1-Man’s Opinion on Sports-Monday “Chargers-Let Me Count the Ways We Dislike You”
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“Chargers-Let Me Count the Ways We Dislike You”
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It’s been 18-months since Dean Spans and his moving vans transferred the San Diego Chargers to Los Angeles..
You’d think by now the resentment over the move would have left us, those loyal Chargers fans, left behind. But it hasn’t.
As the Bolts prepare for what they think will be a good season, in year two in Los Angeles, they continue to be held with utter disregard in the market, jam packed with so many other franchises.
And the Bolts just continue to make mistakes in what they do up in Los Angeles, the latest being the gaff over the selling of new gear fans can buy and wear to practices, or games, for the upcoming 2018 season.
They ran an ad last week for a new look ‘New Era’ caps, inviting fans to get a sneak preview and place their orders for SAN DIEGO CHARGERS gear for 2018. That’s right, SAN DIEGO CHARGERS gear.
The ad came just days after the LA Times ran a sports column that praised all the off season moves by the LA Rams, saying “the Rams can now be mentioned alongside the Lakers and Dodgers, as one of the three major local sports franchises in LA”
No mention of the Chargers, the owner, his sons, the team, its great quarterback.
Just like last year, when the same LA Times ran a column the day the move to LA was announced, headlined by the comment “you’re not welcome here-no one wants you here”.
Oh count the ways they’ve fouled this up, this move to the second biggest market in the country, where they will pay rent to the Rams owner for playing in his stadium, while having to take out a 650M loan to pay the territorial transfer fee to move into LA.
You remember all their great decisions, pioneered by AG Spanos, President of Business Operations.
Moving to LA and promptly displaying an LA logo with a lightning bolt that looked as if they plagerizied it from the Dodgers logo.
Then there was a second logo, that was here today-gone tomorrow.
There was the introductory press conference, where they hired and dressed actors from central casting as if they were Chargers fans.
There was the fan shouting match as a San Diego fan berated Spanos at his own press conference, infront of Commissioner Roger Goodall.
There was the NFL press conference with Goodall reigning praise on Rams owner Stan Kroenke for his move and the funding for the new Hollywood Park stadium, then mentioning the Chargers-Spanos as an after-thought.
They tried to market the team by working a sponsorship, giving fans an invite to get free tattoos.
There was a free hot dog giveaway, where a few fans showed up along with homeless people.
There was the “Fight for LA” motto everywhere, until the NFL told them to eliminate it. Of course the Rams 11-win season and run to the playoffs pretty much led to a technical knockout in the so call fight for LA.
There was the major flub in the media guide and game program detailing an executive working hard to get a new stadium built in San Diego.
Of course they announced all home games were sold out with season ticket holders buying out the yard, then the revelation they sold a large number of tickets to brokers, who promptly sold them to out of town fans coming to see their team play the Bolts.
The (0-4) start buried the team in another non-playoff season.
Home games became road games because so many out of town fans came to root for the other guy.
The Charges stopped doing pregame introductions of their own star players in their own stadium..
And fSan Diego’s bitter fans rented planes flying banners over the Stub Hub Center mocking the Spanos family and the NFL for allowing the move out of San Diego. The FAA even rejected an attempt by Spanos to cancel the permits that allowed the flights, saying the flights did not violate laws, because the futbol stadium they play in too small to fall under FAA guidelines.
The Chargers had the lowest ‘home market’ television ratings in the NFL for their own home games televised in the Los Angeles market.
Meanwhile in San Diego, ‘hate-watching’ became the thing to do, disenfranchised Bolt fans ignoring the team. In fact TV ratings in San Diego for Chargers games plunged 41% from the final two years they were in San Diego.
It was followed by another failed attempt to to make the playoffs, and the stunning stat, a legendary quarterback like Philip Rivers has just 1-playoff win over his last 11-years.
And now this, 2018 SAN DIEGO CHARGERS gear ad on their website among other places.
It goes on and on doesn’t it?
Just update your scorecard, for all the reasons San Diego fans still dislike Dean Spanos.
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