Returning football to the City of Angels

It’s been 20 years since the city of Los Angeles has had their own football team. 20 long years fans have waited, and now, it’s looking like they may finally get their wish.

Three teams are in contention to play in L.A. as early as next season; the San Diego Chargers, the Oakland Raiders and the St. Louis Rams. Many people suspect that the move out west is highly unlikely for any of these three teams. But with the Chargers already filing for relocation and the NFL pushing hard for a shift, it’s believed it’s almost certain there will be a team move in the offseason. The advantages that come with the relocation of an NFL team to L.A. are eye-opening.

So what are the pros? It’s not like any of the franchises listed above have bad fanbases or are desperate for a change. Why is the league and its teams making such an effort to switch?

Let’s start with economics: Los Angeles is the second largest market in the United States. The NFL would have a field day selling merchandise in a city like L.A. and the league would benefit  financially. Not only that, but the potential building of a new stadium would create a monstrous amount of jobs and local businesses would thrive. Fans are realizing this notion too, as 14,000 signatures have been submitted in support of the construction of a $1.7 billion stadium shared between the Chargers and Raiders in Carson, California.  Regardless of whether or not they deserve a new team, one cannot deny that a ludicrous amount of money could be made if the NFL were to grant them a franchise.

Not only is the financial benefit a tremendous factor, but the people of Los Angeles are also absolutely begging for a football team. 

While a team’s relocation to L.A. could be beneficial in many ways, two teams in the city would be excessive. Los Angeles and the entire state of California already have enough sports teams; adding two more right off the bat could be a bit overwhelming for fans. It would be a heart-breaking loss for the team that gets its team relocated (San Diego in particular, as they’ve never won a single major league sports championship), it would be a major gain for the sports fans of L.A. While a new football team would undoubtedly catapult the city into a major traffic-jam, Sundays would be much more exciting with a team of their own on the field–at least for football fans in the area.

But with all the benefits that a move to L.A. would bring, there is one glaring point of evidence that makes team owners just a tad hesitant.

This has been tried before, and if one thing is certain, L.A. couldn’t keep their NFL teams stationary in the past.

Back in the 80’s and 90’s, Los Angeles was home to both the Raiders and the Rams. But unfortunately for the city of Los Angeles, both teams fled and settled in Oakland and Anaheim instead. The Rams would eventually move from Anaheim to St. Louis. Prior to the two teams splitting from L.A, they faced major difficulties selling out their games. The Raiders and Rams struggled to stay relevant, one reason being that L.A.’s fan base lacked the ferocity that cities like New York or Seattle enjoy. The Rams were also unable to build a new stadium which led them to abandon ship and leave Los Angeles for good.

Such a risk isn’t necessary for the NFL, as the league has prospered without a team in Los Angeles and will likely continue to do so. But in the eyes of team owners and general managers across the NFL, L.A. is a gold mine, and the fans certainly seem like they are ready for another chance.

The decade-long debate rages on, but such changes still remain many months away. It’s the middle of the NFL season and such talks are better put to rest for the time being, as fun as they are to argue about.