The Galaxy and the Angels "do the best job" out of L.A.'s professional sports teams in "satisfying their fans," according a J.D. Power survey cited by Bill Shaikin of the L.A. TIMES. The Lakers "ranked third, followed in order by the Ducks, Kings, Clippers, Dodgers and Rams." The survey asked more than 9,000 fans to "rate their satisfaction in seven categories: seating area and game experience; security and ushers; leaving the game; arriving at the game; food and beverage; ticket purchase; and souvenirs and merchandise." The Angels "ranked highest in satisfaction with ticketing, and the Angels and Ducks tied for the high rank in satisfaction with souvenirs and merchandise." The Galaxy "led in all other categories." The Rams’ standing as the team that "least satisfied fans reflected 'the horror stories about finding food and water and a jam-packed concourse at the L.A. Memorial Coliseum' in the team’s homecoming season last year." Traffic jams are "common entering and exiting" Dodger Stadium, which opened in '62 and is "scarcely served by public transit." The surveys for the Galaxy and the baseball teams were "conducted in June, and for the other sports in February" (LATIMES.com, 8/16).
LEADING THE CHARGE: In L.A., Bill Plaschke wrote the Chargers "desperately want" L.A. to "like them." They are "branding themselves" not around their Orange County HQ, but "around the entire city." They are also the ones who "started the 'Fight for L.A.' in hopes of winning affection from the Rams." Plaschke: "The Chargers are trying. They’re really, really, really trying." The Chargers' preseason opener on Sunday against the Seahawks drew an announced crowd of 21,054 to StubHub Center, about 6,000 "short of the 27,000 capacity." The optics on this are "awful." The Chargers "needed to the fill the joint" (L.A. TIMES, 8/16). THE RINGER's John Gonzalez wrote, "As the Rams learned last season, it’s tough to get Angelenos to care about stuff." If there was "any buzz a year ago about the first team to return" to L.A., it "died out before anyone around here seemed to notice." Being the second team to "colonize the market can’t be easy -- as evidenced by the meager turnout for the Chargers’ first preseason game at StubHub Center." The "lack of local enthusiasm had to be expected," as L.A. "went from no NFL teams to two teams in a blink." The overall reaction from Angelenos to the Chargers has been "somewhere between muted and indifferent" (THERINGER.com, 8/16).
