The Kansas City Chiefs have a “serious opportunity” to move to their original home in Dallas, the city’s mayor, Eric Johnson, said. Athleticism.
Johnson is openly pushing for a second NFL team near his hometown. And he views the Chiefs, the defending Super Bowl champions, as a reasonable candidate.
Johnson, in office since June 2019, pushed the Chiefs to consider Dallas following Jackson County, Mo., voters’ rejection of a ballot initiative for a tax that would have helped the Chiefs and Royals Kansas City.
“Welcome to the Dallas Texans,” Johnson said on X, referring to the original name of the Chiefs franchise.
“The connections are so deep, the history is so rich,” Johnson said. Athleticism. “We could actually make the deals that would make sense for them to get them here.”
Before the Chiefs Kingdom or the franchise’s four Super Bowls existed, American businessman Lamar Hunt created an American Football League (AFL) franchise called the Dallas Texans. The Texans began play in 1960, sharing the Cotton Bowl with the Cowboys. Hunt moved the franchise to Kansas City in 1963 and renamed the team the Chiefs.
Six decades later, Lamar Hunt’s son, Clark Hunt, is the current owner of the Chiefs. Clark Hunt is a Dallas native who lives in the affluent Highland Park neighborhood with his wife, Tavia, and three children. He is also the president and CEO of MLS franchise FC Dallas.
Johnson said he had spoken with Hunt, but declined to say whether they had talked about a move for the Chiefs. “I’m not really at liberty to say that, except that I have a good open line of communication with Clark Hunt,” Johnson said. “And that line of communication remains.”
Johnson says there’s also a good economic argument for a team in Dallas. The Cowboys play about 20 miles away in nearby Arlington. According to the United States Census Bureau, the population of Dallas-Fort Worth has increased approximately 23.1% since 2010. This is the highest figure for any metropolitan area in the United States during this period, according to the Census, which estimates that Dallas-Fort Worth could become the nation’s third-largest metropolitan area by the 2030s.
That would put Dallas just behind Los Angeles and New York – cities that each have two NFL franchises.
“When the NFL considers the next round of expansion, it will not find an American city where there is not currently an NFL franchise that will be a more lucrative or faster-growing market to put a team in,” he said. Johnson said.
Johnson said he and Cowboys owner Jerry Jones had a conversation about a second Dallas team a few years ago, when the city was push to host men’s World Cup matches in 2026. Jones rejected the idea of a second homegrown NFL team.
“You can rest assured that the NFL will not support another team because of the value the game and the NFL receive by having [the] Dallas Cowboys as one of its flagship teams”, Jones told the Dallas Morning News in 2022.
According to Forbes’ most recent ratings, the Cowboys are the most valuable franchise in the NFL at $9 billion. Johnson believes a second NFL team near Dallas could benefit Jones financially.
“You never say never because he’s a businessman and his job is to make money,” Johnson said. “There is a strong argument that the value of the Cowboys franchise is not tied to the city they play in or are connected to. It’s an international phenomenon at this point.
“It’s not about us. It’s about knowing what’s in the best interest of the organizations we care about. I believe there is an argument to be made to Jerry Jones that is not hurtful and potentially beneficial to the Jones family and the Dallas Cowboys from being the epicenter of football by having two NFL franchises, one in every conference, who compete here every week and bring attention to this market.
Since 2010, there have been three major NFL moves: the Rams moving back from St. Louis to Los Angeles (2016), the Chargers also moving to Los Angeles from San Diego (2017), and the Raiders moving back from Oakland to Las Vegas (2020). ).
For a second NFL team to play in Dallas, there must be a stadium and a player complex. Johnson said Hensley Field, a 738-acre municipal site that was once the Dallas Naval Air Station, could be a future home. He said the waterfront property has the space and nearby space for a mixed-use development that could become “an economically vibrant part of the city that provides new opportunities for its residents and to its workers.”
Johnson, who rebuffed a recall attempt last monthhas long campaigned for another major sports team for his city.
Two years ago, Johnson established an ad hoc committee to attract and retain teams of all types. He said the group meets regularly.
Kansas City’s willingness to move remains unclear, even after the vote failed. The proposed sales tax is expected to generate about $2 billion, including funds to help renovate Arrowhead Stadium, a 52-year-old structure that will be one of the host venues for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The deal to keep the Chiefs at Arrowhead ends in 2031.
Developers across the border in Kansas have proposed a shorter move in recent years. During these discussions, developers recommended several attractive sites for a state-of-the-art NFL stadium and practice facility. A logical destination might be in Kansas City, Kansas, near the Kansas Speedway and Children’s Mercy Park, home of Sporting Kansas City.
“We’re disappointed,” Chiefs team president Mark Donovan said after the vote failed. “We believe we have presented the best offer for Jackson County. We were ready to extend the long-standing partnership the teams enjoy with this county.
“We will do and seek to do what is in the best interest of our fans and our organization as we move forward.”
As for Johnson, he will continue to push his Hensley Field idea for a second NFL franchise.
“There’s a deal to be made here,” he said.
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(Mayor Eric Johnson photo: Shelby Tauber/Bloomberg via Getty Images)