The move to Los Angeles was always about money for the Chargers organization, but they’ve having a bit of trouble actually finding that revenue.
According to ESPN’s Seth Wickersham, the team has struggled to sell personal seat licences and is expected to cut its revenue goals by nearly 65 percent. NFL owners and executives are privately growing concerned.
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
From the beginning, it’s been clear a move to Los Angeles wasn’t a guaranteed success for the franchise. And that’s certainly the case.
In their first season at StubHub Center, the Chargers needed to cover seats in a stadium with a capacity of 27,000. This year, San Francisco 49ers fans flooded the venue and seemed to have a strong majority of the seats.
The Chargers simply aren’t a big draw in LA, and the shortage of PSLs being sold only reflects the initial worries.
Greed is a powerful thing. Maybe San Diego will take the Chargers back.