Monday’s announcement that the Kansas City Chiefs would jump across the state line to a new stadium in Kansas drew reaction from Missouri lawmakers, including the Marshall senator who spearheaded the bill attempting to keep the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium.

Sen. Kurtis Gregory (R-Marshall) sponsored Senate Bill 3 during a special session in June, which offered incentives and tax credits toward the development of sports and entertainment facilities. Gregory spoke to KMMO News shortly after the announcement that the Chiefs would leave Arrowhead for a new stadium in Kansas beginning in 2031.

Gregory said one factor that may have led to Kansas getting ahead of Missouri was having all their levels of government speaking with one voice and on the same page.

Gregory added that Missouri leaders can’t pause to lick their wounds, as the Royals still have a decision to make on where to go after their lease at Kauffman Stadium expires in five years.

Governor Mike Kehoe expressed “strong disappointment” in a statement after Monday’s announcement, saying that team owner Clark Hunt, “decided to abandon Lamar Hunt’s legacy at the iconic Arrowhead Stadium, a place that Chiefs fans have rallied around since 1972. At Arrowhead, every game feels like a Super Bowl. No new stadium will replicate that.”