It's a sad day to be a Rams fan -- if you live in St. Louis, that is.

NFL owners approved a proposal for the Rams to move from their home of the last 21 years, St. Louis, back to their previous residence in the Los Angeles area. Additionally, the Chargers have the option of joining the Rams in L.A., which they will likely do, in 2016, 2017 or 2018.

"The NFL owners tonight approved the return of the Los Angeles Rams to the market, starting with the 2016 season," NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters.

It's unclear exactly where the Rams will be playing, though. Their new stadium, which will be in Inglewood, won't be ready until the 2019 season, so the team may end up sharing a stadium with the USC Trojans, but no deal has been worked out yet.

This deal leaves the Oakland Raiders out of the loop, meaning the club will remain in Northern California for the time being. Raiders ownership had tried to join the Rams in the move south to L.A., but that proposal failed and instead it will be the Chargers moving north from San Diego.

Unsurprisingly, the people of St. Louis are not taking this well, even though the Rams have been trying openly to leave for several years now. St. Louis mayor Francis Slay had some harsh words for the NFL:

The Chargers have until January 15, 2017, to make their final decision. Owner Dean Spanos was non-committal following this announcement, saying, "This has really been excruciating for everyone. I'm going to look at all our options. … It's very difficult to say right now I'm going to do this or I'm going to do that.”

If they elect not to move, the Raiders can step in. For now though, owner Mark Davis says, “We'll be working really hard to find us a home. … Don't feel bad. We'll get it right.”

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