Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis met with San Antonio officials to talk relocation, San Antonio local news reports
By Chase Ruttig
Jun 17, 2014; Alameda, CA, USA; Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis (left) and Willie Brown at minicamp at Raiders Practice Facility. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
A report coming out of the local news market in San Antonio claims Raiders owner Mark Davis has met with officials of the Texas city to talk about relocation of the Oakland franchise to the city made popular by the NBA’s San Antonio Spurs to give them an NFL franchise that they have been wanting.
MySanAntonio.com is reporting that Davis, and his two top lieutenants met with several San Antonio city officials to discuss the chance of relocating the North California based Raiders to the state of Texas when the team’s lease at the Oakland Coliseum expires.
From MySanAntonio.com:
"Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis and two top lieutenants met recently with several San Antonio officials to discuss the potential of moving his NFL team from the Bay Area to the Alamo City, sources familiar with the matter have confirmed.On July 18, Davis met with the officials, including Henry Cisneros, then-Mayor Julián Castro, City Manager Sheryl Sculley, Mario Hernandez of the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, and both Richard Perez and David McGee, the president and chairman of the San Antonio Chamber of Commerce, respectively.San Antonio has often been used as a bargaining chip for pro sports franchises trying to negotiate better deals in their own respective cities, but sources have characterized Davis’ interest in San Antonio to be at least somewhat more serious. He is clearly perturbed with his current situation in Oakland, where the team’s lease expires after the 2014-15 season.Cisneros, who led the charge to build the Alamodome when he was mayor, has been described by sources as the architect of the meeting.Davis and his associates reportedly spent two or three days here, visiting the Alamodome and other places. They also took an aerial tour of the city in a helicopter, arranged by developer Marty Wender.With some upgrades, the Alamodome could be ready for a 2015-16 NFL season, though it would be a temporary home at best. The city has set aside funds to add suites to the 21-year-old dome, now home to the University of Texas at San Antonio Roadrunners football team and the San Antonio Talons arena football team."
It remains to be seen if this report will be confirmed in the coming days, or if it is true at all. However San Antonio has been mentioned as a possible NFL destination for years now and along with Portland the city could be a potential option other than Los Angeles for the Raiders to easily relocate without a headache with the league surrounding their protection of the large media market that is L.A. Any relocation destination is still far from close to luring Mark Davis to relocate from the Bay Area and Northern California, but if this report is confirmed the City of Oakland should be concerned about losing the Raiders to another state.
You can read the full report from MySanAntonio.com here