And things could not have kicked off any better for the team, which receiving a rousing endorsement in the form of a Los Angeles sports legend as its first depositor, MAGIC JOHNSON.
Earvin “Magic” Johnson, former Lakers great, who played in L.A. from 1979-91 and then again during the 1995-96 season. During that time he helped the Lakers win five NBA titles (1980, 1982, 1985, 1987, 1988) and was named the league’s most valuable player three times. Needless to say, L.A. sports fans like this guy, and if Magic is buying in (literally), L.A. is likely to follow suit in droves.
Johnson was joined post haste Monday by 5,000 others who made deposits for tickets in the opening five minutes, according to the team’s Twitter account, with an additional 5,000 added to that total in the first hour. That’s a pretty good start to filling the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, where the team is scheduled to play the 2016 season and which has a seating capacity of 93,607.
Rams owner Stan Kroenke tells L.A. fans: ‘It’s been a long road. But we made it.’
Rams owner Stan Kroenke plans to build a $1.86 billion stadium complex in Inglewood, which will house the Rams and the Chargers should choose to exercise their option to move to L.A., and is scheduled to open in 2019. Johnson and others who purchased tickets now will also have the first shot at buying personal seat licenses in the Inglewood stadium when those go on sale, which is expected to happen sometime in 2017.
Johnson, who played in the city during the team’s original stint in the L.A. area, has held season tickets before, so it’s not surprising that he would want to do so again upon the Rams return.
Johnson has also been a champion for sports in the city — on and off the court — including as an owner of the Los Angeles Dodgers and as the vice chairman of Los Angeles 2024, the group that is responsible for the city’s bid for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games.
