Where the Rams Will Play in 2016 and Whether St. Louis Should Care

The St. Louis Rams lease on the 16 year old Edward Jones Dome may come to an end in 2015. The terms of the lease require that the stadium be a "top-tier" football venue, one of the best seven in the 32 team league. Currently, 20 NFL stadiums are newer than the Dome and 21 are larger.

While "top-tier" isn't defined, by any measure, the relatively small, old Dome would require a couple hundred million dollars to be considered in the top seven. The same measure was to be applied in 2005, but the then owner waived the clause and $30M was found through refinancing debt to make several modest improvements. As the Post-Dispatch noted, this all means that new owner Stan Kroenke has an "out". There's virtually no way the Edward Jones Dome will meet the lease requirements.