It is rare to see an NFL stadium being built without the taxpayer picking up a big chunk of the bill, but Denver Broncos owner Rob Walton isn’t short on money.
Heir to the Walmart fortune, his family is worth 122.9 billion, per Forbes, making them the richest people in an elite club of 32.
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The Broncos’ new home is less than a mile from their current digsCredit: Getty
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The site is an abandoned wastelandCredit: Getty
A group including Walton and controlling owner Greg Penner, who married the granddaughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton, set the record for a purchase of an NFL franchise to buy the Broncos from the estate of Pat Bowlen for $4.65 billion in 2022.
At the time, there were just eight years remaining on the lease for Mile High Stadium and Denver bosses have now selected a location for a state-of-the-art arena featuring a retractable roof.
Trains ran out of the historic Burnham Yard for almost 150 years until the site was abandoned in 2016, leaving the buildings to crumble on a prime plot in central Denver.
Penner and his wife Carrie Walton Penner — the granddaughter of Walmart founder Sam Walton — announced plans to build the stadium there in September, alongside Mayor Mike Johnson and Governor Jared Polis of Colorado.
“Together, we are pleased to announce historic Burnham Yard in the heart of Denver as the preferred site for a world-class retractable roof stadium anchoring a dynamic mixed-use district,” the statement said.
The Broncos have vowed to “reimagine the future with deep respect for the rich history” of Burnham Heights.
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It will be a fully privately-funded venture, which the Denver Post reporting that the cost is expected to be $4 billion.
That would make the arena the second most expensive in the world behind SoFi stadium — the home of the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers.
SoFi cost $5.5 billion and its nearest completed rival in Yankee Stadium, which opened in 2009 for an outlay of $2.3 billion.
The Washington Commanders and Cleveland Browns are both building new homes that are believed to fall somewhere between the Yankees and Broncos in terms of price.
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Fans are thrilled that their team is staying within the cityCredit: Getty
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There is a lot fo work to be done before 2031Credit: GettyWhen will the Broncos’ new stadium be ready?
Denver’s arena is due to be completed in six years.
“While this is an exciting milestone, we recognize there is much more work to be done ahead of a targeted stadium completion for the 2031 NFL season, the team confirmed.
“Today is not yet a celebration but rather a meaningful checkpoint reflecting years of research, collaboration and planning as well as necessary land agreements and feasibility studies.”
Greg Penner added: “We’ve got to roll up our sleeves and get to work. We think it’s really important to have an open and transparent process as we go through the next couple of years of planning.
“We’ll get lots of input from others in the community, and we’re looking forward to that.”
Other sites were considered, but being able to bring new life to a once thriving hub just under a mile from their current home was too good a chance to pass up.
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Trains ran out of the location for well over a centuryCredit: Getty
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Walton’s family own the largest retailer in the worldCredit: Getty
“It’s our goal to have world-class facilities for this team and for our fans, obviously, with the rich tradition and history at Mile High, and find something that the fans would love as a site that had proximity to that and Denver,” Greg Penner said.
“We couldn’t be more excited about Burnham Yard as the preferred site to build a new stadium and an incredible year-round destination.”
Walton Penner was delighted to be able to continue Denver’s proud history, just as the ownership group intended.
“From Day One when we got here, we have been thinking about what a future stadium and home for the Broncos might look like,” she said. “That’s always been intertwined with Denver.
“It leans into the history of Denver, and having Burnham Yard and the large locomotive building that’s there at the center of Burnham Yard is really exciting to be able to highlight not only the stadium in Denver and our partnership with the city, but also the history of Denver [and] the history of the region with the railyards.
“One of our goals is to make sure that we are engaging community members 365 days a year in the area around the stadium.
“So, it’s not something that will just have a large parking lot all around it, but really creating some place that’s special that people leave and talk about and say, ‘Oh my gosh, when you come to Denver, you’ve got to be here at Burnham Yard.'”
Colorado Governor Polis is delighted with the positive relationship between the team and state, as well as the ownership group’s determination not to ask the taxpayer to contribute.
“The Broncos are very much part of our identity as a state and, of course, the city of Denver,” he beamed. “And I couldn’t be more thrilled that the city of Denver and state of Colorado are going to work with the Broncos to ensure that the Denver Broncos will be here in style for another generation.
“The Walton-Penner [Family] Ownership Group has been amazing partners for us.
“They said very early on, ‘Our model is not going to the taxpayers and asking for hundreds of millions of dollars like stadium deals of the past. We’re going to finance this and figure it out.'”
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Mayor Johnston — a lifelong fan — thinks the city has a bright future ahead.
He said: “This is one of the longest running city-NFL franchise partnerships. I grew up as a kid watching Broncos games and coming to the Broncos’ stadium, and to know that there will be another two generations of kids who will grow up being able to walk down the street in Denver and see their favorite football team will be an amazing gift for the city for generations to come.”
Initial concepts feature a natural grass field and retractable roof, allowing for year-round use.
The owners hope it will set them up for decades.
“The stadium is going to have all the modern amenities and bells and whistles, and then around it, we have a real opportunity in that area to create an incredible mixed-use district,” Penner said. “That’ll be a real appeal, we think, for the community and our fans.
“This stadium is the next big investment for us. And it’s going to be, we think, a central piece of our experience for the fans over the next 50, 60 years.”
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