Report: Santa Clara is ‘considering legal action’ against the 49ers

In August 2022, the 49ers offered to settle a revenue lawsuit with the city of Santa Clara. Not even a year later, we could be headed toward something similar.

According to the San Jose Mercury News, Santa Clara is “considering legal action” against the 49ers Levi’s Stadium management company. The claim is that the agency “hasn’t turned over critical information to help the city prepare to host” the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Lisa Gillmor, the mayor of Santa Clara, said the 49ers “failed to meet a February 1 deadline set by Santa Clara County Civil Grand Jury to provide the city with key documents” related to the upcoming event.

Additionally, the council is “considering subpoenaing the 49ers” or “using other legal methods to pry the documents loose if they can’t obtain them in the next month or so.” Gilmore acknowledged the 49ers released some documents, but they didn’t include the required information the city requested.

Part of the gripe is there isn’t enough information about the event regarding public safety, according to Santa Clara Police Chief Pat Nikolai. Gilmor referenced how other cities hosting the World Cup and its events have been working on these plans upwards to 18 months, and the fact that Santa Clara isn’t a big city could put a strain on the staff as well as the Santa Clara police.