BRIAN BRILLAND/Associated Press The Bengals’ owners have agreed to sell the team to the city of Cincinnati for $1.5 billion, and the team is moving to a new stadium on the west side of town.
The city and team announced the deal Wednesday, with the city getting a $250 million loan and a $400 million loan from the state, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported.
The deal, which was first reported by ESPN, will allow the team and city to move forward with plans to build a new NFL stadium, which the NFL is currently looking to host at a cost of about $1 billion.
The sale will also allow the city to keep its $1 million contribution to the Bengals and the NFL from the stadium loan.
The stadium deal comes just one day after the Bengals were eliminated from playoff contention.
The team is expected to announce plans to play a season-ending game in New Orleans in January, but the city has already been told the game will be moved to 2020.
The Bengals are also considering moving the team’s home opener to Chicago, but that is unlikely to happen until after the 2019 season.
The Bengals will play their first home game of the season on Nov. 17, 2020.
