Ten days after AEG tried to throw a whole set set of socket wrenches into the Inglewood stadium proposal by releasing a report that raised terrorism concerns, AEG has decided to bow out of the chase to build an NFL facility in Los Angeles.
Sam Farmer of the L.A. Times reports that, after five years and $50 million, AEG no longer will attempt to construct a downtown stadium.
“I think it’s fair to say we have turned our attention to proceeding with an alternative development,” AEG Vice Chairman Ted Fikre told Farmer.
As a result, AEG will not seek another extension of an April 17 deadline to secure a team to move to Los Angeles.
Ultimately, AEG’s bid to construct a stadium was hampered by the desire of AEG’s Philip Anschutz to acquire full or partial ownership of a team that would play there. The three teams (Chargers, Raiders, Rams) currently circling the L.A. area in search of up to two chairs have no plans to sell; they simply want to relocate.
If/when (when) one or two of them relocates, they won’t be relocating to Farmers Field, the only stadium in NFL history that had a naming rights deal before it ever had a deal to be constructed.
