Fears $6.2bn NFL team’s 76,000 stadium could be abandoned and demolished after cross-state relocation
Arrowhead Stadium is one of the most iconic stadiums in all of sports.
But it may cease to exist in less than a decade.
The Kansas City Chiefs, who have called Arrowhead home since 1972, announced their intentions to move out of Missouri and across state lines into Kansas just before Christmas.
There, they have plans to build a new state-of-the-art domed stadium costing upwards of $3 billion, which is set to be ready in time for the 2031 NFL season.
Whilst there are still some final negotiations to be ironed out to make the relocation official, the move looks more likely than not, which ultimately begs the question: What will happen to Arrowhead?
Arrowhead Stadium could be demolished
Arrowhead has been an integral part of the Chiefs’ modern NFL dynasty, serving as a huge home advantage for Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Andy Reid and co winning 14 of 22 playoff games it has hosted.
This has seen them go on to make five Super Bowl appearances in the last six seasons, winning three.
Hailed for its atmosphere when filled to its 76,416 capacity – the 25th-largest stadium in the United States and the fourth largest in the NFL – it is also considered the loudest outdoor stadium in the world.
But there is a strong possibility that Arrowhead could be demolished.
In an interview with KCMO last week, Missouri House majority leader Jonathan Patterson spoke about this possibility, as well as the option for keeping it open, though maintenance fees would cost $20 million annually.
The cost to demolish isn’t cheap either, estimated at $150 million, though ultimately, the final decision lies with the Jackson County Sports Complex Authority who own Arrowhead.
“We had one of the components, the county executive, really working against the process and doing things that had nothing to do with keeping the teams,” Patterson said on Radio 95.7FM & 710 AM.
“And he was talking about a community benefits agreement, if you recall. Well, now there will be an empty stadium, five thousand jobs gone, overtime for police gone.
“And now the county will be on the hook for either twenty million dollars of maintenance or one hundred and fifty million dollars to demolish the stadium.”
“It is unbelievable what it costs to demolish those things,” he added.
Chiefs could foot the bill for Arrowhead’s proposed demolition
Missouri House of Representatives director of communications Ben Peters, who spoke to Front Office Sports, indicates that the Chiefs could yet foot some of the bill if the decision is made to demolish Arrowhead.
“It will be interesting to see what steps are taken going forward,” Peters told FOS in an email.
“Next week, Missouri starts its legislative session here in Jefferson City, and there’s a pretty good chance that someone will be filing legislation that would put departing teams on the hook for demolition costs in some fashion.”
State Senator Rick Brattin has already previously indicated his intentions to do just that, in which he called the Chiefs’ proposed departure out of state as “deeply disappointing and profoundly disrespectful”to the Missouri taxpayers.
After calling out the Chiefs – who are worth $6.2 billion, per Forbes – for “exploitation”, Brattin also wrote, “I intend to introduce legislation that restores fairness and accountability… any professional sports franchise that leaves a publicly funded stadium will be required to pay one person of the total demolition cost of that stadium for every year the team used it.”
Senior fellow at the St. Louis-based Show-Me Institute Patrick Tuohey believes that the state should take the immediate financial hit of the demolition costs.
This is because he believes that they otherwise run the risk of paying maintenance costs for years and years that could go to waste, seeing Arrowhead become a ‘white elephant stadium’ – the name given to ports venues which go on to be underused and ultimately become financial burdens.
“My fear is that it’ll be like the Edward Jones Dome in St. Louis,” Tuohey said to FOS. “They did not tear that down. They tried to use it to host events, and it will just become another failed project that does not generate enough revenue to pay for itself.”
The Edwards Jones Dome was the home of the St. Louis Rams before they relocation back to Los Angeles in 2016.
Whilst it still hosts events, mainly music concerts, with them set to host rock band AC/DC and country music superstar Zach Bryan in 2026, the former NFL stadium has struggled financially.
According to a state auditor report from August, the Dome – owned by the St. Louis Regional Convention and Sports Complex Authority (RSA), is in a funding shortfall of approximately $67 million.
Therefore, Jackson County officials could make the decision that it is in the state’s best interests financially to tear down their prime landmark that is Arrowhead Stadium, which would officially signify the curtains drawing on one of the Chiefs’ greatest ever eras.
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