The calendar may only read June, but football is in the air locally as the San Diego Chargers recently announced plans to participate in the old American Football League’s (AFL) 50th anniversary celebration in 2009. Some of the former Charger greats, including Lance Alworth, Charlie Joiner, Doug Wilkerson and Darren Bennett, along with current quarterback Philip Rivers, were in attendance at the recent announcement. Along with the Legacy Games and other special events the NFL is conducting to mark the anniversary, the Chargers are staging other events to note the team’s history, which began in 1960 as the team represented Los Angeles in the AFL. It would move to San Diego the following year and remain in the AFL until 1970, when the AFL and NFL merged. The team won the AFL championship in 1963. Beginning Aug. 1, fans can vote for the 50 greatest Chargers and the 20 greatest moments in team history. Voting will take place online at www.chargers.com and at the Brigantine family of restaurants. According to team president and La Jolla resident Dean Spanos, the celebration centers on the fans. Spanos said team management and the players want the fans to be an integral piece of the celebration due to their value to the organization. The Legacy Games will be another opportunity for the fans to share in the tradition of the Chargers and the AFL. The Chargers and their AFC Western Division rivals will don throwback uniforms for several of these regular-season games, joining other teams that made up the original AFL. The Chargers will wear their throwbacks in games at Oakland and Kansas City and in a home contest against Denver. The Oakland game will be played on Sept. 14 and marks the season opener. The Raiders will also wear their throwbacks from their 1963 campaign. The Denver contest is at Qualcomm Stadium on Oct. 19. A week later, the Chargers travel to Kansas City, which will dress in its 1962 Dallas Texans uniforms. The franchise was in Dallas before it moved to Kansas City in 1963. San Diego will open pre-season action on Saturday, Aug. 15, when it hosts Seattle at 7 p.m. The Chargers are coming off an 8-8 season that saw them win the AFC West Division title. Adding a little celebration along the way should make the experience all the more enjoyable for the fans in 2009.