Chargers leaving San Diego for Los Angeles

SAN DIEGO (AP) — As angry fans gathered outside to say goodbye to the franchise they've loved for decades, Chargers chairman Dean Spanos announced to his employees that the team is moving to Los Angeles, where it will join the recently relocated Rams to give the nation's second-largest media market two NFL teams for the first time since 1994.

Spanos told his employees this morning the team will relocate for the 2017 season. The team posted a letter today on its Twitter account, which was rebranded as the Los Angeles Chargers.

"San Diego has been our home for 56 years. It will always be part of our identity, and my family and I have nothing but gratitude and appreciation for the support and passion our fans have shared with us over the years. But today, we turn the page and begin an exciting new era as the Los Angeles Chargers," Spanos said in the letter.

The move had been in the works for years, as a long, bitter saga failed to result in a new stadium to replace aging Qualcomm Stadium.

Still, the final blow was hard for some fans to take. While they supported the team itself, many are angry at Spanos for his scorched-earth tactics the last two years.