Chiefs announce move to Kansas

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (First Alert 4) -The Kansas City Chiefs are moving from Missouri to Kansas.

On Monday afternoon, Kansas Governor Laura Kelly and the Kansas City Chiefs announced an agreement had been reached to build a domed stadium in Wyandotte County with a goal of it opening at the start of the 2031 NFL season. In addition, a Chiefs headquarters and training facility will be built in the city of Olathe in Johnson County.

Both facilities will be mixed-use developments that could include sports, entertainment, dining, shopping, office, hotel and residential properties.

The project is expected to create 20,000 jobs and have a more than $4 billion economic impact.

“This agreement to bring the Chiefs to Kansas takes our state to the next level. With this new stadium, we’re creating thousands of jobs, bringing in tourists from around the world, attracting young people, and most importantly, we’re continuing to make Kansas the best place in America to raise a family,” Gov. Kelly said. “This is a game-changer for Kansas, and it’s a signal to America and the world that our state’s future is very bright.”

We spoke with Kendel Beard, head of the local KC Chiefs fan club in St. Louis.

“It just kind of leaves a bad taste in your mouth,” said Beard. “To me it’s a gut punch to all the fans in the state of Missouri.”The situation leaves Beard wondering why the Hunt family, worth more than $20 billion, cannot build a stadium themselves.

“Owners like Clark Hunt forget about people like us who drive across the state,” said Beard.

But there is an open question on whether Kansas is a ‘winner’ here.

Neil deMause wrote a book on stadium financing, Field of Schemes, and he has found it’s usually not a good deal for taxpayers.

“I think you could make a good case that whoever wins up winning the Chiefs and the Royals, the taxpayers end up losing,” said Neil deMause.

Neil deMause has looked into stadium financing for nearly 30 years and wrote a book, Field of Schemes, that largely shows taxpayers should not spend hundreds of millions — even billions — on new stadiums.

“There is absolutely no way for the public to get that money back, it’s just gone.,” said deMause.

Earlier on Monday, Kansas lawmakers unanimously approved a STAR bonds proposal, which cleared the way for the Chiefs to move to Kansas.

After the move was made public, Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe shared his disappointment in the decision.

“It’s safe to say that I joined Chiefs Kingdom in my disappointment to the decision that was announced earlier about the Chiefs’ intention to go to Kansas,” he said.

Kehoe continued and shared that going to a game at Arrowhead Stadium is like going to the Super Bowl.

“It’s more than just a brick-and-mortar facility,” said Kehoe. “It is what Lamar Hunt built. It is his legacy. And, I think making a decision that tells Chiefs Kingdom that maybe that’s not so important anymore is, at least, disturbing to me, and I’m sure other Chiefs fans.”

But Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe said the door is not closed. DeMause pointed out the New England Patriots once announced they were moving to Hartford, Connecticut. But ultimately they remained in the Boston-area.

“There’s all sorts of teams that have said they’re moving somewhere and backed away when they said they’re moving somewhere else.,” said deMause.

This comes as the state of Missouri has invested more than $67 million into Kansas City for the World Cup, with more than $40 million of that going toward upgrades to Arrowhead Stadium, which has an uncertain future.

This also comes as the Chicago Bears are considering a move to northwest Indiana.

Missouri House Minority Leader Ashley Aune released the following statement regarding the move:

“Governor Kehoe’s mishandling of efforts to keep the Chiefs in Missouri is a major reason the team is poised to relocate across the border. After Kansas enacted generous incentives for the team last fall, Kehoe was silent on a counterproposal until May when, in an act of gross legislative malpractice, he finally offered a stadium plan with just days remaining in the 2025 session. After it predictably died due to Kehoe’s failure to build consensus among lawmakers, it took a costly special session this summer to finish the job.

“But in recent weeks, Kehoe has undermined the viability of that plan by calling for the elimination of state income taxes. With no income tax, the tax credits at the center of Missouri’s proposal would become largely worthless. Since the fate of the Royals remains in play, the governor must stop undercutting the value of Missouri’s stadium package and get a deal done.”

Copyright 2025 KMOV. All rights reserved.