The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians has entered into a partnership to put its casino name on a new stadium for the Raiders professional football team.
The San Manuel Casino will be a corporate sponsor of the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada. Despite the distance between the tribal facility in neighboring California and the gambling mecca -- about 227 miles -- Chairwoman Lynn Valbuena said the partnership was a logical one. "We do have a very large [Raiders] fan base in southern California so we're all excited to be founding partners," Valbuena said at a press conference in Las Vegas on Monday. The Allegiant Stadium is a 1.75 million-square-foot, domed stadium. It will host the UNLV football team in addition to the Raiders. It is due to be completed in time for the opening of the National Football League season in fall 2020. The San Manuel Casino is located in Highland, California. Terms of the deal between the tribe, Allegiant Stadium and the Raiders were not announced.