In the least surprising news of the weekend, it appears that the San Diego Chargers are prepared to announce that they are relocating to Los Angeles.
It’s a move most of us saw coming. The Chargers were given the right to follow the now Los Angeles Rams to Inglewood after a league-wide vote on relocation on Tuesday.
If the Chargers had decided to attempt to make it work in San Diego, the Oakland Raiders could have swept in and joined the Rams in Los Angeles.
Dealing with a one-team Southern California market over the past two-plus decades, it’s highly unlikely that the Chargers would have allowed both the Raiders and Rams to relocate just an hour or so away from their current home stadium.
In being given the right to join the Rams on Tuesday, it became readily apparent that the Chargers would create a two-team Los Angeles market. In reality, it was just a matter of time.
This is a process that really didn’t need to be dragged out — an indication that the Chargers announcement next week will put an end to the entire Los Angeles relocation drama we have seen over the past year plus.
The only question now is when the Chargers will join the Rams in Inglewood. Their relocation can be effective immediately, which would force the team to play at a temporary venue — potentially the Los Angeles Coliseum.
They could also decide to wait until the new stadium complex is built in time for the 2019 season. Though, that seems to make little sense.
Chargers home games this past season were practically road outings for the team. Now that they are set to announce an intent to relocate, it could get pretty embarrassing in San Diego for the next couple seasons. This seems to suggest immediate relocation to Los Angeles would be the way to go.
With this relocation decision set to take hold, the future of the Oakland Raiders is the only thing remaining up for debate. Rumors and suggestions of San Antonio might be premature.
Meanwhile, any possibility of building a new venue in Oakland is still years away. As has been the case over the past quarter century, the Raiders remain in limbo.