MLB owners may have unanimously approved the Oakland Athletics’ move to Las Vegas, but that doesn’t mean the city’s government likes the idea.
Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman told Front Office Sports that the A’s stadium plan at the Tropicana casino site on the Strip ‘doesn’t make sense’ in a ‘Front Office Sports Today’ podcast episode that aired on Tuesday.
Goodman explained that the city had initially showed A’s ownership a different location in Las Vegas – an open site with 60-100 acres of land (the Tropicana site is nine acres) in the ‘historic, old part of town.’ According to Goodman, the site was near ‘where all major interstate highways come together’ with seven different access points.
‘So when they said ‘no,’ I thought, ‘This doesn’t make sense. Here’s a great site, they get a great price on it because it’s owned by the city…” she said. ‘And yet, no they’re going to go out– want to get closer to the Strip, with all of the congestion and everything. And I thought, ‘This does not. Make. Sense. So why is it happening?’
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Goodman believes the decision is one that indicates the team’s ownership is still holding out hope that they’ll stay in Oakland.
When Goodman was asked if she thinks the team’s move to Las Vegas is a good idea, she said, ‘I personally think they’ve got to figure out a way to stay in Oakland and make their dream come true.’
When are the A’s moving to Las Vegas?
The A’s have played at the Oakland Coliseum since 1968, but their lease with the stadium will end after the 2024 season. However, their new stadium at the site of the Tropicana on the Las Vegas Strip isn’t predicted to open until 2028.
In the interim period, according to USA TODAY’s Bob Nightengale, they’re expected to play home games at the San Francisco Giants’ Oracle Park and at the stadium of their Triple-A affiliate – Las Vegas Aviators – in Summerlin, Nevada.
Sports are on the rise in Sin City
Over the last several years, Las Vegas has become one of the biggest up-and-coming sports towns in the United States. The A’s planned 2028 relocation to Sin City will mark the third major sports franchise the city has added in just over a decade.
The city added an NHL team (the Golden Knights) in 2017, a football team (the Raiders) in 2020 and hosted a Formula One race for the first time last year. On Sunday, it will host its first Super Bowl.
