Los Angeles went 20 years without an NFL football team. Last year, they didn’t get one but two teams, the Rams and the Chargers. In their second season in LA, the Rams and the Chargers have a combined win-loss record of 14-3 and are both in the top five of the power rankings. I think the Chargers were fools to leave San Diego, where they were beloved by their fans, to go to a city that is indifferent to them at best. Most of their home games have more fans from the opposing team making all of their games effectively road games. This makes their 6-2 record all the more impressive. Last month in New York, I was seated in a bar next to Jerry Jones and Rams owner, Stan Kroenke who among other things were discussing the fate of the Chargers (yes, I was eavesdropping). There is talk that the Chargers may return to San Diego. As a long-time Charger season ticket holder, I let Mr. Jones and Kroenke know that I would gladly take them back. In the meantime, it’s not out of the question that this year’s Super Bowl could be LA versus LA affair making this year’s football season all the stranger.
The NFL markets its brand as well as any enterprise in the world. I heard a comedian once say that the NFL is so popular, it has its own day. NFL football is huge. Each NFL franchise brings in approximately $400M a year in revenue; almost double the annual revenue of NBA teams and 2 ½ times as much as MLB clubs.