After 54 years of playing at Candlestick Park, the San Francisco 49ers opened their new $1.3 billion stadium on Thursday. Located in Santa Clara, Calif., Levi’s Stadium will now be home to Niners players, fans and media.
And commissioner Roger Goodell gave a short speech during the unveiling. He suggested that the Oakland Raiders could solve a lot of its venue problems if the team rented out Levi’s Stadium and played there, too.
Goodell on Raiders (1/2): “They have to make that determination, whether they’re in a new stadium in Oakland or whether they feel that …
— Bay Area Sports Guy (@BASportsGuy) July 17, 2014
Goodell on Raiders (2/2): “.., it’s best to join this stadium. We’re working on that, and that’s one of the decisions they’ll have to make.”
— Bay Area Sports Guy (@BASportsGuy) July 17, 2014
The current lease at O.Co Coliseum runs through the 2014-15 season. So while the idea does make sense on paper, it’s hard to say if the Raiders would be on board with not having their own stadium.
In the past, when asked about the possibility of sharing a stadium, Raiders owner Mark Davis hasn’t been very interested in the idea, according to Pro Football Talk. But if he wants to keep the team in Oakland, he may not have much of a choice.
Now, back to the stadium itself: It will hold approximately 68,000 fans and features 9,000 club seats. The 49ers tweeted out some photos during Thursday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Welcome to @LevisStadium. #RibbonCutting pic.twitter.com/KvHGeBkdQn
— San Francisco 49ers (@49ers) July 17, 2014
The Jets and Giants have been sharing stadiums for roughly three decades and it’s worked out just fine for them. 49ers and Raiders fans may not be the best of friends, but the idea of it makes sense for the Raiders. And it also helps quell a lot of the pressure they’d be facing to renew as time runs out on their current lease.
Davis may want to build his own stadium in Los Angeles, but it’ll be a hard sell down the road and would also cost a tremendous amount of money. The league and most owners would likely prefer the team rent out Levi’s Stadium for a long period of time, so something has to give here. It’ll be an interesting story to watch in the future as it unfolds.