A holding company tied to St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke quietly purchased a piece of land in Inglewood earlier this month, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting tonight.

So what? Well, as the paper notes, that parcel of land across the street from the Forum is “a football stadium-sized piece of ground.”

The 60-acre parcel is a parking lot that Walmart purchased in the 1990s with the intention of building a SuperCenter. That development proposal was ultimately rejected by Inglewood voters. The Walmart real estate, as well as the nearby land comprising recently shuttered Hollywood Park, have long been rumored as potential sites for a return of the NFL to the L.A:
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The team played in Southern California from 1946 to 1994. The Post-Dispatch states:

Richard Kinnard, a vice president in charge of selling unwanted real estate for Wal-Mart Stores Inc., wouldn't say if Kroenke was personally involved in the deal. But Kinnard did say that pro sports owners had asked about the site before, usually seeking an option to purchase it after all the approvals were lined up. This time, the buyer was ready to close now.

“We sell to people who are going to develop,” he said.

Of course, any NFL dreams for Los Angeles would need the league's blessing. And the league has been notoriously tough about any possible moves.

A league official told the paper that a necessary relocation application has not been filed. And keep in mind that owners have made it a habit of playing markets against each other in order to get concessions such as new venues and tax incentives.

We wouldn't recommend anybody start cheering just yet.

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