Spurs ask Bexar County to OK another home game outside San Antonio
Spurs Sports & Entertainment is asking Bexar County for permission to play an additional game away from the Frost Bank Center during the next two seasons.
The organization wants to host four regular-season home games outside the East Side arena during each of the 2026-27 and 2027-28 seasons. That would be an increase from the three games currently allowed under its non-relocation agreement with the county, which owns the Frost Bank Center and leases it to the Spurs through 2032.
Spokesperson Liberty Swift said the move would provide more flexibility and "supports our longstanding strategy of connecting with Spurs fans across our region, including in Austin, while also allowing us to participate in select NBA international games."
The Spurs are scheduled to play two regular-season games in Europe against the New Orleans Pelicans, first in Paris, France on Jan. 14, and later in Manchester, England, on Jan. 17.
Executives are seeking to expand the team's fan base beyond San Antonio to boost revenue and corporate partnerships and build on the international popularity of French star Victor Wembanyama, who led the team to the NBA Finals this past season. The team has played regular-season games in Austin, Mexico City and France in recent years.
Commissioners Court will vote Tuesday on whether to again amend the county's agreement with the franchise, which plays up to 42 home games per season.
The Spurs organization requested approval to host games outside the Frost Bank Center in 2022, stoking some officials' and fans' fears that the Spurs might be eyeing a potential move to Austin. Spurs manager partner Peter J. Holt wrote a letter to residents vowing that the team was committed to San Antonio, and commissioners and then-County Judge Nelson Wolff voted 4-1 for the proposal.
The court approved similar requests in 2023 and 2025, when commissioners gave the team the go-ahead to host three games away from its home court. The latest amendment, if approved, "does not increase the team's total home game count or change the Spurs commitment to San Antonio," Swift said.
The Spurs have called the Frost Bank Center home since it opened in 2002.
The county was supposed to get a share of the Spurs' revenue from the arena.
The Spurs keep the revenue from basketball games and proceeds from the sale of the arena's rights, while a subsidiary called Community Arena Management gets revenue from concerts and other events. The subsidiary pays for the arena's maintenance, utilities and employee salaries and an annual license fee. The county is entitled to 20% of Community Arena Management's annual operating income if it goes above $4.75 million, but it has never reached that level, Swift said.
The team is preparing to move to a new, publicly financed arena at Hemisfair, the centerpiece of city officials' planned sports and entertainment district. The county is contributing up to $311 million, the city is providing $489 million and the Spurs organization is kicking in $500 million and covering any cost overruns for the $1.3 billion arena.
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The city is also spending $60 million - though that price tag has not been finalized - to acquire the Hemisfair property where the arena will be built. The Spurs are paying the city $31 million to purchase federal properties nearby, which will be leased to the organization and its partners for development around the arena.
The Spurs and city have not yet hashed out contracts for the arena, including a non-relocation agreement, but city staff recently said they plan to finalize details by the end of the year.
City Manager Erik Walsh said he wants to see the results of a study on the cost to the city of providing emergency and security services for the downtown district and potential revenue opportunities before starting negotiations with the Spurs.
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