Report: Rams Ask NFL For Another $500M In SoFi Stadium Financing

INGLEWOOD (CBSLA) – The Los Angeles Rams have requested up to $500 million in new loans from the NFL due to a financial shortfall in their SoFi Stadium construction budget caused by the coronavirus outbreak, according to a report Thursday.

According to The Athletic's Daniel Kaplan, the Rams have requested the money because they are facing cost overruns, coupled with the possibility of playing games without fans for the upcoming 2020 season due to the pandemic and less than expected personal seat license (PSL) sales.

PSLs give fans the right to purchase a season ticket for a specific seat in the stadium.

The Rams also asked the NFL to double the time they would be given to repay the loan, Kaplan reports.

The 70,000-seat SoFi Stadium and its 298-acre entertainment complex, located on the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack in Inglewood, was originally slated at $2.6 billion back when it was announced in 2016. However, that figure has ballooned to an estimated $5 billion. The Rams and Chargers are slated to begin play there in the fall of 2020.

It still remains unclear how, when and if the season will move forward as scheduled.

The Rams have already borrowed $400 million from the NFL through its G-4 loan program, Kaplan reports.

Taylor Swift was scheduled to christen the stadium with a pair of concerts in late July. However, those shows were scrapped last month.

The Rams and the NFL declined to comment on the report.

Construction on SoFi Stadium has continued despite several workers contracting coronavirus.