Raiders Close To First-Ever Season Ticket Sellout

OAKLAND, Calif. (The Sports Xchange) - The Oakland Raiders are close to selling out their season tickets for the first time in franchise history.

Raiders owner Mark Davis said Sunday that his team is "on the verge" of accomplishing the historic feat.

"We're excited as hell," Davis told ESPN.com. "Again, we've got the greatest fans in the world. The Raider Nation is strong."

The Raiders have signed a one-year lease to remain at the O.co Coliseum for the 2016 season and have two one-year options for 2017 and 2018. The Raiders will pay $3.5 million in rent to play at O.co Coliseum in 2016, an increase of more than triple what the team paid last year.

The Raiders are in line to have a waiting list for season tickets for the first time in franchise history with just under 50,000 so far this offseason, team president Marc Badain told ESPN. The Coliseum has a capacity of nearly 53,250.

The Raiders, who spent the 1982 through 1994 seasons in Los Angeles, could still join the Los Angeles Rams in their Inglewood, Calif., home, should the Chargers decide to remain in San Diego.

Meanwhile, Davis continues to flirt with other cities, including recent visits to Las Vegas to discuss a potential venue a few blocks off the Vegas Strip.

The Las Vegas Sands Corp. has proposed a $1.3 billion, 65,000-seat domed stadium project near UNLV, which is between the airport and The Strip. Davis previously met with Sands chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson.

Davis is reportedly scheduled to attend a meeting of the Southern Nevada Tourism Infrastructure Committee at UNLV on Thursday.