LA Chargers Really Want to Help Really Rich People

We know it’s tough to be ultra-rich around here these days, what with impending climate catastrophe, a White House run by a wealthy clown who’s equal parts garish and ghoulish and all those mean people on Twitter, so it’s a good thing the Los Angeles Chargers are stepping up to lend them a hand. On Sept. 12, the team officially launched Chargers LUX, a new “premium membership program” for all the owners of luxury suites at the new Los Angeles Stadium at Hollywood Park in Inglewood, which will open in 2020.

“Los Angeles represents a powerful intersection of entertainment, luxury, sports and business,” said President of Business Operations A.G. Spanos in a Sept. 12 news release from the team. “Our suite owners are at the forefront of these industries, and it’s important for the Chargers to be on the cutting edge as well. Their success is our success, and Chargers LUX is a valuable business tool to help them drive powerful connections, professionally and personally, by providing priceless access to the very best that Los Angeles has to offer.”

According to the NFL franchise that is headquartered in Costa Mesa, Chargers LUX is “unlike anything previously offered in professional sports” that will “connect suite owners to the Los Angeles lifestyle through exclusive access to best-in-class hospitality, business and entertainment benefits year round”–all at no additional cost.

Specifically, Chargers LUX grants suite owners access to:

Spring Place, a “shared workplace and social space” in Beverly Hills that in another era would simply be known as a private club. It includes meeting rooms, a lounge, restaurant, rooftop terrace and other amenities. Membership costs range from $250 a month to $1,250 a month.

Private Suite at LAX, which is pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Members get access to either a shared lounge ($1,200) or a private suite ($2,700) at Los Angeles International Airport, both of which include private terminal access, private TSA screening, private Customs for those traveling internationally, a private car shuttling you to the airport, and other amenities.

Velocity Black, a 24/7/365 “Digital Lifestyle Assistant,” which is basically like having your own private concierge on call at all times. “Get recommendations, book travel, dining, concerts, or trips to fly fighter jets or swim with orca whales,” states the Velocity Black website. “From Coachella to Burning Man. From Rwandan Gorilla Treks to The Northern Lights. Everything is tailored to you, and your tastes.” Membership costs about $2,000 a year, but there’s currently a waiting list for new members.

Chargers LUX may not cost anything, but the luxury suites at the new stadium do come with a pretty steep price tag. Exact prices haven’t really been made public, but in this 2017 story, the LA Times reported that a suite reseller in San Francisco estimated that “the most sought-after suites including both teams [the LA Rams will also play at the stadium] could sell for $1 million a year,” with “lesser suites” going for $300,000 to $600,000.

It’s no surprise that there will be more suites at the new Chargers/Rams stadium in Inglewood than any other NFL stadium, save AT&T Stadium in Dallas. And don’t forget that the Chargers will make big bucks from those in the suites during each game apart from the cost of ownership.

“Assuming the full 275 suites are filled, fans at the new Inglewood stadium would consume about $742,500 of food and drinks per game,” USA Today reported in this 2017 story. “Overall, the suites are expected to generate approximately $56 million in revenue each year.”

In any case, Chargers LUX is quite a package from an owner–the Spanos family, which is worth more than $2 billion–who famously moved the Chargers out of San Diego because the city wouldn’t pay hundreds of millions of dollars to help build the team a new stadium.