Mark Davis (American football)

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Mark Davis
Born 1954/1955 (age 68–69)
Nationality American
Occupation Professional sports owner
Known for Owner of the Oakland Raiders

Mark Davis (born 1954 or 1955[1]) is principal owner and managing general partner of the Oakland Raiders of the National Football League (NFL).[2][3]

NFL team owner

Davis inherited the team after the death of his father, Al, in 2011.[4][5] Davis with his mother, Carol, owns a 47 percent share of the Raiders, which is contractually structured to give them controlling interest. Davis has day-to-day control of the team.[6]

Davis gained control of the team towards the end of the Raiders lease with the O.co Coliseum a facility that dates back to 1965 and has multiple issues due to its age. It is also the only stadium which still houses an NFL and an MLB team at the same time.

Management style

In his short ownership of the Raiders, Davis has been known for a hands-off approach to the football side of the operations, focusing on the business aspects of the team by appointing Reggie McKenzie as general manager. This form of management is in stark contrast to his father who, up to his death, had control of both the business and football sides of the team.

In 2013, Davis fired the Raiders public relations director after a Sports Illustrated article that was critical of Davis' father. Davis stated that the director's replacement needed to understand the importance of his father's legacy and actively protect it.[7]

On domestic violence in the NFL

Davis spoke out publicly on the issue of domestic violence in the NFL, following 49ers' Ray McDonald's August 31, 2014, arrest.[8] Davis disagreed with Jed York's decision to keep McDonald on the active roster, proposing that the league should suspend any player arrested with pay while "the investigation moves forward"[8] This was the first proposal of this kind following the Ray Rice assault video surfacing, that specifically called for an immediate suspension of players rather than leaving the decision to suspend up to the respective franchises themselves. In March 2015, Davis again went public on the issue of domestic violence, shutting down rumors that the Raiders' started negotiations with Greg Hardy, who was convicted on domestic abuse charges earlier that year.[9] The Raiders' organization has traditionally been vocal about domestic violence issues, with direct involvement with the Tracey Biletnikoff Foundation, created by Hall of Famer Fred Biletnikoff to support community substance abuse treatment and domestic violence programs.[10]

New stadium

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Main article: Carson Stadium

Davis has put himself in charge of an effort to establish a new stadium for the Raiders. He has stated a desire to keep the Raiders in Oakland (preferably on the Coliseum site) or the immediate area. Due to the lack of a stadium plan, Davis has communicated with representatives in other cities such as Los Angeles, California and San Antonio, Texas.[11][12] In late February 2015, Davis announced that the Raiders would pursue a shared stadium in Carson, California, with Dean Spanos and the San Diego Chargers.[13] Davis cited the proposal as the result of years of talks with Oakland city officials that ultimately led nowhere. While the Chargers have historically been inter-divisional rivals, he recognized that Spanos was in a similar position with San Diego city officials and that their partnership could expedite the process of resolving the stadium issue for both franchises.[13] The Los Angeles Times reported that the team's relocation could result in the franchise "being worth 150% of its current value".[13] On April 23, 2015, a new proposal for the Carson stadium was released, outlining several personalized touches for the shared tenants.[14] These include stadium seating changing from navy blue to black depending on which team homefield, as well as a 120-foot tower on the concourse that would serve as a memorial for the late Al Davis for Raiders touchdowns or shoot simulated lightning for Chargers' touchdowns.[14] The Carson stadium proposal also features sprawling ground-level parking, rather than multi-story carparks, at the request of Davis who insisted that tailgating at a new stadium was a necessity.[15] Davis' and Spanos' proposal directly competes with Rams' owner Stan Kroenke and his proposed stadium in Inglewood.[16]

While Davis plans to move forward with the Los Angeles Stadium proposal and formally present it to the NFL League owners later in 2015, he is actively working towards a resolution in Oakland.[17] In an interview, he said "we are trying everything possible to get something done in Oakland right on the same exact site we're on right now".[17] The Oakland stadium proposal calls for a smaller 55,000-seat stadium at the current site, with space for commercial development and renovations for the existing BART Station.[18]

Personal life

Davis is a graduate of California State University, Chico.[1] Davis says he is a food connoisseur and has said that his favorite restaurants include Dan Tana's in Los Angeles, California, Joe's Stone Crab in Miami Beach, Florida, and P.F. Chang's.[19]

Further reading

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References

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  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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