Major League Baseball team owners reportedly voted unanimously Thursday to approve the relocation of the Oakland Athletics to Las Vegas, paving the way for just the second relocation of an MLB franchise in the last 50 years. That's according to two people familiar with the vote who spoke to the Associated Press on the condition of anonymity.
The latest relocation vote — which comes after decades of failed efforts to secure a new stadium in Oakland — means the A's would become the third professional sports franchise to leave the city in the last few years. The NBA's Golden State Warriors relocated to San Francisco in 2019 and the NFL's Oakland Raiders left the city — for a second time — in 2020 to settle in Las Vegas.
Oakland A's fans fill stadium in reverse boycott of team's move
The Oakland A's had their largest attendance of the season on Tuesday as fans protested efforts to move the team to Las Vegas.
Prior to the Montreal Expos' move to Washington, D.C., in 2005 to become the Nationals, the last time an MLB team relocated was back in 1972, when the Washington Senators became the Texas Rangers. The A's were founded in 1901 in Philadelphia before moving to Kansas City in 1955. Then the team relocated again to Oakland in 1968.
A's owner John Fisher said he intends to move the team into a new $1.5 billion stadium that's currently being constructed on the Las Vegas Strip before the 2028 season. However, the team's lease at the Oakland Coliseum expires after next season, so it remains unclear where the A's will play from 2025 to 2027.
