No. 21
Roski, Anschutz Make NFL Bid
Although the future of the Coliseum is very much up in the air, plans to return an NFL franchise to the storied stadium took a big leap forward last May when Los Angeles Kings owners Ed Roski Jr. and Philip Anschutz agreed to get in the game.
Roski and Anschutz, who won approval last year to build the new Staples Center sports arena downtown, agreed to commit up to $500 million to rebuild the Coliseum and buy an NFL franchise.
Since then, Fred Rosen, president and chief executive of Ticketmaster Group Inc., and Alan Rothenberg, president of the U.S. Soccer Federation, have signed on to the potential ownership team.
Roski and Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas (whose district includes the Coliseum) have met with NFL owners to pitch their plan, but the league has yet to enter into exclusive negotiations with the Coliseum team.
A detailed financial plan will be pitched to NFL owners in March, and backers hope to have a commitment from the league by the end of the year. New members of the ownership team also are expected to be announced in the next several months.
