Alex Spanos, the owner of the Los Angeles Chargers, has passed away at the age of 95 according to a statement from his family. A cause of death has not officially been announced, although he had said back in 2008 that he was suffering from dementia.
Spanos Family Statement on the Passing of Family Patriarch Alex Spanos » https://t.co/esg3mF76bm pic.twitter.com/A8GHn4Xpjz
— Los Angeles Chargers (@chargers) October 9, 2018
Los Angeles Chargers Owner Alex Spanos Dies
Although Spanos was still the owner at the time of his passing, he had technically not been involved in the operations of the Chargers franchise for years. Back in 1994, he handed off control of operations to his son Dean, who is currently President/Chairman of the franchise; although Dean has since handed off control to his sons as well.
Spanos became the majority owner of the Chargers in 1984 back when they were still in San Diego. Prior to that, he had founded A.G. Spanos Companies in 1960, which became a lucrative apartment/residence building company and even one of the top ones of the nation. As of 2018, his net worth was $2.4 billion. He was also a philanthropist and founded the Chargers Community Foundation, which specialized in community outreach and continues to run to this day even with the football team having moved cities. Given that Spanos was not born into wealth and had to work his way up, his rise to fame remains impressive.
He was the owner when the Chargers made a Super Bowl appearance during the 1994 season; although they lost that big game, it is said in the family statement that “one of his most memorable moments was watching the Chargers beat the Pittsburgh Steelers” in the AFC Championship that year. Although the Chargers have had some success since then, they have never returned to the Super Bowl.
Spanos is survived by four children; Dean (current Chargers president), Michael, Alexis, and Dea, and 15 grandchildren. His wife Faye Spanos had passed away earlier this year as well. According to the family statement, funeral arrangements are yet to be announced.
