With players such as Alworth, Paul Lowe, Keith Lincoln and John Hadl, the high-scoring Chargers won divisional crowns five of the league's first six seasons and the AFL title in 1963 with a 51–10 victory over the Boston Patriots. In addition he set the pro football record of consecutive games with a reception (96) during his career. The early AFL years of the San Diego Chargers were highlighted by the outstanding play of wide receiver Lance "Bambi" Alworth with 543 receptions for 10,266 yards in his 11-AFL/NFL-season career. Their only coach for the ten-year life of the AFL was Sid Gillman, a Hall of Famer who was widely recognized as a great offensive innovator. They played for the whole ten-season existence in the AFL before the upstart league merged with the older NFL. In January 1961 the team announced that a deal was made with San Diego to play in Balboa Stadium in Balboa Park. According to the official website of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Barron Hilton agreed after his general manager, Frank Leahy, picked the Chargers name when he purchased an AFL franchise for Los Angeles: "I liked it because they were yelling ‘charge’ and sounding the bugle at Dodger Stadium and at USC games." Move to San Diego (1961) Īfter the 1960 season, there were rumors that the team was considering moving to San Diego, Atlanta, or Seattle. The Chargers' original owner was hotel heir Barron Hilton, son of Hilton Hotels founder Conrad Hilton. They began AFL play in Los Angeles the following year in 1960. The Chargers were established with seven other American Football League teams in 1959. Main articles: History of the Los Angeles Chargers and San Diego Chargers Barron Hilton era (1960–1965) Sid Gillman years (1960–69) First season in Los Angeles (1960) Īccording to an article listed by Forbes, the Los Angeles Chargers are worth 3.875 billion dollars in August 2022 putting them at number 20 on the list of richest NFL teams. The Chargers have eight players and one coach enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame: wide receiver Lance Alworth (1962–1970), defensive end Fred Dean (1975–1981), quarterback Dan Fouts (1973–1987), head coach and general manager Sid Gillman (1960–1969, 1971), wide receiver Charlie Joiner (1976–1986), offensive lineman Ron Mix (1960–1969), tight end Kellen Winslow (1979–1987), linebacker Junior Seau (1990–2002), and running back LaDainian Tomlinson (2001–2009). In 1994, the Chargers won their first and only AFC championship, and faced the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XXIX, losing 49–26. Since then, the Chargers have made 15 trips to the playoffs and made four appearances in the AFC Championship game. The Chargers won the AFL championship in 1963, and reached the AFL playoffs five times and the AFL Championship game four times before joining the NFL. The team previously played at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum during their first stint in Los Angeles, Balboa Stadium and San Diego Stadium (also known as Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium) while in San Diego, and Dignity Health Sports Park (formerly named StubHub Center) from 2017 to 2019, while SoFi Stadium was under construction. In 2017, the Chargers moved back to Los Angeles after 56 seasons in San Diego, a year after the Rams had moved back to the city after spending 21 seasons (1995–2015) in St. The team joined the NFL as a result of the AFL–NFL merger in 1970. They spent their first season in Los Angeles before relocating to San Diego in 1961 to become the San Diego Chargers. The Chargers were founded in Los Angeles in 1959, and began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). The team plays its home games at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, which it shares with the Los Angeles Rams. The Chargers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The Los Angeles Chargers are a professional American football team based in the Greater Los Angeles area.
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