Angels fans rejoice! It was an early Christmas present when the announcement came that Arte Moreno would be selling the Los Angeles Angels to Stan Kroenke of Kroenke Sports and Entertainment for $4 billion. The sale will require the approval of Major League Baseball, which is expected to finalize the deal by the first quarter of 2027.
Why it matters to stadium fans
Angel Stadium is the fourth oldest ballpark in MLB. But that ranking is deceiving, since the three ballparks ahead of it are Fenway Park, Wrigley Field, and Dodger Stadium. Each of those stadiums is iconic and has undergone substantial renovations, and none of them is going anywhere. Which means, for all practical purposes, Angel Stadium is the oldest ballpark that actually needs replacing.
And for anyone who has been to Angel Stadium, that need is obvious. Even Kauffman Stadium, the next-oldest ballpark built seven years later, has character that Angel Stadium clearly lacks. There’s just little that is at all iconic about Angel Stadium, and it’s unlikely that many fans will miss it.
But when might it happen?
The lease between the team and the City of Anaheim runs through December 31, 2032. But agreements only matter when at least one side wants to enforce them. Given Stan Kroenke’s history of building stadiums, and how much Anaheim would like a greater fan and tourist draw, it seems quite possible that KSE and Anaheim could reach a deal to replace the aging ballpark with a new multi-use development before 2032.
And where would that stadium be located? Likely right next to where it is right now. As anyone who has been to Angel Stadium will tell you, it is surrounded by a massive 130-acre, 12,500-space parking lot. And even though it’s Southern California and everyone drives, you can bet that there won’t be a 130-acre parking lot surrounding the new stadium. Instead, you’ll have a development that resembles The Battery in Atlanta, with retail, restaurants, hotels, plus commercial and residential developments. (They’ll have parking somewhere, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see KSE purchase additional land nearby to relocate the parking to).
And, as a reminder, stadium construction is nothing new to KSE, which built SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, and Dick’s Sporting Goods Park in Denver. And KSE has already begun developing Hollywood Park, the area around SoFi, with entities like the YouTube Theater, COSM, Cinepolis Luxury Cinemas, JD Sports, and Iconix Fitness already open.
So how long do fans have to visit Angel Stadium?
The real answer is: we don’t know. Assuming it could take a year to get a stadium plan in place, and then three years to build it, we’d predict that the earliest a new ballpark could open would be 2030, with 2031 likely as well.
That means fans have 2027, 2028, and 2029 for sure to visit Angel Stadium. And with the threat of a lockout in 2027, the actual opportunity might be two seasons instead of three.
The good news is that if it is two seasons, MLB’s schedule rotation will guarantee that every team in the league will visit Angel Stadium at least once in those two years. So every fan base would have the opportunity to see the stadium before it’s gone.
Next steps
If Angel Stadium is on your ballpark chaser list, then it’s time to start considering plans to visit. The 2027 schedule has already been released, but the threat of a lockout makes it hard to rely on right now. Nevertheless, it might make sense to make tentative plans for 2027 if your team will be playing there.
And for local fans, it may be time to consider purchasing some level of season package at the current ballpark in order to have higher priority for tickets at the new ballpark.
