Argos Looking At BMO Field?

The Globe and Mail is reporting the Argos are looking at moving to BMO field after their Skydome lease runs out.

I don't know if Paul Godfrey is trying to pull a sabotage job on the Argos or not, but this story comes out of nowhere.

It makes no sense to me for the Argos to leave that place, when they're averaging well over 30,000 fans a game. So its obvious there's something going on behind the scenes.

But I still don't understand how Godfrey and Rogers were able to buy back the Skydome for next to nothing, when it costs us taxpayers hundreds of millions?

It galls me that Godfrey, the guy who screwed us taxpayers building this thing, now gets his hands on it for peanuts. And is using it to screw the CFL.

This guy must be dealt with. Nothing he says can be beleived. And he's trying all he can to destroy our league for his own gains.

Luckily he's a complete failure at whatever he does. But he still gets on my nerves whenever I see him talking through both sides of his mouth on TV.

link?

Go to Globeandmail.ca. Or Sportsnet.ca. Or Torontostar.ca

Well, provided that another 10-15k seats can be added, i think this is great news.

My two cents: MLSE has put a ton of money into Toronto FC. They rode out this year's lousy record on novelty, but they're going to need to turn it around on the field to keep fans interested. Since MLSE is rich, they're probably planning on exercising the Designated Player rule, which allows them to sign 1 (2?) talented players that don't count against the cap. Apparently, one of the considerations of these players is the size of stadium. Add to that the volume of ticket sales, and MLSE is looking to expand its stadium.

However, MLSE has already got a huge chunk of money out of the government, and possibly made them look silly with the whole flipping the naming rights for a $17M profit. Public funds may not be forthcoming. Enter the Argos. MLSE and the Argos form a partnership. Along with more private sector dollars, the expansion can be played off as more of a "redesign", to make the stadium more versatile in its accomodations.

A package that involves more private money, beneficial to the CFL and Argos, and more uses for the stadium would be a much easier sell to the politicians.

The Argos get a new home, MLSE gets their expansion. A big wet bite comes out of the taxpayers, but in the end, most people are happy.

Shortly after, London is awarded a CFL franchise... go pikemen.... :wink:

Didnt the Argos just back out of some stadium deal to stay at the Rogers Centre

the stadium deal the argos backed out of was the UOT stadium...and thats because the costs kept going up and up ...had the costs stayed at what they were quoted, the argos would be in a new stadium today.

is this the article this thread is about?:

Toronto Argonauts owners Howard Sokolowski and David Cynamon are investigating the possibility of moving the CFL club to BMO Field, home of Major League Soccer's Toronto FC.

The Argos have played their home games at Rogers Centre since 1989, the year the facility opened.

Cynamon said he and Sokolowski are considering moving the team in an interview posted on Rogers Sportsnet's website yesterday.

"We're starting to look at (moving) as a possibility, but we're really at the early stages," Cynamon said. "First of all, (BMO Field has) only been opened a year or so. We're all assessing the good and bad of the stadium. Second of all, it's not CFL ready, let alone enough seats for our fans. You've got those two hurdles that you have to deal with, which means you couldn't move there tomorrow if you wanted to."

I have been at BMO and although nice to watch, it is on the cheap side and would need major renovations to include adding a minimum 15,000 seats to what is the minimum at 35,000 needed.
I think this is just postering for a future lease by the Argos owners as we have a potential tug of war between MLSE and Rogers. It is the latter apparently that has a right of first purchase on the Argos if the owners would ever sell, which by the way they are also denying.

the argos will never move, these owners all talk and no walk, they talk about moving to u of t, woodbine, york u, exhibition grounds, its all talk, all they do is waste money on has-beens like andre rison, ricky williams, and rj soward.

No one has mentioned the fact (although Cinnamon touched on it in the article), that BMO Stadium is not long enough for the CFL field and would require a major retrofit (let alone expansion) for the Argo's to even think about playing there.

That was the biggest crime of all in that deal...the fact that the tax payers paid for a stadium for a privately-owned team that is only good for 1 sport.

Only in Toronto, only in Ontario, and only MLSE could pull off such a travesty.

Ironic that Halifax can't get a stadium. Quebec City can't get a stadium, and most of the rest of the country has stadiums built piece meal 50 years or more ago. But Toronto gets 1 for a 1st year soccer team.

its a soccer-only facility, thats why they have field turf, so that city of toronto(owners of bmo) can put a temporary bubble roof over the stadium, so it can be used for indoor soccer leagues, the CSA, MLSE, and the city of toronto, dont care about what the argos owners think. Don't you think if they cared about the Argos, they would have brought them onto the project and have them contribute money.

This would be a good idea and then in the playoffs move to Rogers centre.

No Red I am afraid this is not a good idea currently as it stands as it is way too small, needs major retro and like rocket said, the City got sold a bill of goods and bought it hook line and sinker from MLSE.
This idea is a dog with fleas.
You guys in Calgary have the ideal stadium I have been there and it is a jewel.

some soccer game is on tv right now ( sportsnet ) and BMO field is empty.

i knew the honeymoon would only last a season - or in this case, half a season.

"soccers so big in canada" they said....yea right.

I've pointed this out before, but here goes again:

The Argos were all inked to sign on to a new stadium built at York U. THE ARGOS BACKED OUT OF THE DEAL when they got a sweetheart deal from the Rogers Centre. The York U stadium project fell apart, MLSE and the city put their heads together and salvaged BMO Field from the ruins.

If you were MLSE, why would you bother blowing your money making your stadium suitable for the jerks that backed out on you before? At the time, after the Argos made a run for it, what did MLSE and the City of Toronto owe the Argos?

Must not be a Toronto FC game, their games are right close to, if not completely, sold out for the whole year.

It was the Men’s national team vs Costa Rica. The low attendance was due to the CSA not promoting the game. I was at the game and there was about 10K in the stands.

Drummer god… get your head out of your arse. You obviously have no clue since you couldn’t even figure out what teams were playing.

SO let me get this straight, MLSE, one of the richest corporations in the country, gets a 70 million dollar stadium (soccer specific) GIVEN to them by the City of Torono for a 4-tier soccer league, they then get to keep 17 million in naming rights, but the Argos wuld have to pay for any renovations to BMO Field??? How the h*** does that work? Unbelievable!

From the Toronto Sun:

"And while the Argos would have to foot the bill for any renovations, they'd also have to make sure any re-configurations wouldn't take away from the positive soccer experience fans currently enjoy at BMO Field."

MLSE wasn’t given anything - The stadium is owned by the City of Toronto and MLSE is a tenant who purchased the naming rights for $10 million and then sold the rights to BMO for$17 million. They also put a significant amount in for the construction of the stadium. What did the Argos put towards the deal? Nothing, zreo, zip… They backed out of the York U and U of T deals. They backed out of the original National soccer stadium deal at Downsview…leaving the CSA and the City of Toronto on the hook for a stadium to be built in time for the U20 World Cup. MLSE came in with a plan for a MLS franchise and got the ball rolling on the new stadium.
If the Argos want to move in they have to pay for the renovations and expasion… or build their own stadium. MLSE have to do the same and are already planning expansion in the future - at their own expense.

4-tier soocer league - this coming from a CFL fan… While I love the Argos… this is the funniest thing I’ve read in a while.

What sorta lease does Toronto FC have? Anyone know?
I'm not sure what the Argos pay at Skydome....but it was appealing enough to cancel those stadium deals with UofT and York, so it must be decent.
Whatever they could get at BMO would have to warrant reducing attendance by at least 8,000 a game.
I'd rather watch football at BMO, but I'm not going to pay more for it just because it's smaller.