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Disney's CEO Hired By Raiders & Chargers To Help Bring An NFL Stadium To L.A.
Long-talked about plans for a proposedfootball stadium for the Los Angeles area just got a major boost thanks to the hiring of Disney's CEO to lead the project.Bob Iger, chairman and CEO of The Walt Disney Company, has just been chosen by the San Diego Chargers and Oakland Raiders to help lead the proposed plan for a new stadium in Carson should the NFL approve the plan, reports the L.A. Times. Iger will become the nonexecutive chairman of Carson Holdings LLC—the joint venture created by the Chargers and Raiders this year—and will work with the city of Carson on the proposed plan. His duties will also include hiring a president and leading the strategic development of the $1.7 billion stadium, including what it will look like and the fan experience. Iger will still maintain his position at Disney.
Carmen Policy, executive director of Carson Holdings, LLC, told the Times:
Bob Iger’s inclusion as a the chair and the visionary force behind the Carson project is a game-changer. We now have the kind of leadership and expertise that should calm any concerns about any NFL teams going into L.A. and getting off on the right foot and pursuing the right course. And certainly if you’re going to do two teams it really lends a layer of talent and experience, plus unbelievable know-how to the whole effort. Who could we get better to guarantee fan experience than the man who runs the happiest place on earth?
Iger is thought to be in a particularly unique position to help the efforts to bring the stadium to Carson as Disney owns ESPN and has a working relationship with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell and many of the league's owners. For his efforts, Iger will be paid a whopping $1, but will have the chance to purchase a "small undisclosed stake" in either team if he wants, according to ESPN. However, he has said he wouldn't exercise that option while he was still at Disney.
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The NFL is holding committee meetings today in New York at league headquarters, where they are hearing presentations from the cities of San Diego, St. Louis and Oakland about why they should keep their teams. St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke is currently backing a plan to develop a stadium in Inglewoodon the site of the demolished Hollywood Park.
Iger will not be attending the meetings in New York as he is at a Disney conference in Orlando, according to the Times. But he did say this in a statement released by the Chargers:
Should the owners approve the move, Los Angeles will proudly welcome two incredible teams to our community and build a stadium worthy of their fans. L.A. football fans will enjoy unprecedented access to games during the season, in a state-of-the-art stadium designed to deliver the most entertaining, exciting and enjoyable experience possible.
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