Former Padres Outfielder Tony Gwynn Jr. Claims San Diego Fans 'Still Hate the Chargers'

The Chargers moved from San Diego to Los Angeles in 2017.

Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

When the Chargers announced they were moving from San Diego to Los Angeles, many fans were livid. After all, the Chargers had spent the majority of their team's history in San Diego. The Chargers were founded in Los Angeles in 1960 as part of the AFL but moved to San Diego the following year in 1961. They played in San Diego through the 2016 season, before moving to Los Angeles.

Chargers Owner Dean Spanos ultimately chose to move north to Los Angeles after he and the city of San Diego could not agree on terms to build a new stadium in the city.

Instead, Spanos and the Chargers joined Los Angeles Rams owner Stan Kroenke to build and now play at SoFi Stadium, the Chargers' and Rams' state-of-the-art facility in Inglewood, CA. The Chargers moved their training facility out of San Diego, and currently practice at their renovated facility, The Bolt, in El Segundo, CA.

Spanos and the Chargers have moved on, but plenty of San Diego fans have not forgotten. Former San Diego Padres outfielder Tony Gwynn Jr., the son of Padres legend and Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, said that fans in San Diego are still unhappy with Spanos' decision to move the team.

“When the Chargers initially left, it took a while…and I think to this day people are still raw about it,” Gwynn said on 97.3 The Fan. “I think, over time, people have softened in terms of shutting football out as a whole and have kind of opened up to it. They still hate the Chargers, and they’re very upset with that organization, but they enjoy talking football. Especially with the emergence of sports betting and fantasy football, everybody is dialed into it.”

The Chargers leaving in 2017 left the San Diego Padres as the lone remaining professional sports team in the city. The Chargers no longer have an NBA team after the San Diego Rockets and San Diego Clippers exited the city, and have never had an NHL team. The Chargers have added two professional soccer teams, the San Diego Wave of the NWSL, and San Diego FC, which will begin play in 2025.

The Padres remain the longstanding sports team in the city of San Diego, and the fans have been loyal to the team. This season, the Padres set a single-season attendance record with over 3.3 million fans showing up to Petco Park.

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