RAMS DESERVE CHANCE TO WIN OVER NEW FANS, SUPPORT

St. Louis sports fans are on a rampage, and who can blame them? After seven years without a NFL franchise, the city announced the Los Angeles Rams will become the St. Louis Rams this fall.

Already the media grumbling has begun: The Rams have a losing record (4-12 this past season). Ticket prices are high. The city offered too much to bring the team to town. Hey, sports fans, let's give the team and the city a chance.

NFL franchises are hard to come by. St. Louis experienced that heartbreak when two expansion teams went to Charlotte, N.C., and Jacksonville, Fla. Squabbling among the ownership group hurt the bid.

Yes, the price was high: a new $260 million domed stadium, a $15 million practice facility, retirement of a $30 million debt to Anaheim, among other costs. But the St. Louis Rams aren't just a football team. Look at them as a new industry to Missouri. The Rams can generate a lot of money in more ways than ticket sales. Many ancillary businesses and people will benefit.

Tom Eagleton, who helped in negotiations, made a good analogy: Chicago is spending $32 million to bring the 1996 Democratic convention to town for one week. The Rams cost more, but it's a 30-year lease.

A high-priced permanent seat license program may indicate the true level of financial support in St. Louis. Columbia businessman Stan Kroenke paid $60 million for 40 percent of the team. The seat program will raise an additional $60 million to $70 million. The same kind of program has worked as a fund raiser in Charlotte.

Many Southeast Missouri football fans switched their loyalties to the Kansas City Chiefs with the exit of the Cardinals. The Rams and the team's proximity may build a new base of support throughout the state and nation.

It isn't every day a city gets a football team. It is a remarkable accomplishment achieved through much money, tough negotiations and a new domed stadium that the entire state helped to finance. St. Louis and Missouri deserve a chance to celebrate.