For several years, there were multiple NFL teams attempting to move to Los Angeles. There were competing proposals from the Rams and the Chargers and Raiders, and thanks to a strong push from Jerry Jones, the NFL ultimately decided to bring the Rams and Chargers to L.A., leaving the Raiders to pursue a move to Las Vegas.
The Rams' venture back to L.A. is actually going pretty well. The team is 6-0 and has one of the most exciting cores of young talent in the NFL -- and there appears to at least be a decently-sized fan base. The Chargers' move ... not so much. Chargers games are routinely populated by large swaths of opposing fans and numerous players have expressed a longing for San Diego.
The Chargers are also reportedly struggling to sell personal seat licenses for the new Inglewood stadium they'll call home, which has caused the league's owners to be worried about the team's viability in the market. It's also caused the Chargers themselves to revise their revenue projections downward by a whole lot. They had previously set a revenue goal of $400 million, but according to ESPN's Seth Wickersham, it's dropping to around $150 million.
A major discussion topic among NFL owners/executives at this week’s league meetings is the Chargers’ viability in LA. PSL sales have been a struggle and team is expected to revise its Inglewood revenue goals sharply to a more realistic number: $400m to around $150m, per sources
— Seth Wickersham (@SethWickersham) October 17, 2018
To be clear: There hasn’t been a formal presentation on it this week. But it’s been a topic of private conversations. https://t.co/kv4anrHuLx
— Seth Wickersham (@SethWickersham) October 17, 2018
This is not a good sign, to say the least. The league seems at least somewhat unlikely to bail on the Chargers' L.A. future, but concerns about revenue and fan base potential are never what you want to see. This is a situation to watch.
