Raiders Considering Playing Without Fans
The Las Vegas Raiders considering playing without fans. What a wild ride for Raiders fans. Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis is leaning toward not having any fans attend games at Las Vegas’ new Allegiant Stadium this season. He also said that he will not be attending any games either if fans are not allowed to be in the stadium.
“No one fan is more important to me than another, no matter if they paid for a $75,000 PSL or a $500 PSL,” Davis told ESPN.com Sunday night. “They’re all Raider fans to me. My mindset today is no fans [should attend games].
“I don’t even know if it’s safe to play. ‘Uncertainty’ is the word.”
According to Davis, the NFL has three options at the moment.
1. Go on as planned, with teams reporting for training camp over the next week, and see what happens.
2. Delay the start of the season until November and go to a 12-game season, cancelling each team’s four interconference games. (For the Raiders, that would mean games at the Carolina Panthers and Atlanta Falcons and home games against the New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.)
Mark Davis Says Raiders Considering Playing Without Fans
3. Cancel the 2020 season entirely.
“Everything is up in the air with the [COVID-19] virus and how it will affect our league and season,” Davis said, adding that his frustration about taking away the first eight rows of seats was exacerbated by the league’s leaving the decision on fans to the individual teams after an offseason of what Davis called “equity” among teams.
With the Raiders having sold out for their first season in Las Vegas, they have no room to move fans from those bottom sections.
“That’s the Black Hole,” Davis said. “It’s the people that want to be in the front row. Boisterous fans … now I’ve got to tell 8,000 people that helped build this thing that they can’t come to a game? I don’t have 8,000 seats to move them to. We’re sold out.
“The optics are terrible: advertising on top of seats belonging to people you’re telling they can’t come to the game. I’d rather have everybody pissed at me than just one person. I’ve got to make it up to them, and I will. This is all about safety and equity.”
