The Oakland Raiders may be crossing the Bay Bridge for their home games next year.
The San Francisco Giants confirmed they’ve engaged in initial dialogue with the Raiders about hosting the team’s home games at AT&T Park for the 2019 season.
“There has been initial interest expressed in exploring the opportunity of the Raiders playing at AT&T Park…many details would need to be figured out,” the Giants said in a statement. “The Giants want to do what’s best for Bay Area fans and would be open to the concept just as we hosted Cal Football in 2011 when Memorial Stadium in Berkeley was being renovated.”
Raj Mathai of KNTV first reported there is “a distinct possibility” that the Raiders will play at AT&T Park for the 2019 season.
The Raiders’ venue for 2019 has been up in the air since Oakland sued the team and the NFL for antitrust violations. Raiders owner Mark Davis rescinded a rent offer that would have allowed the Raiders to play at the Coliseum, the team’s longtime home, in 2019 and the Raiders aren’t scheduled to relocate to Las Vegas until 2020.
Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported that because AT&T Park falls within the “the 49ers territorial rights within the market,” the Raiders and Giants cannot reach an agreement without receiving additional approval. Whether that approval must come from the NFL or the 49ers remains unclear.
AT&T Park opened in 2000 and served as the home of the San Francisco Demons of the XFL in 2001. The Cal Bears were the last team to call the park at China Basin a temporary home, as the Bears went 4-1 in five games at AT&T Park during the 2011 season.
The park also served as the home of a San Francisco-based college football bowl game from 2002-2013 and was the championship site of a Central Coast Section high school championship game between St. Ignatius College Prep and Sacred Heart Cathedral in 2011.
AT&T Park’s capacity is 42,000, but the seating configuration changes for football games. Traditionally, one end zone has been set up in front of the left field wall with the other end zone located along the first base line. The Giants have often installed portable bleacher seats on the outfield grass for football games.
The Giants have never hosted an NFL game at AT&T Park, but the Cal Bears did play one game in San Francisco in 2011 during the baseball season while the Giants were on the road. The NFL season begins during the first week of September and typically overlaps with the MLB regular season for one month.