Charlie Crist floats ‘Rays for Bucs’ swap between St. Pete and Tampa

With hopes dwindling that the Tampa Bay Rays will remain in St. Petersburg, former Gov. Charlie Crist has an idea to keep major league sports in the city: Convince the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to move across the bay.

It might sound crazy at first. The Bucs have played in Tampa since its first season in 1976 and have been at Raymond James Stadium since 1998. But Crist, a former Congressman who is expected to run for St. Pete Mayor, notes that the team’s stadium lease is up in 2028, so there may be an opportunity.

A deal for a major neighborhood redevelopment and new stadium between the Rays, St. Pete and Pinellas County fell apart last year, and Tampa and Hillsborough County are allegedly close to a deal to bring the Rays there.

The Rays had already entered into an agreement with the city of St. Pete and Pinellas County on a new stadium development at the Historic Gas Plant, where Tropicana Field currently sits on a plot of 86 valuable acres. But the deal fell through after Hurricane Milton blew part of the roof from the Trop in late 2024, causing delays to the process and, as Rays leadership described it at the time, cost overruns the team could not absorb. The Rays abandoned the deal and by last July it was officially dead.

While St. Pete Mayor Ken Welch cannot control the weather, some still blamed him for the failed deal and what is now a quickly moving plan to ship the team across the bay to Tampa, at the Hillsborough College Dale Mabry campus.

“It was tragic and sad to me,” Crist said in a phone interview about the St. Pete deal falling through. “And I’m not sure if it’s over, but it kind of feels like it.”

Crist points out, though, that the Tampa Bay Lightning recently renewed its arena lease after Hillsborough agreed to spend $250 million on renovations, and the Bucs also want stadium renovations that could cost as much as $1 billion as they negotiate whether to extend its lease. The Rays want $1 billion in public money for a Hillsborough stadium.

“You got three irons in the fire. None of them are cheap. All of them are expensive,” Crist said. “It looks to me like the money isn’t all there, necessarily, for Hillsborough and Tampa as it relates to be able to support three professional sports teams.”

Crist also points to the Kansas City Chiefs’ plans to move from Missouri across the river to Kansas City, Kansas. And Gary, Indiana, has active proposals to try to lure the Chicago Bears to its city a mere 37-mile drive from downtown Chicago.

Of course, Crist would have more say in a proposal if wins the mayoral race. The election is scheduled for Aug. 18, with a Nov. 3 runoff if no candidate wins more than 50% of the vote. The Bucs have a Jan. 31, 2027, deadline to extend its lease on Raymond James Stadium by five years.

“It would be a great opportunity, obviously, for both sides of the bay to participate in professional sports in a meaningful way, and so why not explore it at a minimum and shoot for the moon if you can,” Crist said.