Stop Giving Away the Store

Why Missouri must stop footing the bill for private stadiums without a return

Missouri Governor Mike Kehoe has called a special legislative session to push for taxpayer-backed incentives to renovate Kansas City’s Arrowhead Stadium and potentially build a new stadium for the Royals. While the objective includes disaster relief and a property tax cap, the stadium financing plan raises the biggest questions.

Once again, Missouri taxpayers are being asked to foot the bill and take all the risks for wealthy team owners. Contrary to what team owners would have you believe, study after study has shown that publicly funded stadiums don’t pay for themselves. These projects rarely generate the kind of economic growth the owners promise. Instead, they enrich private owners while charging fans exorbitant prices to walk through gates they already helped build.

It’s time to rethink the deal so that Missouri taxpayers actually get a return on their investment.

If the public is going to fund stadium construction, then team owners should be required to pay that money back over time, with interest, just like a business loan. Terms can be fair, but the principle should be non-negotiable: public money deserves repayment. Repayments could come from ticket surcharges, parking fees, or a share of broadcast revenue. It wouldn’t break the bank for the owners, but it would show respect for the people footing the bill.

This isn’t about punishing rich team owners; it’s about fairness. When working families are asked to invest in a private enterprise, they deserve something in return, just like any other investor.

Let’s stop giving away the store. Let’s start making deals that treat taxpayers with the respect they deserve.

Originally published in the Frontline Progressive, June 5, 2025