Update: Live Webcast of 49ers press conference at 10:30am today.
Owner John York broke off negotiations on Wednesday and informed mayor Gavin Newsom the 49ers may look elsewhere for a new stadium. The attention has now turned to Santa Clara, where the 49ers headquarters reside and where they have practiced since 1987. The 49ers are looking at a site close to Great America. It was also mentioned that if Santa Clara becomes a problem they may look to other California cities. York also mentioned that if they move to Santa Clara he does not want to change the identity of the team, meaning they would still be considered the San Francisco 49ers.
Pat said:
if you have watched the video and read some more about this, John York said He will NOT change the name of the San Francisco 49ers..it has too much history to change it..but i’m okay with moving to santa clara..its not that far from SF..
26 mins after the fact.RobBase said:
SF taxpayers don’t want to step it up. What the hell. Santa Clara isn’t LA, so I am not trippin off that, but the Niners should be sittin on the dock of the Bay not 20 miles inland. What we couldn’t get any good Real Estate in Tracy? Can’t we get it to where Nedney kicks his extra points into the bay?
51 mins after the fact.J Dubb said:
It’s all good, the Jets and Giants play in Jersey and they are still New Yorkers. Besides I’ll be alot closer to the stadium!!
2 hours after the fact.Nick Newton said:
I’m not sure how I feel about this move. Or even the possibility of this move.
2 hours after the fact.Meyer said:
Fine with me – I would guess the majority of ticketholders don’t live in the city (at least nobody I know in my section does), so this will be a more convenient location for many. After ten years, it was painfully obvious nothing was going to get done with a new stadium in San Francisco.
My only potential gripes:
1. I don’t want to hear anything about stadium plans, designs, architectural renderings, etc. until everything is finalized. The fact that the Niners have been touting the proposed Candlestick Point stadium for the past year by talking about it in public media and forums, promoting it in the Game Day programs and setting up an official Web site for it, only to have everything fall apart is an embarassment. Don’t yank my chain.
2. Don’t screw me on ticket prices. As it is, my ticket costs went up 20 bucks apiece this season. I already have reservations while writing that check each year for a rebuilding team in the worst stadium in the league – don’t use the new facility as an excuse to jack things up further. They’ll make plenty of money without having to gouge the average ticketholder.
2 hours after the fact.SCNiners said:
Great…i won’t have to wear my bullet-proof vest to go to the games any more…
3 hours after the fact.Jer said:
as long as they keep the name “san francisco 49ers”, i don’t care where the team moves, as long as they remain in california…that was my biggest issue, the name changing and what it would mean…i hope they move them as close to l.a. as possible so i can have a better chance of possibly seeing my first nfl game live in person!
9 hours after the fact.HB_619 said:
thank god they arent gonna change the name of the city because then they would have to change that sick ass helmet and take of the SF. they have way too much history to change the name or the city. i wish the dallas cowboys can just leave the nfl or just call them selves the dallas cowgirls since they suck so much even with T.O.
9 hours after the fact.ninerfan4life said:
WHO GIVES A SHIT … JUST GET SOME FUCKIN’ PLAYERS ON D AND LET’S START KICKIN’ SOME AS
12 hours after the fact.Goodbye Lloyd said:
John York is a retard! That is the bottom line.
14 hours after the fact.Jer said:
that’s what i’m sayin!
16 hours after the fact.eddie said:
I HOPE WE DONT HAVE TO WAIT TILL 2012 TO GET BETTER.
16 hours after the fact.eddie said:
so,does any one think,b.young,l.allen or t.dilfer are all gonna retire after this year?
1 day after the fact.Kirk Fiege said:
Hey, I`m from Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada. Is the move that far? In terms of driving, how far apart are the two buildings?
2 days after the fact.Can`t the stadium still help the olympics?
Is it mostly about parking?
Is the current stadium in that bad of an area?
Is it really that big of a deal?
I have a Niners helmet, and like the things, it`d be pretty gay if they had to change their name to Santa Clara.
Forrest said:
The Niners are obviously staying in SF. The city will not let them go. I think Mr. York did a good job of threatening the city that they would leave. Hopefully SF will throw down for a new stadium now.
2 days after the fact.clint said:
sf doesnt care about the 49ers there so damn liberal and cheap to give a fuck.
3 days after the fact.spgphil said:
I think the city has enough things to worry about (public education, affordable housing, etc. If that makes the city “so damn liberal” oh well…) that it’s not too surprising John York’s gripes for a new stadium fall upon deaf ears.
4 days after the fact.The stadium issue is an easy scapegoat York can point at for the failure of the organization under his reign.