Sports
Chargers Worth $949 Million, Yet Among NFL's Least Valuable Teams
The Chargers' poor performance makes them worth less than half of the highest-value NFL team. Can you guess that team?
Story written by Field Editor Shauntel Lowe.
The San Diego Chargers are edging towards a billion-dollar valuation —something 72 percent of NFL teams already have — but falling ticket prices, low performance and so-so fan support are keeping the Bolts among the league's lowest valued teams.
"The San Diego Chargers failed to finish above .500 for the third straight year in 2012, and the front office is feeling the impact," according to Forbes magazine's latest NFL valuations report.
The Chargers came in at No. 25 on the list at $949 million, up from $936 million last year but below the $1 billion threshold 23 of the league's 32 teams have crossed.
That means the team would cost less than half of what the top-ranked Dallas Cowboys, valued at $2.3 billion, are worth.
Forbes cited the team's lack of success, poorly attended games and slashed ticket prices in assessing its lower value.
The Chargers are off to a rocky start this season, losing their first preseason game to the Seattle Seahawks 31-10 and suffering injuries to rookie Manti Te'o (foot) and wide receiver Malcolm Floyd (strained knee).
As for California's two other NFL teams, the San Francisco 49ers, fresh off their Super Bowl appearance, came in at No. 10 with a $1.2 billion valuation.
The Oakland Raiders, however, were dead last—not an unfamiliar spot for them, a Chargers fan might point out—as the No. 32 ranked team with a valuation of just $825 million.
The top-five teams:
- Dallas Cowboys: $2.3 billion
- New England Patriots: $1.8 billion
- Washington Redskins: $1.7 billion
- New York Giants: $1.55 billion
- Houston Texans: $1.45 billion
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