The Oakland Raiders will be more than 2,300 miles away from home and playing in another country Monday, but the fight to keep the East Bay team rooted in its current home will be in full swing.
Approximately 1,200 signs reading "Quédate en Oakland," which is translated from Spanish to English as "Stay in Oakland," will be on display throughout Azteca Stadium in Mexico City during Oakland's Monday Night Football game against the Houston Texans.
Grassroots leadership representing three collectives from the Bay Area are hoping that an international audience will heed the message and pressure the city of Oakland as well as the NFL to prevent the Raiders' potential exodus to Las Vegas.
Back in the states, organizers will also be handing out the placards to fans at sports bars in Pleasanton in San Leandro. They also plan to circulate a "NorCal Raiders Fans Against Relocation" petition, which will later be shared with officials from the NFL and government leaders in Oakland and Nevada.
During the team's last primetime contest two weeks ago, fans flashed 10,000 double-sided signs reading "Las Vegas: If You Build It, We Won't Come" and "Stay in Oakland" in addition to flying an airplane blanner to express their disapproval with talks that are centered around lifting the Raiders from Oakland.
Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval is leading the charge to make the "Las Vegas Raiders" a team of the future and recently signed a bill into law that will pave the way for "Sin City" to construct a stadium that could house an NFL franchise.
NFL owners still need to approve any relocation attempts and Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf continues to promise that the East Bay city will devise responsible stadium options for the Raiders in the Bay Area.
