Fourth and Long for L.A. Pro Football

The National Football League has thrown cold water on the hopes of Los Angeles boosters to bring a professional team back to the city soon. A group of NFL owners listened to the delegation of politicians and businessmen pitch the city’s plan for a $229-million Coliseum make-over, a modern stadium within the shell of the historic Coliseum. But the presentation had two gaping holes: how to finance the stadium and finding someone to buy an L.A. franchise.

So it’s back to the drawing board. The sooner the better because NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue said after listening to the presentation in New Orleans on Wednesday, “It’s hard to see at this point how anything gets done in Los Angeles before 2000.” Cleveland, whose Browns moved to Baltimore this year, is likely to be next up for a team.

Even that four-years-hence timeline for L.A. may be optimistic unless the city aggressively addresses NFL concerns. Without a prospective owner or financing details in hand, the Los Angeles presentation didn’t look like much of a deal to the league. Perhaps L.A. boosters expected the NFL to rush at the chance to get back into the nation’s second-largest TV market. That market is indeed attractive, but what owners want is a sweet package on a stadium and the revenue from lots of luxury boxes. Pro football is a hard game, on and off the field.