why did the chargers leave san diego

The Chargers left San Diego primarily because the team owner, Dean Spanos, and the city officials could not agree on a deal to build a new stadium. The Chargers had been playing in Qualcomm Stadium, which was aging and in poor condition. The team requested that the public heavily subsidize the construction of a new stadium, but local voters and city officials rejected measures that would increase hotel fees or use taxpayer money to fund it. Although the city later offered to help offset the cost with a proposal to build a stadium in Mission Valley, the Spanos family rejected the offer, viewing it as inadequate. Instead, the owner chose to pay nearly $550 million in NFL relocation fees to move the team to Los Angeles in 2017, where they now share the modern SoFi Stadium with the Los Angeles Rams. The move was a financial decision more than a fan loyalty one, igniting significant disappointment and anger among San Diego fans who lost their NFL team after more than five decades.