Oakland Raiders Owner to Convince Fans of Team's Move to Las Vegas

The owner of the Oakland Raiders, Mark Davis, admitted that it will be his job to convince fans to accept the team's move to Las Vegas, Nevada, as approved today by the National Football League (NFL) owners board.

"As I said before, there will be some disappointed fans and there will be some angry ones, and it will be my job to talk to them and let them know the whys, the hows, and the whats of what just happened," declared the businessman following the news of the team's move to the so-called "city of gambling".

With this in mind, Davis sent a message to the fans, saying "I hope that we can resolve things and start working together towards the future."

For now, he asserted, "we are still the Oakland Raiders and we are the Raiders, representing the Raider Nation," and even the NFL commissioner, Roger Goodell, confirmed that as long as the move is not finalized, the team will continue to bear the same name.

Davis, on another note, also dismissed opinions that claim that the "bad boys" are in a precarious situation in terms of their stadium, after it was approved their departure from Oakland, their venue in Las Vegas has not even begun construction, and it is expected to be ready by 2020.

Regarding this, he reminded that his contract with the Coliseum is still valid and explained that "we still have two one-year rental options with Oakland," ensuring a home at least for the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

"My intention is that, if the fans want us to stay, we would love to do it for that time and possibly negotiate with them (city authorities) to extend the agreement probably until 2019, as well, and try to bring a championship back to Oakland," assured the executive.

And reiterated that although he is aware that there will be anger and disappointment among his followers, "I hope that in the future, as long as we keep playing in Oakland, they understand that it was not the players and it was not the coaches who made this decision."

Therefore, he emphasized "if they want someone to talk to, that should be me and in the next few days, I will try to explain to them (the fans) how we came to this difficult decision."