LAS VEGAS -- The Oakland Raiders and the board overseeing the proposed NFL stadium in Las Vegas have high hopes for the project despite losing an instrumental supporter, but their plan is still missing hundreds of millions of dollars in financing.
Team leaders and the stadium authority board met publicly Thursday for the first time since casino magnate Sheldon Adelson withdrew a $650 million pledge for the project. Both sides plan to continue to work on a lease agreement, but the team didn't give a definitive answer for the major financial gap.
Badain told the board the team is in discussions with "multiple financial institutions,'' but declined to elaborate beyond that when asked by The Associated Press. The cost of the 65,000-seat domed stadium is pegged at $1.9 billion.
The meeting in Las Vegas came at a crucial time for the Raiders' proposed relocation: less than two weeks after Adelson pulled out of the project and six weeks before an NFL owners' meeting where they are expected to vote on whether to approve the move. Twenty-four of the 32 NFL team owners would have to approve a potential move to Las Vegas.
Adelson and his family had pledged $650 million and the Raiders promised $500 million, with the stadium authority putting up $750 million in Las Vegas tax revenues.
Copyright 2017 by The Associated Press.
