Keeping the dream alive...
very interesting article.
i just hope that the league takes its time and makes the right choice for expansion.
Great stuff. The problem though I think is that the CFL model isn't well articulated enough to know how to have a team in say a large city like Toronto, Montreal and then a very small city like Moncton. This 25,000 seat number I keep hearing that is thrown around to me is no model, I want to see exactly what the CFL sees itself as before I would put money into the league, more than just a 25,000 number which again to me is more or less meaningless and doesn't have much value without more description and details.
Earl you are right, however the recent model and with the SMS continously increasing with the positive finances from the league, I keep reading and hearing how the minimum break even mark is 28,000.
The league would therefore be foolish to allow as would any prospective new city to even consider a stadium of less then 30,000.
It all comes down to a rich owner who is willing to pay a $4m expansion fee and put up with big losses over the first few years. A Corporate community that will buy in and a population that is willing to spend money on season tickets.
Moncton, Halifax or Quebec doesn't meet any of the above.
Moncton, Halifax or Quebec doesn't meet any of the above.What makes you think these places don't meet any of the above. There is plenty of people out there with the money to put up for the team. Fan support wouldn't be difficult, Laval gets 16,000 a game I am sure there are CFL fans in that mix. And as for Moncton and Halifax it's not as competitive there for corporate dollars like here because we have so many options in the Leafs, Raptors, Jays, Argos....
I think the best thing for the Argos/CFL to do would be to get out of downtown Toronto with all the other teams there and get into a GTA suburb with a new 25,000 seat stadium where the Argos "would rule" so to speak, and with the stadium being used for other stuff like soccer. Maybe get back to the York and Vaughn proposal from a few years back. And then concentrate on expansion.
These 3 cities likely do meet the criteria. There are only 9 home games so you don’t have to be wealthy to get seasons tix even. The corporate communities n these 3 cities are very healthy and would probably welcome the opportunity to spend advertising dollars in a national market. Finally, $4 million isn’t much for 2 or 3 rich, sports-minded guys to buy a pro franchise.
I think it’s do-able.
An Argo-Cat fan
Like I said the 3 cities don’t meet the criteria.
Where are the rich guys who are willing to lose a lot of money in these cities?
Wouldn’t they have come forward by now?
No potential corporate sponsorship in these cities either.
In Ottawa you have a group that came forward and said we are willing to put up the money for a franchise, we will work with the city to re-build a stadium and put money towards it.
I don't think it would be fair for Moncton to get a franchise before Hamilton does.
Ouch...
Wouldn't they have come forward by now? No potential corporate sponsorship in these cities either.As for the owners, who's going to buy a team with no stadium. Takes one to get the other, which is seems each of these cities are working at this now. I believe in 1984 Halifax had a bought a franchise and had to back out because they lost funding for the stadium. Obviously your not up-to-date on some of the east coast companies out there. McCain, Irving, Sobey's, Clearwater, Highliner, Cavendish, NS Power. I bet there would be more support than in Hamilton right now.
We just got back from a week vacation, arriving in Halifax and touring mainly the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton. Just gorgeous there, did some great hiking. It would be great to have a CFL team in what I consider the most beautiful, or top 3 at least, areas of Canada, and the people are very friendly, the best. But if it doesn't make financial sense to have a CFL team there, well, what can you do I guess.
Of course everyone knows about McCain, Irving, Sobeys but they wouldn’t spend their money on sports franchises.
As for owners not stepping forward because there is no stadium - what about Melnyk in Ottawa. He wants an MLS franchise and he’s going to build a stadium to land one.
There’s also the Hunt group in Ottawa that wants to bring a CFL franchise to Ottawa.
There are no potential owners stepping up or showing any interest in CFL in Moncton, Halifax or Quebec.
Of course everyone knows about McCain, Irving, Sobeys but they wouldn't spend their money on sports franchisesLast time I looked Irving owns the Moncton Wildcats (QMJHL) and are doing a pretty good job with them. :wink: But I would like to see a team back in Ottawa also. :thup:
The wealthiest people's names probably aren't even known to the general public. Who'd heard of the Argo owners until they bought the team? Who'd heard of Bob Young before he bought this team? Besides, it doesn't even have to be local money. Hamiltonian Braley owns the Lions!! If the talks about an expansion team in the east ever reached the serious stage, I'm pretty sure people would step forward.
An Argo-Cat fan
The biggest (only?) obstacle to the CFL in Quebec/Halifax/Moncton is the lack of a stadium.
If there was a stadium, I’m sure that there is someone who would take a chance on a CFL team in any/all of those locations.
But once you add a $100 million stadium onto the $6 million expansion fee and the potential of millions of losses, it is impossible. Even if a potential owner only has to fund 20% of the new stadium, it turns into a $26 million “investment” instead of $6 million “investment”.
It’ll be hard enough to find someone willing to put $6 million into an (at best) break-even venture. Finding someone willing to part with $26 million is almost impossible.
IMO, once a stadium exists everything else will fall into place fairly quickly.
I think though some of you may be mistaken about the franchise fee for the next team.
I heard Ottawa is between $6M-8M and after that it will and rightfully so be a minimum $10M.
seriously what players would wanna go to Moncton? the CFL has enough issues getting yanks to go play in places in winnipeg and regina, why would a guy from the south wanna go all the way out there, there are even Canadian guys that probably wouldn’t wanna play there. Also where are they gonna find the talent to play there and Ottawa, I look at Hamilton’s roster, and see alot of scrubs that other pro teams don’t want, the argos roster is full of over-the-hill players, let’s keep it real folks, expansion will destroy the league more than bills, lets keep it real, will 2 more teams actually last more than 5 years, enough of the daydreaming and back to reality. The CFL keeps hyping up how they are the oldest league, and hold all this prestige, but this is a league full of finincial mess and negative ownership.
No disrespect to Moncton but I agree touchdown69 with what you say about Americans not wanting to go there. That being said, for me, I'd play on the east coast of Canada in a minute, I think it's the most beautiful part of this great country of ours.
touchdown69, if the Canadian dollar falls too much, speaking of financial mess watch out for some Canadian NHL teams, that could be alot worse than the CFL. Also what do you mean "hold all the prestige"? I think what they are saying is that the CFL is worthy of respect in the fact of what it is, but I've never heard them say they are the only pro teams in whatever sport in Canada to hold all the prestige. Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you're saying here, I don't know?