TOPEKA, Kan. — The Kansas City Chiefs will be moving from Missouri to a domed stadium in Kansas in 2031, Gov. Laura Kelly and team owner Clark Hunt confirmed in an announcement Monday at the Docking State Office Building across from the State Capitol.
It completes a lengthy process in which the Chiefs focused on choosing between two specific sites: moving to a state-of-the-art domed stadium in Kansas or renovating Arrowhead Stadium in Missouri. The new stadium was previously projected to cost $3 billion, while a renovated Arrowhead Stadium would’ve been the cheaper option at roughly $1 billion.
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Lieutenant Gov. Did Toland called it “the largest economic win in Kansas history,” adding that “this win will also cement Kansas as a global destination for sports and entertainment.
“The Chiefs are a part of who we are as Kansans, and now, they’ll be such an important part of our future for years and generations to come.”
The move to Kansas — and an indoor stadium — opens up many additional enues for the Chiefs. That includes hosting a Super Bowl. Team president Mark Donovan is on the NFL’s committee to select Super Bowl sites, and he has shared previous optimism that the Chiefs would be chosen should the team build a new indoor stadium.
The new stadium, which will be roughly 20 miles from Arrowhead, will be built in Wyandotte County, and a new team headquarters will be located in Olathe, Kan.
“Today is an extraordinary day in the history of the Kansas City Chiefs,” Hunt said in a statement. “We are excited to partner with the State of Kansas to bring a world-class stadium to our fans. This project represents another step in our legacy of innovation and our fan-first mentality, which started with my father, Lamar Hunt. The stadium, practice facility, and surrounding development will benefit the entire region, and further elevate Kansas City in the eyes of the country and the world.”
The Chiefs’ current lease at Truman Sports Complex — home of Arrowhead Stadium — is set to expire in January 2031. That means the team is set to play its games at that site through the 2030 season.
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This decision means the team will move on from one of the NFL’s most historic venues. Arrowhead, which was built in 1972, is the third-oldest stadium in the league, behind only Chicago’s Soldier Field and Green Bay’s Lambeau Field.
“This is a great day for Kansas City Chiefs fans,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “This public-private partnership, the result of a thoughtful and deliberate process, will build upon the Hunts’ generational legacy by boldly investing in one of America’s greatest fan bases. The Chiefs’ new enclosed stadium will be a stage for unforgettable moments, whether it’s playoff games, concerts or championship events. We congratulate the Chiefs and the Kansas City community on this important achievement.”
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Donovan told reporters in October that the team had still been pursuing information on the Kansas and Missouri options. Not only had the team’s leadership upgraded its design for a proposed renovated Arrowhead Stadium based on fan surveys, but it had also hired consulting firm CAA Icon to obtain competitive quotes for a domed stadium in Kansas.
The Chiefs he been playing in Kansas City, Mo., since 1963, when then-owner Lamar Hunt moved his Dallas Texans AFL franchise north and renamed the team the Chiefs.
This marks the second time in the last 10 years that the state of Missouri has lost an NFL franchise. The St. Louis Rams relocated to Los Angeles before the 2016 season after a 21-year tenure in Missouri.
The Chiefs reconsidered their plans for a stadium location after an April 2024 sales-tax initiative failed in Jackson County, Mo. The proposal, which would’ve extended a three-eighths-cent sales tax to keep the Chiefs and Kansas City Royals in Missouri for another 25 years, had a 58 percent “no” vote to 42 percent “yes.”
Clark Hunt, just before that vote, anticipated it would pass but also said his team would “he to consider all of our alternatives” if it didn’t.
The Chiefs did that, taking advantage of Kansas legislators’ offer of approved state bonds. Those, with bipartisan support, can cover up to 70 percent of the cost of building a new stadium, which will be paid off over 30 years through sports betting, lottery ticket and tax revenue.
Monday’s announcement affects only the Chiefs and not the Royals, who are also choosing between the two states for their future stadium home.
The Chiefs he become a model franchise over the past 10 years, even while suffering through a disappointing 6-9 season this year. K.C. has reached five of the past six Super Bowls and has won three championships in that time, led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Tris Kelce and coach Andy Reid.