which are already accountable for half of the initial $400m sum.
It emerged last week that the Rams had begun selling single-game suites for the 2020 season, which will be the team’s first at SoFi Stadium. The team has set up a dedicated single-game suites sales website, which will enable fans to explore all suite options, learn about the available amenities, view availability by game and purchase the tickets online.
SoFi Stadium had been due to open on July 25-26 with two Taylor Swift concerts but these have been cancelled due to the pandemic. The Rams’ first regular-season game at the stadium will be against the Dallas Cowboys on September 13, with three pre-season encounters scheduled before this.
Work on SoFi Stadium has been continuing in recent weeks despite the COVID-19 outbreak. The stadium remains on schedule to open in time for the 2020 NFL season but it remains to be seen how many fans will be able to attend games amid uncertainty caused by the pandemic.
Image: Los Angeles Rams
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