The Kansas City Chiefs are on the clock.
Two states are fighting to secure the NFL’s most-watched team with a stadium upgrade or a brand-new home.
Arrowhead Stadium in Missouri has hosted the Chiefs since 1972, making it the oldest stadium in the AFC.
The lease is up in 2031 — the same time as the neighboring MLB outfit the Kansas City Royals are free to move out of Kauffman Stadium.
Kansas is desperate to bring the franchises over the border and has tabled a proposal worth around $3billion to build a state-of-the-art dome.
It is a more expensive option than renovating Arrowhead but would open the doors to a Super Bowl heading to the Chiefs’ home — a personal ambition of owner Clark Hunt now that he has won three Lombardi Trophies.
Hunt is now running out of time to make a call.
Kansas House of Representatives speaker Dan Hawkins says the Chiefs and Royals must make up their minds by June 30 or the option will be off the table.
“I think if they want to get it done, they’ve still got time to get it done,” he told the Kansas City Star.
“If one of them wants to — or both — wants to come to Kansas, we’d love to have them. We have the tools.”
Chiefs president Mark Donovan doesn’t think that Hawkins is bluffing.
“Hypothetically, as you’re trying to figure out how to put a deal together, if you’re on either side of the table, you look at deadlines,” he told the Star “That June 30 [deadline] is real.”
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According to some sources, the Chiefs need a ‘Hail Mary’ to remain in their historic stadium.
“I think it’s like a Hail Mary,” Bob Fescoe of 610 Radio said.
“I don’t know if it’s too little, too late for the state of Missouri to get involved right now. This should have been happening all along.”
The Chiefs are also in discussions with Missouri about the level of public money available to fund improvements to Arrowhead.
“Both options are very much in play,” Hunt said via The Athletic. “Really, our timeline is driven more by having enough time to do the renovation work or the construction so that we can be in the new or renovated building in the summer of 2031.
“To really comfortably stay on schedule, it would be best to have some direction by the summer.”
Chiefs icon Travis Kelce is extremely unlikely to be on the roster in 2031 but has a preferred option.
“Arrowhead is home for me,” Kelce commented. “It’s a part of my heart, playing in that stadium.
“But the fans want what the fans want. We play for them. I think it’s up to them.”
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Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe has called a special session of the state legislature on June 2 to review a bill over funding a potential upgrade.
“If Missouri does not put some sort of offer forward, I think the risk is real that they don’t stay here,” Kehoe said.
“If they move out of our state, the significant effect it’s going to have on our state’s economy is massive.
“This isn’t just about football and baseball. This is about economic development. These are two organizations that have businesses, employees, and a ripple effect on our state’s economy that we do not want to move.”
But the bid faces opposition from both sides of the aisle.
“I love the Kansas City Chiefs. I’m obnoxious during football season,” state Rep. Darin Chappell, a Republican, recently told KSGF-FM. “But I’ve got constituents trying to pay their rent and feed themselves, and they’re struggling.
“And I’m going to take their money and give it to billionaires so multimillionaires can play in a prettier place? That’s obscene.”
The Chiefs and Royals are both huge draws as competitive teams in their respective leagues.
For now, they can leverage the two states against each other.
A call will have to be made eventually, or money could be taken off the table on both sides of the state line.
Blair Kerkhoff, a Kansas City Star sports writer who covers the Chiefs, exclusively told talkSPORT in June 2024 about the likelihood that the Chiefs could relocate across state lines.
“What I think is, how it’s gonna play out — through all the twists and turns — I think the Chiefs are going to end up over on the Kansas side of the state line,” Kerkhoff said.
“I think the Royals will find a way to work something out with Jackson County in the city of Kansas City to be in downtown Kansas City.
“Baseball would stay in Missouri. The football (NFL) moves to Kansas.”
Kelce will go down in Chiefs history when he ultimately retires and has every right to have his say — after all, his girlfriend Taylor Swift is a regular visitor and the world’s most famous Chiefs fan.
Teammate Patrick Mahomes thinks the tight end, who considered retirement after February’s Super Bowl defeat, could stay with the franchise after his deal expires in 2026.
“If this is the last ride, you would never know,” Mahomes said on Wednesday, as he took part in organized team activities.
“The way he’s talking about football, the way he’s talking about working and trying to be even better this year than last year.
“He doesn’t seem like a guy on his last ride, that’s tired of the job.”
