O.co Coliseum gets new operator, poaching threat?

Colin BechtCSNBayArea.comThe Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Authority gave approval to the Anschutz Entertainment Group to operate the stadium for the next five years.The agreement, reported by the Contra Costa Times, will inject millions of dollars into the Coliseum, potentially renovating the 45-year-old stadium in much needed ways. Although this seems to be a good deal for the inhabitants of the Coliseum and, by extension, the fans of those teams, it comes with one caveat. In addition to now holding a vested interest in the Coliseum, as well as several other stadiums and sports franchises, AEG is also working with the NFL on building a football stadium in Los Angeles. That project has led to concerns that AEG might try to poach the Raiders out of the Coliseum and into a new, state-of-the-art facility in downtown Los Angeles. Asked directly by Coliseum authority commissioner Nate Miley if AEG intended "to try to poach our teams," AEG facility chief Chris Wright said, "Absolutely not." AEG will make at least 3 million in the agreement to operarate the Coliseum and would have to pay back at least 6 million if moved the Raiders, A's or Warriors. The Coliseum authority also included provisions that limit AEG from persuading any team to move to a city within 50 miles of Oakland, but antitrust laws halt provisions preventing any move altogether."We're trying to get something done up here, but if we can't, we've got to get something done somewhere because we need to be able to compete," Raiders owner Mark Davis said in January. "Los Angeles is a possibility." AEG has unveiled plans for a 1.7-million-square-foot football stadium next to the Staples Center and plans to invest 1 billion into the project if it can convince an NFL team to move to Los Angeles. The stadium already has a corporate sponsor and would be named Farmers Field. AEG's plan has come under scrutiny by Los Angeles City Councilman Bill Rosendahl over what he said was a lack of specifics on the proposed stadium's environmental impact. L.A. has not had an NFL team since 1995 when the Raiders and the Rams both left. Colin Becht is an intern with CSNBayArea.com and a senior at Northwestern University