Sports facility construction
FILE - Houston businessman Bob McNair, left, and NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue smile during a press conference in Atlanta, in this Wednesday, Oct. 6, 1999, file photo. Houston rejoined the NFL, paying a record $700 million for an expansion franchise. During Paul Tagliabue’s 17-year stint as commissioner, the NFL experienced labor peace, saw skyrocketing television deals, construction of new stadiums across the nation and expansion to the current 32-team makeup. Despite those credentials that continued pro football’s surge to the top of American sports, it took until a special centennial class in 2020 for Tagliabue to be voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame after retiring in 2006. (AP Photo/W. A. Harewood, File)
After lengthy wait, Paul Tagliabue heads to Hall of Fame

By Barry Wilner Jul. 22, 2021 01:26 PM EDT

FILE - In this Oct. 28, 2018, file photo, fans wait for an NFL football game between the Chicago Bears and New York Jets at Soldier Field in Chicago. A potential move by the Bears from the lakefront stadium has been picking up steam in recent weeks, after the team announced a bid to purchase Arlington International Racecourse. The famed thoroughbred track in the village of Arlington Heights sits about 30 miles northwest of Soldier Field on a 326-acre plot of land owned by Churchill Downs Inc. that is for sale. (AP Photo/Matt Marton, File)
Leave the lakefront? Bears fans have mixed emotions on that

By Andrew Seligman Jul. 04, 2021 11:32 AM EDT

Report: Bills hire Jones-connected firm on new stadium talks

By John Wawrow Jun. 18, 2021 06:31 PM EDT
The Buffalo Bills are pursuing plans to build a new stadium to replace their aging facility, and have selected a company controlled by Cowboys owner Jerry...

FILE - In this Oct. 28, 2018, file photo, fans wait for an NFL football game at Soldier Field between the New York Jets and the Chicago Bears in Chicago. The Bears have submitted a bid to buy a spacious suburban horse racing track site. Their announcement signals a potential willingness to move out of downtown Soldier Field for a new stadium. Bears President and CEO Ted Phillips says the club wants to purchase the Arlington International Racecourse. (AP Photo/Matt Marton, File)
Move to the burbs? Bears confirm bid to buy horse track site

Jun. 17, 2021 06:20 PM EDT

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper and his wife Nicole joke with the media after announcing a donation to Miracle Park on Tuesday, June 8, 2021, in Rock Hill, S.C. Miracle Park, an inclusive place in Rock Hill where people with all different abilities can participate in a full-range of sports. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
Panthers owner: 'No way' I'd build domed stadium post-COVID

By Steve Reed Jun. 08, 2021 03:40 PM EDT

FILE - This Feb. 5, 2016, file photo shows the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, home to the Oakland Athletics, in Oakland, Calif. Major League Baseball instructed the Athletics to explore relocation options as the team tries to secure a new ballpark it hopes will keep the club in Oakland in the long term. MLB released a statement Tuesday, May 11, 2021, expressing its longtime concern that the current Coliseum site is “not a viable option for the future vision of baseball.”(AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)
MLB tells Athletics to explore relocation if no new ballpark

By Janie Mccauley May. 11, 2021 03:36 PM EDT

Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield of Western New York CEO Dave Anderson and Bills owner and president Kim Pegula hold footballs with the new stadium name at Highmark Stadium, home of the Buffalo Bills, in Orchard Park, N.Y., Tuesday, March 30, 2021. (John Hickey/Buffalo News via AP)
Bills set to open stadium talks with state, local officials

By John Wawrow Mar. 30, 2021 08:19 PM EDT

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell speaks at a press conference ahead of Super Bowl LV, Thursday, Feb. 4, 2021 in Tampa, Fla. (Perry Knotts via AP)
NFL writes to Biden offering all stadiums as vaccine sites

Feb. 05, 2021 02:54 PM EST

FILE - In this October 1984 file photo, a groundskeeper at Jack Murphy Stadium paints the logo for the 1984 World Series between San Diego Padres and Detroit Tigers in San Diego. The biggest piece of San Diego's sports history is slowly being knocked down and ground to bits. Now the stadium is coming to an unceremonious end, leaving generations of fans feeling melancholy because, due to the coronavirus pandemic, they didn't get to say a proper goodbye to the place where they tailgated with gusto in the massive parking lot before cheering on the Chargers, Padres and Aztecs, or watched myriad other events and concerts. (AP Photo,File)
San Diegans left feeling sad as 'The Murph' comes down

By Bernie Wilson Dec. 22, 2020 05:24 PM EST

Chicago Bears wide receiver Allen Robinson (12) catches a pass as he is defended by Tennessee Titans cornerback Malcolm Butler (21) in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
Fading Bears look to stop skid against resurgent Vikings

By Andrew Seligman Nov. 12, 2020 02:23 PM EST

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) smiles during the second half of an NFL football game against the Carolina Panthers in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)
Mahomes piles up big numbers at Arrowhead - on Election Day

By Arnie Stapleton Nov. 10, 2020 03:33 AM EST

A limited audience at Arrowhead Stadium watch as the New York Jets play the Kansas City Chiefs in the second half of an NFL football game on Sunday, Nov. 1, 2020, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Election day over, Chiefs' Mahomes refocuses on football

By Dave Skretta Nov. 04, 2020 02:57 PM EST

"Detroit Votes" is displayed on the Ford Field scoreboard, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, in Detroit. Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson cast her vote in a drop box at the Detroit Pistons' training facility and about 12 hours later, she witnessed ballots being rolled into Ford Field for a double-checking step of the election process. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio)
Sports venues across country in play on Election Day

By Larry Lage Nov. 04, 2020 04:44 AM EST

The Michael Jordan statue stands in front of an I Voted banner on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2020, in the atrium of the United Center, transformed for the first time into a super voting site in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Voting, activism replace practice, games in US sports world

By Howard Fendrich Nov. 03, 2020 06:43 PM EST

Surging Bears visit rebounding Rams in LA's new stadium

By The Associated Press Oct. 22, 2020 10:27 AM EDT
CHICAGO (5-1) at LOS ANGELES RAMS (4-2) Monday, 8:15 p.m. EDT, ESPN OPENING LINE — Rams by 6 1/2 ...

FILE - In this Sept. 27, 2016, file photo, Vivek Ranadive, the majority owner of the Sacramento Kings, poses in the new Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif. Golden 1 Center will be among the places Californians in the area can vote from Saturday until the polls close on the evening of Nov. 3. “There’s no better way to make the world a better place than by making it easy for people to vote," Ranadive said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli, File)
Arenas, stadiums find new life as safer options for voting

By Kate Brumback And Larry Lage Oct. 22, 2020 08:47 AM EDT

Former Falcons and Eagles quarterback Michael Vick signs autographs in the NFL Shop at the Super Bowl Experience in Atlanta in Jan. 31, 2019 file photo. Vick is working with the LeBron James-led political empowerment group More Than A Vote and the Florida Rights Restoration Coalition to help other former felons pay fines that are preventing them from voting. His journey is being chronicled in new documentary miniseries. (Curtis Compton/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, File)/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)
Michael Vick working to clear way for Fla. ex-felons to vote

By Kyle Hightower Sep. 27, 2020 11:07 AM EDT

FILE - In this April 29, 2016, file photo, former Walter Payton Man of the Year Chester Pitts poses for photos upon arriving for the third round of the 2016 NFL football draft in Chicago. In the Austin, Texas area Pitts, who played nine pro seasons as a guard and tackle, has been directly involved in getting out the vote for years. Often, he has chartered a bus and helped the elderly get to their polling places. He has similar plans for this fall during the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, File)
Former NFL players getting out the vote in communities

By Barry Wilner Sep. 23, 2020 02:16 PM EDT

Los Angeles Rams and the Dallas Cowboys in the first half during a NFL football game on opening night at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Sunday, September 13, 2020. (Keith Birmingham/The Orange County Register via AP)
SoFi Stadium serving as voting center in NFL vote initiative

Sep. 22, 2020 12:09 PM EDT

Las Vegas Raiders players warms up during an NFL football training camp practice at Allegiant Stadium, Friday, Aug. 28, 2020, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Raiders set for Las Vegas debut vs. Saints in empty stadium

By Josh Dubow Sep. 17, 2020 01:52 PM EDT