Inside the Billion-Dollar Battle for the Kansas City Chiefs
Today’s newsletter unpacks the Chiefs’ stadium dilemma — a rejected sales tax extension, a 2:30 a.m. Senate session, and a billion-dollar renovation plan that could reshape the team’s future.
The Kansas City Chiefs are running out of time on a new stadium deal. Despite spending $3 million on an ad campaign featuring commercials with Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce, taxpayers voted no on a proposal last year that would have given the team hundreds of millions of dollars in public money to renovate Arrowhead Stadium.
The denial of taxpayer support is part of a broader trend in the sports industry. The Arizona Coyotes relocated to Utah after Tempe taxpayers refused to fund a new arena for the team. The Washington Commanders had to invest $2.7 billion just to secure a term sheet with the DC mayor’s office. The truth is, every professional sports team is now trying to find loopholes to fast-track these deals without needing a public vote.
But the situation in Kansas City is particularly interesting. On the surface, last year’s proposal wasn’t a terrible deal. The Kansas City Chiefs were simply asking taxpayers to extend a 3/8-cent sales tax that has already been in place for nearly twenty years. In return, they would renovate Arrowhead and extend their lease for another 25 years.