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Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
Interesting NC Times interview with Dean Spanos earlier this week..... Spanos -> "We all know what's going on in Los Angeles (in terms of a stadium), but our focus will stay in San Diego until we have no opportunity left." http://www.nctimes.com/sports/football/profession… The Chargers are about as clear as they can be. If they don't get the stadium ballot initiative passed, all signs point to LA.— September 11, 2010 5:12 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
Don, you are correct - some teams, including the Cubs, do sell out in spite of having mediocre teams, that was my point. The Bears sell out in their new stadium as well, and they are a mediocre team. As I've stated earlier, winning percentage doesn't necessarily determine attendance figures. Football teams in Denver, Tennessee, Houston, Carolina, fill their stadiums even though the teams are mediocre. Some of them have new stadiums, some have older stadiums. Whereas the Chargers won the division the past four years, yet won't sell out their home opener this year. Overall, I do agree with you on most of your analysis. It seems to me that the Chargers have been serious about the LA market for years. The only difference you and I have is on the timing of when they might leave.— September 11, 2010 4:42 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
Re: puppydog... Do you even read the posts on this board before replying ? You essentially just made the same point that I made regarding the success of a team being an important factor driving attendance figures - particularly the LA Rams situation in Anaheim. But you cannot use that theory in every case. Some very mediocre football teams sell out year after year, while some playoff teams like the Chargers have trouble filling the stadium during the regular season.— September 11, 2010 1:02 a.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
Don, what is your gut feeling about all of this ? Do you think San Diegans will approve public money for a new stadium ? And do you think the downtown stadium is even a real option at this point ?— September 10, 2010 11:14 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
It's not entirely fair to say LA didn't support the Rams. During much of their time in LA, the Rams averaged between 50-60,000 per game. It wasn't until the last five years in Anaheim when the team was horrible with losing seasons did attendance fall. Even then, the Rams still averaged between 42-50,000 per game, even though there was widespread belief that the Rams were leaving LA. The Raiders were an entirely different situation because they played in a dump located in a ghetto. Yet, the Raiders were able to draw big crowds above 80,000 for playoff games. As an example of how things can change - The St.Louis Cardinals football team averaged under 40,000 per game the final few seasons in St.Louis playing in old Busch stadium. Then only a few years later the Rams moved to St.Louis and drew sellouts in a brand new dome. Same thing will happen to whatever team moves to LA.— September 10, 2010 11 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
During the 2009 season, USC football averaged 84,000 per game, while crosstown rival UCLA averaged 65,000. Both teams play in old stadiums. Even the Clippers average over 16,000, and they are a crappy team that has to compete with the Lakers. Because of the large population base in LA, if a new state of the art football stadium is built, no doubt the stadium will be sold out on a regular basis.— September 10, 2010 7:39 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
Don, you and I might not know if Roski has the investors lined up - but Roski knows, and I'd presume the NFL knows as well. It wouldn't make any sense for Roski to have already spent so much time, effort, and money on this project unless he was confident in his ability to get investors to go along with him on the deal. As Roski has repeatedly stated, the only thing preventing him from breaking ground on the new stadium is the lack of a commitment from a team. And the only thing preventing a team from making a commitment now are the upcoming CBA negotiations. In an earlier post I predicted at least one team, and probably two, would make a commitment to LA in 2012. Two teams, the Chargers and Vikings, look to have a public resolution to their own stadium issues resolved one way or the other in 2012. If either Minneapolis or San Diego rejects public financing for a new stadium, then Roski will have two teams he can work deals with. The Jaguars, Rams, and Bills are teams that might be available as well. As for the Chargers not wanting to give up majority ownership - thats the public stance, who knows for sure what the private stance is. And if there are two teams relocating to LA, Roski could purchase majority interest in one team, and allow the Chargers to keep majority interest in the other. When billions of dollars are at stake, everything is open to negotiation. What surprises me at this late date in the process are the fans who think the Chargers might be bluffing. Fabiani has basically told the public exactly what the Chargers intentions are. They want a new stadium. And I stand by my earlier comment where I predicted that at least one team, and maybe two, will make a commitment to relocate to LA in 2012.— September 10, 2010 5:33 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
re crystalcove: You claim you have the facts, but lets look more closely and see how they measure up to reality. 1) You say no one has a plan - Reality - Roski has a detailed plan. 2) You say no one has a site - Reality - Roski has a site under his control in COI. 3) You say no one has the permits or approvals - Reality - Roski already has the environmental approvals. Roski also has negotiated deals with adjoining cities to avoid costly lawsuits. 4)You say Roski doesn't have the money lined up. Reality - You have no idea who the investors might be, as that is confidential information between Roski and the investors. 5) You say Roski doesn't have a team. Reality - Just after the CBA deal is signed, there could be up to five teams that will be under serious consideration for relocation. You can continue dreaming about the Chargers staying in San Diego with the false impression that they have no other alternatives, but the actual facts don't align with your dreams.— September 10, 2010 2:17 p.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
In response to those who think LA cannot build a stadium because of past failures - It's true that AEG had a proposal 8 years ago to build a new stadium. But to clarify, that proposal didn't fall apart, rather, AEG pulled the plan because the LA Coliseum Commission also had there own plan(and the political muscle). Had AEG stayed the course, they might have been successful, given the fact that they've proven they know what they're doing with the Staples Center project. Now AEG is floating a new plan which they want to incorporate an indoor stadium/convention center that would be a multi-use project. AEG already owns a hotel, which would adjoin the new stadium/convention center and bring in additional revenue to the hotel. Because this project would be a multi-use convention center, as opposed to just a football stadium, the chances of getting public funding would increase. That's why political leaders are listening before giving a flat out "no" to the proposal. As for Roski's proposal - his net worth is estimated to be around 1.5 billion, but that isn't as important as whether or not he has investors lined up to help pay the cost of his $800 million dollar stadium. Roski has given public statements suggesting that he does have investors lined up, and he also claims the NFL is aware of the situation. According to Roski,the problem that has stalled the stadium from going forward is the pending CBA negotiations. Like I stated in an earlier post, NOTHING will be done regarding team relocations until AFTER the CBA deal is finalized. Considering Roski already has the land, already has the environmental reports out of the way, and claims to have investors lined up, it would be foolish for some of you to minimize the real possibility that this deal might become reality just after the CBA is signed. As for the Chargers, if the voters approve funding for a new stadium this discussion becomes a moot point. But the real question is whether or not San Diego will approve funding for a new stadium in this political/economic environment ? And given the fact the the city is in terrible fiscal condition, are the Chargers setting themselves up for defeat at the ballot box ? Which brings us back to the original point here, perhaps Spanos really does dream about moving to LA...— September 10, 2010 1:51 a.m.
Spanos Really Wants L.A., Says Yahoo! Sports
In response to some of your comments - First the easy part - if the Chargers,(or any other team that moves to LA), needs a temporary place to play until a new stadium is built, that would be of the least concern. Even if the Rose Bowl is out of the equation, there's still the coliseum, Dodger stadium, and Anaheim. While none of those locations would be ideal, they're more ideal than continuing to play in San Diego as a lame duck team without fan support. A half empty stadium in San Diego means lost revenue for the Chargers for as long as it takes for the new LA stadium to be completed. Trust me, if the Chargers need a temporary place to play in LA, they will have no problem finding a willing partner.— September 10, 2010 1:12 a.m.