Rams playing in Super Bowl at SoFi Stadium a 'dream' for owner Stan Kroenke

Josh Haskell Image
Friday, February 11, 2022
Rams playing in Super Bowl at SoFi a 'dream' for owner Stan Kroenke
When L.A. takes the field, Rams owner and SoFi Stadium visionary Stan Kroenke will be one step closer to realizing the dream he had when the Rams returned to Southern California

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (KABC) -- Super Bowl fever has taken over Southern California with all eyes on Sunday's game between the Los Angeles Rams and the Cincinnati Bengals.

When L.A. takes the field, Rams owner and SoFi Stadium visionary Stan Kroenke will be one step closer to realizing the dream he had when the Rams returned to Southern California in 2016. A Super Bowl win would make the dream a reality.

Kroenke helped make SoFi Stadium a reality.

"I knew that project would have a massive impact, and I'm real proud, and I know we're all real proud of the numbers of people we employed," Kroenke said. "I think we had 17,000 different people who worked on just the stadium."

The $5.5-billion stadium and Hollywood Park complex has forever changed Inglewood.

Kroenke told Eyewitness News one of the things he's most proud of is creating jobs for the local community.

"You dream these things and you get to work and you try to make reality out of it," Kroenke said "We were all able to work and build a stadium and open it the one year in a 100 where you couldn't have fans."

"It's wonderful to be able to come back here this year and have fans and play the NFC Championship game and then play in the Super Bowl," Kroenke added. "But, we still have work to do. We still have one game."

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, joined by Kroenke and Chargers owner Dean Spanos, promoted a new campaign Thursday to give children access to more parks and athletic equipment, featuring what was described as the sports version of an ice cream truck.

Goodell and the owners were among those who dedicated the Park on the Move campaign at Jefferson Elementary School in Inglewood. The dedication was part of a larger event aimed at marking $2 million in grants the NFL is providing 56 community organizations through its Super Bowl Legacy Grant program.

Park on the Move will feature oversized vans equipped with a skate park, basketball hoops and soccer nets, along with other sporting equipment. They will travel to areas where park space is limited. A staff of coaches and mentors will travel along.

Meanwhile, officials are reminding the public to only show up to Inglewood if you have tickets to the game.

The Department of Homeland Security is monitoring a potential protest of truck drivers over vaccine mandates near SoFi Stadium, similar to what's been seen outside the Canadian city of Ottawa.

Ottawa is in a state of emergency with truck drivers outside parliament.

At this point, DHS says it's online discussion only, aspirational, with no real plans to organize.

As for the game, getting inside SoFi won't be easy as ticket prices continue to soar.

"Pretty pricey tickets. Nosebleeds - it would be about $10,000 for us to get in," Rams fan Richard Tamez said. "That's rough."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.