Let’s make this clear ALL SAN DIEGO FANS WANTED TO KEEP THE CHARGERS.
Let me give you a snapshot of what has happened and what led to this.
12 years ago a deal was in place for a new stadium. The City almost signed but finally declined. This has been going on since 1995…yes 1995.We had the ticket guarantee done by the City. It costs $Millions to San Diegans. Just to keep operating the Q or Jack Murphy it costs the City about $12M/year. The stadium is in such disrepair that at various times you have concrete chunks that break off. Again the city keeps spending $Millions to keep it running. When it rains, the entire stadium looks/feels like a sponge. There is no way to retrofit/update it. The rebar and concrete is beyond repair. Even with all of its issues Jack Murphy stadium is still one of the loudest stadium I have ever been to. I am not mentioning the Qualcom company. Forever they had the opportunity to step in. Irvin Jacobs never did.
So proposals came and went. Mayors came and went. One after the other ignoring the fact that yesterday could come. They always thought that the Chargers were bluffing.
Last year was the icing on the cake. A viable proposal was on the table. It included an hotel tax rate hike that would give the City a new stadium but also a badly needed expansion to the convention center. The City along with the hoteliers rejected the plan. Yesterday the Mayor had the balls to tell us he tried everything.
Now look at what Houston, Glendale/Arizona, Seattle and many others cities have done. They all increased local traveling taxes to pay or help pay for these stadiums. Is a city better off with or without an N.F.L. franchise? Only Houston, Cleveland and Baltimore fans can truly answer this one. I do think it improves the overall morale of a City/region.
You are against giving public money to a private entity? Then why isn’t that same City accountable for going $24M over budget to build a public library that is already obsolete?
The other truth in this is that the Spanos family never gave a flying @#$% about the Chargers. If they did then why did they let go:
Junior Seau, LT, Rodney Harrison, Drew Brees, Vincent Jackson, Schottenheimer and many, many others that flourished with other Teams? The Spanos family cashed in year after year. These last five/six years they put a terrible product on the field. Remember the last Oilers Team. Yes, this has been very similar. Only Phillip Rivers has been able to keep the Team from losing every single game. He has taken more hits or sacks than ant other NFL QB. I had season tickets for over ten years but then I asked myself why I am doing this?
So on one hand you have a City that never intended to keep the Chargers. On the other an owner that did not give a damn. The fans are now left without a Team. The media will quickly forget. If it is not New York or Chicago we will be old news before you know it. The NFL could care less about fans support but at the same time the MLS is gaining in popularity. The NFL think they are invincible but for how much longer?
I’ve got a link to post later, but the NFL is in trouble in regards to ratings and the decline of the cable industry.
I have a feeling Spanos sells the team in a couple of years and collects the money. Owners like Spanos aren’t stupid, they know when to get out. This move was to raise the value of the team; moving to LA accomplishes that.
I don’t blame San Diego too much. The stadium racket needs to stop. These owners have enough to fund the stadiums themselves, but they want it all; they want the stadium and the money. In return, the city has to pay for maintenance and upgrades while seeing none of the profit. Look at Atlanta which is replacing both Turner Field (ok, not Atlanta per se, but the Braves are moving to a county outside Atlanta) and the GeorgiaDome. What’s the point of building these things if owners are going to threaten to move again in two decades.
I feel for the Chargers fan base; the news brought back memories of what I felt like when the Oilers moved. The fans will move on just like I did and find something else to spend money on. The NFL should realize this before they lose too many cities.
Consider this, Rog: Even with the small second-half comeback this year, viewership across the four major broadcast outlets (NBC, CBS, Fox, ESPN) dropped 10 percent in that adults 18-49 demographic, per Nielsen Media research. Average viewership for a broadcast on those four primary NFL rights-holding networks was 7.097 million viewers, per Nielsen, which is down from 7.893 million last year.
This is the third straight season viewership has dipped; the margin from 2014 (7.899 million) to ’15 (7.893 million) was considerably smaller than this year’s plummet. More and more, it looks as though the average viewership during the 2013 season (8.361 million) will stand as the pinnacle of NFL popularity on television.
By the way, my wife grew up in San Diego and was a big Chargers fan. She’s kind of gotten away from that fandom since she’s been gone for so long, but she wasn’t happy today when I gave her the news. Sad situation.
For me I moved to California in 1995 then the Oilers moved. We just moved to Scottsdale then the Chargers move to L.A… That is 2 for 2 in a span of two decades. Maybe I am cursed following an NFL Team.
The cost to keep it operative will be too high to justify past 2018. Something will give. The best option for SDSU is getting a stadium through an MLS expansion. John Moores is one of the possible new MLS franchise owner. I am expecting some news in the next few weeks.
Your question is timely. This just broke out about an hour ago.
I can’t see it being built in such a short period of time. So, the new MLS franchise along with SDSU will have to pay to “keep standing” Jack Murphy stadium. The part about buying the Mission Valley land (where the stadium seats) at a “fair” price means everything in this latest news. You can be sure that this is going to be a hot debate. The problem with the current stadium is that it is in terrible shape. The “re-bar” is beyond repair and the concrete is in some cases separating. Keep in mind that El Nino is only adding salt to injury.
I just got back from a Las Vegas business trip. The locals are very upbeat about the Raiders. I am convinced that the PAC12 will look at the UNLV. If the NFL says yes to Las Vegas it will be because of the “unique” destination. That could help them attract new viewers. Could they think of U of H then? Let’s hope so.
Another article on the San Diego MLS initiative. Looks like it has to be decided in order to get a bid in for 2018.
UNLV would be interesting as it gives the PAC 12 another urban area and a developing one at that. UNLV has been studying UH’s rise in academics to shape their own future. If they can make progress in the next 4-5 years, they’d put themselves in the right place to maybe bring interest from the PAC 12.
That would be good for UH as we need an even number of schools. Our best hope is for the Big 12 to break up and UT and OU to head north or east. The PAC 12 would probably break their silence and look at their options. If we can partner with New Mexico, UNLV, and even Texas Tech, we’d be in good shape to hopefully build a PAC 16.
There is something not quite right in their proposal.
San Diego is a prime destination for the MLS. They should not be any urgency like it is stated from the developers. MLS wants San Diego. It will happen at some point.
The land value is stated to be around $50M. It is probably more like $75 to $100.
Some homes will be built on part of the second Riverwalk G.C.(it closed a while back) Would that new Home Association accept affordable housing next to their new investments? The Coastal commission might balk at a “quick” approval even though environmental studies “cleared” the Chargers stadium proposal.
SDSU averages 30 to 40k/game. Losing 10k seats is a huge deal for a School. You take out the student section and 20/30k seems way too small.
Their 2016 attendance:
DATE OPPONENT W/L SCORE ATTEND
Sep 03, 2016 NEW HAMPSHIRE W 31-0 46486
Sep 10, 2016 CALIFORNIA W 45-40 42473
Sep 17, 2016 at NIU W 42-28 14513
Oct 01, 2016 at South Alabama L 24-42 14741
*Oct 08, 2016 UNLV W 26-7 33296
*Oct 14, 2016 at Fresno State W 17-3 24731
*Oct 21, 2016 SAN JOSE STATE W 42-3 25613
*Oct 28, 2016 at Utah State W 40-13 17332
*Nov 05, 2016 HAWAI’I W 55-0 41644
*Nov 12, 2016 at Nevada W 46-16 16730
*Nov 19, 2016 at Wyoming L 33-34 19112
*Nov 26, 2016 COLORADO STATE L 31-63 34223
Dec 03, 2016 at Wyoming W 27-24 24001
Dec 17, 2016 vs Houston W 34-10 29286
Would it make sense for U of H to play in a 20 to 30k stadium? You know the answer. The same can be said for SDSU pursuing a P5 invite. Moving into a small stadium will be the end of it. It seems to me that if SDSU pays half for the construction they should get more than this. It will be very difficult to expand any stadium after it is built. California laws are insanely complicated.
The NASL is in turmoil and about 15 teams are now applying for an MLS expansion. San Diego will be a prime spot especially with the Xolos in Tijuana (have a 33k soccer specific stadium) John Moores had the inside track until a few months ago. Something happened with the City of San Diego and their proposal. It does not add up. We should know more in the coming weeks.
One thing is for certain. The N.F.L. is in turmoil and could lead to a down run spiral. You compare the MLS rise to the N.F.L. ratings that have gone down for the first time. It is not a coincidence that quite a few N.F.L. owners also own MLS franchises.
Here is a spin from 1090 Sam Diego. Kevin Acee also works for the Union Tribune. He was the Chargers beat reporter. same for Trotter now with ESPN.
The Padres’ lease agreement with the city prohibits football from being played at Petco Park, though Fowler believes that can be changed. He said he thinks Petco Park can hold 40,000-45,000 for football with temporary seating installed. He did not have a cost estimate but said the Padres have already begun talking with Populous, the architectural firm that designed Petco Park, about a possible transformation.
@92010Coogs Looks like there’s issues with the MLS group. Guessing that SDSU pushed back, as you pointed out, on the seating. Edit: Found the press release from SDSU; looks like it has more to do with land and ownership.
I have followed this pretty closely. IMO the FS Investors is a land grab like no other. When you look at the entire proposal it does not look fair. The so called FMV price for the Mission Valley location is way under valued. Keep in mind that I am a huge MLS supporter. I was with the Galaxy when they started & was with USSF until about 2001. My role was pretty much PR but I got the chance to meet the biggest Soccer stars that you could imagine. I also have a pretty unique view about the F.I.F.A. scandal. That is another story.
Regarding SDSU it is pretty simple. They want a 40k seat stadium comparable to what we now have. San Diego is next to Tijuana where the Xolos play. The Xolos now have a 35/40k seat stadium that was converted from a baseball stadium. They are doing great. So why is it that the FS Investors can’t come up with a 35/45k seat stadium? That is the real question. San Diego & San Diego County has the highest soccer ratings in the entire Country. That is no coincidence.
Basically SDSU is trying to make themselves attractive to a P5. Playing in a 20/25 or even 30k seat stadium will keep them at best in the MWC. Their clear intentions is to get into the small12. Do not be surprised if OU leaves in a few years for the small12 to invite SDSU and maybe CSU or Boise State. Unfortunately it looks more and more plausible. For this to happen they need to show that they have “real toys” We have talked many times of the importance of getting into a P5. This is a clear example of it.
Now Faulconer is the same mayor that told some very close friends of mine that the Chargers were not leaving. That they would do a deal. We all know what happened. SDSU is soon to present a new stadium funded by Doug Manchester. He is a local billionaire. He made a fortune in real estate. By the way, he tried to get into a stadium deal to help keep the Chargers. The City refused. Their soon to be released plan is perfectly suited for the MLS. The plan will make room for extending the stadium to an N.F.L. stadium. That is in case an N.F.L. team moves to San Diego. The same City of San Diego along with many local billionaires have tried long and hard to keep the city “small” The airport non-sense is going on now for decades. The public land deals are very questionable. This FS Investors/Soccer City is no different. More is to come in the coming days/weeks.
