After Jackson County rejected paying for the renovation of the existing stadium, Chiefs Chairman and CEO Clark Hunt started looking at other possibilities. And just as the Sunflower State showed immense interest in becoming the new home for these teams, KC Mayor Quinton Lucas dropped the bomb.

“I have been in meetings booked to put forward at least an offer of $400 million plus for one of our professional franchises to stay within the city,” he said just days ago. Now, Kansas and Missouri are fighting for the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals.

But there is some great news for the people of Missouri. An Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey on Friday showed that the majority of Missourians voted in favor of keeping the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City Royals in the state.

Patrick Mahomes‘ Chiefs is a team that more than many Missourians want to keep. This was divided into 46% of the respondents believing it was “very important” to keep the team in Missouri, while 16.9% thought of it as “somewhat important.” Likewise, 20.1% of people found the Royals’ presence to be “somewhat important,” and 38.2% of Missourians were in absolute favor of keeping the baseball team in the Show-Me state. 

The total numbers appear to be slightly in favor of keeping the Super Bowl champions over the Royals, with the percentage of votes comparing at 62.9% and 58.3%. However, it is important to note that the sample size for this poll was 1000 registered voters.

In April 2024, Jackson County voters rejected a sales tax increase to fund Arrowhead stadium improvements, leaving the Chiefs’ and Royals’ future in Missouri uncertain. Kansas lawmakers took advantage, passing a 70% stadium project funding plan under STAR bonds. This puts Kansas in a good position to attract teams from across the state.

Despite all this, Missouri Governor Mike Parson is optimistic. Parson’s administration is actively developing a competitive bid to keep both teams in the Show-Me state. The representative of the state remains aware of how the exit of these two teams from Missouri would reduce the number of professional sports teams in the state from six to four. This would directly have a regressive impact on the economic generations in the current home of the Chiefs. 

Interesting fact: Did you know the economic impact figure released by Econsult Solutions, Inc. in Dec 2023 in the Kansas City region was a whopping $993.2 million? Not just that but the KCC official website boasts a total of $28.8 million in tax generation annually for the state!

“It’s a wakeup call to Missouri that there are other states that are willing to do whatever it takes to get the teams,” Missouri House Majority Leader Jonathan Patterson, a Lee’s Summit Republican, shared in his insights on the issue.

On the other hand, Kansas lawmakers who supported the STAR Bond legislation appeared determined to attract the Chiefs across state borders. “We’re in jeopardy of Kansas City losing those franchises,” Kansas Sen. Jeff Pittman, a Leavenworth Democrat, commented on the bill. “Missouri has dropped the ball. We now have an opportunity to make an offer.”

Keeping both teams in Missouri would be a huge accomplishment, Governor Parson assured reporters last week. As Kansas makes a generous offer and Missouri gauges public opinion, it’s unclear where the Chiefs and Royals will eventually land. Nonetheless, Missouri’s enormous fan base offers them a major negotiating advantage.

Kansas and Missouri in a tug-of-war: Who pays the Chiefs’ and Royals’ stadium bill?

The Kansas City Chiefs and Royals have tried to relocate to the Sunflower State, but Missouri will not let go. With Kansas giving tax cuts and Missouri willing to spend $400M, the ultimate decision will be heavily influenced by sales tax and revenue. 

Building new stadiums for the Chiefs and Royals would cost $2B and $1.5B, respectively. These hefty bills raise questions about how (and when) the debt will be repaid. While fans would want the teams to stay in Missouri, the residents may be apprehensive about paying the bill. Since 22.1% of Chiefs faithful and 23.5% of Royals fans are indifferent to the teams’ location, the debate over taxpayer dollars is sure to heat up. 

Amidst the scenes of discussion, Jackson County, Missouri, Executive Frank White Jr. urged both states to abide by the border war truce “and refrain from engaging in a counterproductive stadium bidding war.” White further shared his perspective, adding, “Our resources should be used wisely to improve the lives of our residents, not wasted on bidding wars that only serve to drain public funds and divide our region.”

What truce was he referring to? Both states have historically been in an economic way. Back then, both sides used millions of dollars to entice companies to shift closer to the border. But in 2019, they called a truce and agreed to not attempt to shift more jobs toward the border. However, with Kansas State’s move to lure Missouri’s teams closer to the border, the latter feels Kansas violated the truce.

“My office remains open to conversations with the Royals, Chiefs, lawmakers, and other stakeholders, but any proposal must meet this standard and make sense for our community,” White remarked in the end.

While fans cheer at the prospect of keeping their teams, both states face a tough question: will taxpayers pay the multi-billion-dollar new stadium bill? Only time will tell if cheers turn into jeers.

Do you think the Chiefs and Royals should stay in Missouri? Share your thoughts in the comments below.