Los Angeles to get its own NFL franchise soon - NFL News
The city of Los Angeles has for a long period remained a question mark for the National Football League (NFL) as the second largest media market in the United States has remained without a franchise since the Oakland Raiders moved in 1995.
Since then the city has been used as a bargaining chip by a number of franchises who threatened their own host cities of a move to Los Angeles to get financing for proposed new stadiums.
However, it seems that the league is finally ready to bring the NFL to the city after the
Los Angeles Times first reported that commissioner, Roger Goodell, on Friday circulated a memo to all 32-teams in the league which laid down the ground rules for any potential franchise looking to move to the city.
Goodell in the memo said that no franchise has exclusive rights to move to the city and any decision will be taken by the league after voting by all 32 owners of teams.
According to the memo, teams looking to move into Los Angeles will have to start applying from January 1st to February 15th of 2013 and must also prove that no other option other than a move is available to them.
The memo from Goodell read:
"Although substantial uncertainties remain stadium development in Los Angeles has advanced to the point where the prospects for a new facility are better than they have been in many years."
There are two competing sites in Los Angeles that are looking to develop a new NFL-ready stadium with one in Downtown Los Angeles and the other in City of Industry.
Goodell mentioned that finding investment for both sides is unlikely and wants the franchises to select a single site on which to build an iconic stadium that could play host to Super Bowl events as well as host two teams.
"Given that simultaneous league-wide investment in two stadiums in the same community is unlikely, we believe that the best approach will be a single site where an iconic facility could credibly both host two teams and provide ancillary entertainment and
development opportunities."
Los Angeles has remained the largest city in America without its own NFL franchise but that is soon about to change as it seems likely one or even two franchises may move in to make the city their new home.
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