Oakland Lease deal to keep Raiders hit snag

The lease deal to keep the Oakland Raiders in town for the 2019 NFL season has hit a snag, according to Coliseum Authority executive director Scott McKibben. But McKibben declined to divulge details of the issue.

"We have one significant open issue that needs to be resolved," McKibben told reporters on Wednesday after a closed-session meeting of the Coliseum Authority board. The development comes one day after multiple reports cited the Raiders had agreed to play in the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum in 2019 with an option for 2020.

McKibben said he hopes the issue can be resolved by Friday. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that it involves the team's headquarters and training facility in Alameda. The Raiders reportedly pay $525,000 rent. "Hopefully we will be able to settle it," McKibben said. "It requires agreement by both of us, and we have a difference of opinion. This could very likely put us in a position where there is not a deal."

The Raiders are scheduled to relocate to Las Vegas when their new stadium is ready for the 2020 season. Their lease with Oakland ran out following the 2018 season, leaving the team scrambling for months to find a home stadium in 2019. The sides had previously agreed on a $7.5 million fee for the Raiders to play home games at the Coliseum in 2019, but the team pulled out of the deal after the city of Oakland filed a federal lawsuit in December over the Raiders' pending departure.

Owner Mark Davis had been adamant the team would not play in Oakland if a lawsuit was filed, but he has simultaneously expressed a desire to play 2019 close to the Oakland faithful, particularly as other options dried up. "I've said from the beginning, my biggest concern is our fans, and it's my hope and preference to remain in the Bay Area (in 2019) for them," Davis told the Review-Journal last week. "The fans have always been first in my heart. We do have other options, but the hope is to remain in the Bay Area next season until we move to Las Vegas in 2020, which I remain very excited about."

Reports emerged the night of Super Bowl LIII on Feb. 3 that the Raiders had agreed with MLB's San Francisco Giants to play in 2019 at Oracle Park (previously known as AT&T Park) on the San Francisco waterfront, but the San Francisco 49ers reportedly refused to waive their territorial rights to the city, killing any deal between the Raiders and Giants.

(With inputs from agencies.)