With attendance tending down in recent years it was only a matter of time so they’ll want to improve the atmosphere and open it up based on demand like BC. Lower bowl capacity 31,000
Season ticket holders in the upper bowl are being offered the same price point.
From what I recall BC lost many when they did the same thing years ago.
Time will tell how this does
Do some people really want to sit half a klick away from the action? Seems to me the upper part of the lower bowl is far enough away. If they get the same pricing as promised I don’t see this as a major thing.
Not to mention the wind can be pretty icy up in the nosebleeds. I’m sure the shelter down low will be welcome
Condensing the audience to create a more intimate setting can’t be a bad thing… right?
It’s also difficult or impossible and expensive to open concessions and washrooms and run security in a large area with relatively few people.
No criticism of what I consider to be an obvious move. If there is a demand they can always open the upper deck or portions of it which I think they said they would do.
They were at one point the class of the CFL.
They have been trending down.
Better to have limited seating and a bigger crowd than having a sparse one.
Short-term yes.
Longer-term, which at the current rate is looking shakier than before, well it does send a bad message with regards to viability of the club.
The empty seats will be covered by tarps, which looks somewhat better on TV, but the illusion is not everlasting.
I don’t see following the example of BC Place as a bad thing. It reduces costs while still providing seating for 31,000. As for tarps I would be surprised. Commonwealth is huge & Edmonton weather would not be kind to tarping.
Sad day for the once mighty franchise. Lead the league in attendance for close to a generation and once boasted 50,000 season ticket holders. Sad day indeed
I was part of those huge season ticket holders, but I was younger then. It was interesting and exciting back then, but these days there is just too much sports and other things
Thanks for sharing. Goes to show just how poor of a job the league as a whole (and in this case the Eskimos) have done string relevant with modern sports fans. As you say there are many more options for sports fans nowadays and the league needs to take a hard look in the mirror, and take some real steps to address the situation
CFL when compared to the hyped NFL, is an acquired taste. NFL is apple pie to Americans. What’s worked is Promotions and maybe events. Edmonton has around 30,000 attendance with a Taylor Swift concert promo in Paris, more of these types of promotions. And tie in Elks games with local events - - close off roads to the stadium to have night markets And close off roads for parties such as Caribbean days, Latin festival, Halloween beer hall, Thanksgiving party, and so forth. In the long past, there were bingos for cars.