I think one reason that the CFL is seen as an “inferior” or “bush league” product to some… something not comparable to NBA, NHL, or the NFL… is because of the lacklustre VENUES each CFL team plays in.
You look around the CFL, from Ottawa and Hamilton to B.C. and Saskatchewan, and what do you have?
Unimpressive, uncomfortable, cold, 50’s-era venues (stadiums) that are outclassed by most high school football stadiums in the U.S.
You go to an NFL game and what do you see? Comfy seats. Tons of legroom. Luxury suites. Club seats. State-of-the-art HD video screens. First-class bars and restaurants inside the stadium.
You come back to Canada for a CFL game and what do you get? A hard, cold bench without a back and seating so cramped your knees are touching the person next to you. No luxury seating. No HD video displays. No “in-your-seat” food & drink service. No bells and whistles. Stadiums that don’t look much different than they did in the 1950’s.
For the CFL to increase fan support and interest, the only way is for each team to play in a comfortable, modern, world-class stadium. I know it costs money, and I know that if this was the U.S., each team would play in a new stadium- they take sports a lot more seriously down there…
But if the CFL is the best quality of football you’ll see in Canada, the venues should reflect it. And they don’t.
If most US high school stadiums are nicer than CFL stadiums, you're implying than there are hundreds of high school stadiums nicer than CFL stadiums. :roll:
Remember, this isn't really a CFL thing as much as it is a Canada thing where the overemphasis on hockey makes it such that just about every other sport doesn't have a chance for a pro franchise apart from billionaires in Toronto for basketball (Raptors) and baseball (Blue Jays).
The CFL is way ahead of pro baseball and pro basketball in this country, and pro soccer, all those sports would absolutely love to have the CFL problems of aging stadiums and a trophy to play for like the Grey Cup. And even the NHL can't boast as many Canadian teams in that league like the CFL.
The CFL has problems for sure, very, very nice problems I might add! We or some can say the CFL is inferior, what we can't say is the equivalent of the CFL in basketball or baseball is inferior because they don't even exist. And the Stanley Cup is a trophy that rarely ever has CAnadian teams in the final, no party at all in Canada like a Grey Cup except for we see in the Stanley Cup finals a family with their 30 friends in the basement cheering on their son who plays in the hockey hotbed of Carolina or Anaheim, now that my friend is inferior extraordinaire.
And Hamilton/Golden Horseshoe is going to pull out all the strings for the Pan-am 2105 Games, a new stadium or upgraded one somewhere in the Golden Horseshoe. Hamilton knows it messed up big time in this city destroying junior hockey and not keeping IWS, an excellent stadium but just old that needs major upgrading, it now is trying to get back to respectability because if it can't hold a Grey Cup, that looks very, very bad on a city that thinks it's big-time or major, that's what the city councillors here think they are anyways. They've got to prove it it though first.
The stadium issue has been brought up before.
In Canada we don't spend money on stadiums.
The last publicly funded stadium, the Skydome, ruined it for everybody else.
Because Paul Godfrey adn freinds went crazy spending our money, and ended up going way over budget.
Meaning nobody in Candaa will ever again get carte blance when it comes to public money for stadiums,
unless its for an Olympics.
Even in Tranna this is going to be a problem.
Because the Skydome is getting old, yet unless Ted Rogers gets out his wallet, he better hope that thing stands for at least another 100 years.
Because there won't be anymore 25 million dollar rectrable roof stadium deals out there anymore, thats for sure!
The reason for this is obvious: money. The CFL doesn't have anywhere close the market size or corporate sponsors as the NFL. Which I think is fine. I honestly don't mind sitting on a bench or peeing into a trough. It's all part of the experience. Also you make it sound like it is a fixable problem. Not even close. Winnipeg has being trying to get a stadium for years, and even with David Asper footing most of the bill, we are still far from selecting a site let alone starting construction. The CFL may be seen as inferior to some, but only because there is way less money to be spent. Luckily the on-field product doesn't have to suffer because of that. It is the most entertaining football you will find anywhere and if I have to freeze my ass off on a cold metal bench to enjoy it, I think I can deal with that. SO MAN UP
hey great idea!!!!!! let's upgrade all the stadiums to u.s. quality .........then when tickects are $100.00 for the nose bleed sections & no one can afford to go to the games..then the cfl goes down the tubes cos no one can afford the games.......so ya lets do it!!!!!!!!! spend the money make a cfl game "comfortable" to watch......... ????????????????? :thdn: :thdn: :thdn: :thdn: :thdn:
Except most stadiums in the states get public funds or they move their team. Look at what happened tot he sonics. Even the new yankee stadium is getting public funds. GM place, ACC and bell were all built with PRIVATE funds. CFL team makes 1 million max how do you justify spending 50 million to build a new stadium when thats 50 years of profit. Someone has to convince the goverment a new stadium is a good idea.
Maybe to fix problem the goverment could put a little tax on the tickets. Not a huge ammount but mabye 25 or 50 cents on each ticket a flat rate until the goverment gets its money back sort of like a loan. That way people who go to the games can foot the bill and not everyone else. This should not be limited to football games but do it for all events. 25-50 cents is not much but when you're talking about 20,000 people at least i could add up pretty quickly.
The reason for this is obvious: money. The CFL doesn't have anywhere close the market size or corporate sponsors as the NFL.
I think we were comparing U.S. high schools to the CFL here, not the NFL. Someone posted a picture of a new 20,000 high school stadium in Ohio a while back, which would make the Ti-Cats or Als drool with envy. There was also one in Texas which shamed most CFL stadiums. I'm sure there are dozens of others. Many of the CFL stadiums date from the early 1900's, although all have a replay screen, I believe.
Ya but do you realize that where those are built high school football is king? The school boards are usually given no choice BUT to build said stadiums. You want to keep your job you build it or they come after you and won't elect you next time around. Its easy when its a smaller amount of people demanding it and want it when EVERYONE goes to the games.
the cfl is not inferior because of the stadiums. the stadiums are old but reek of tradition. something that is lost when a new stadium is built.
the stadiums we have are an experience unto themselves.
the reason we are seen as inferior is because of the money that we pay our players and also that the game is different from the traditional 4 down american football
we have to love the cfl for what it is. we as canadians have this complex that we are not as good as the USA. I think it's great that we have our own successful professional football league that keeps going year in year out without the help of the USA.
I love both the CFL and the NFL. I personally don't see the CFL as inferior. Our game is better, faster and more exciting. It's all about the product on the field that matters.
We may not have stadiums as nice as some American High Schools. That is too bad but let's face it, CFL doesn't have the money. I take it for what it is. If you love football, hemeroids down to your ankles from the frozen metal bench in november is part of the consequences for watching a Great Football Game Canadian style. Heck, I went to the Stamps - Lions game last weekend and I am a Rider fans. Still enjoyed it.
IWS rocks actually, old but a very functional and excellent facility with great sightlines. Problems, sure, some wooden bench seats have splinters with seat numbers in magic market and not in the best part of town to bring the more affluent there who wouldn't be caught dead to be seen in this part of town. But I love the stadium nevertheless. Hamilton though shouldn't host a GC in this stadium, as much as I love it, it won't do, neither will Hamilton do as a GC city I'm afraid at this point in time, not enough hotel rooms for one main thing.
I've never been to an NFL stadium. Rogers Centre and Olympic Stadium are the biggest I've been too. But I can tell you this, watching the Renegades play in a 30,000 seat stadium was a pleasure because you were never that far from the action on the field! Last year at the Grey Cup, I was 3 rows from the top on the 50 yard line...I was a long way from the action! Bigger isn't always better. :cowboy: