New Franchise Possibilities - Discussion

Cooooooool welcome to a new expansion thread for a "post-Renegades" CFL...

A good while back I figured that professional football should be:

  1. Expanded at the highest level to many more markets.
  2. Focus on being an employer rather than a cash magnet.

The question is, what Canadian markets would be suitable for football teams?
Consider the following:

A) Size of market - we're not talking about huge metros here...mid-sized is what we're looking for.
B) Possible community support
C) Stadium? (at least 10,000 seats)

If the focus was more on revenue sharing and having a larger league, maybe ....hrm

The old soviet adage, one step backwards to take two steps forwards.

The Okanagan in BC has always been my choice for a new stop.

A) Size of market - we're not talking about huge metros here...mid-sized is what we're looking for.
B) Possible community support
C) Stadium? (at least 10,000 seats)

I think all 3 would be satisfied, they would be more "BC" than the Vancouver Lions are.

I'd think places with 300k people and up. Thats 16 cities. And more than a 10k stadium, dont you need 20k to break even?

I think Saskatoon could support a CFL franchise, they have 200 thou + for population, with Prince Albert and the Battlefords not too far away. More fans would go see a CFL team if it was closer to them.

Problem #1 Hard hat is there is no Stadium in the Okanagan.
Problem #2 is Kelowna and Kamloops are made up with retired old folks like me. I really couldn't picture 40,000 screaming Grey haired old guys with face paint. :wink:

Maybe my Grand children will see an interior team in their life time, I doubt I will.

you need at least 20,000 or 25,000 stadium, I think.

and do I need to post my list again?

I like that, but with a Capulitist Menshevik adage.

and hopfully Ottawa will be back as the Gades in 2007, with new colors.

The only way i can see the CFL expanding is east. I'm sorry everyone in the west, but we're too spread out. it's a fact live with it. Anywhere really in maritimes would be fine with halifax being the best. I can see football going to say thunderbay, or going to another Ontario team. As for Saskatoon getting a team, it would diminuish the rivalry betwen sask and winnipeg and form a new rivalry between regina and the newb team which could be good. but then it leaves no one for winnipeg to fight. I could see a team going to say Victoria, but that would be a longshot. And Kelowna is too small for a franchise to operate smoothly

If Halifax and Moncton had teams (I know its farfetched) it would be the battle of the Maritimes. We’d be the biggest rivals. We’re huge rivals in a lot of sports.

There ya go, make a pitch to Tom Wright

:lol:

I know that would probly be in the far future.

If the sucess of the samon kings is any indication, Victoria could not suport a CFL team. The Kings (ECHL) draw an average of 4K

Well, who even know there was an ECHL anyways? so a CFL market would fair to do better. I had a longer post to this but it somehow got erased, happenes everytime i go on a rant, but basically the CFL can last anywhere if the right marketing is put into place. Now just hold on for a second all you pointing to the Ottawa debacle. Ottawa folded for one reason - Ownership. it had nothing to do with the fan base in ottawa. The team sucks, and the owners were doing nothing to fix it. take for example if you may, Coca Cola. if coke had a problem(not saying it does but hypothetically) and the owners of coke did nothing to fix it, how many ppl would still drink coke/coke products? not a whole lot. Same kind of theory with football in Ottawa. Gliebermans did nothing to keep the fans in ottawa happy and that's why it folded. When the fans aren't happy they stop buying season tickets, therefore stalling the day to day operations. i'm not saying that ottawa isn't a football town, because it still is. if you disagree, look at montreal. The expo's didn't last, but the Lynx the local team is still going. so obviously montreal is still a baseball town. ottawa still has rich university leagues and teams, so that proves it is still a football town. what i'm getting at is any city could be a CFL market, no matter how big, small, round, or square the city is. Look at regina, or hamilton. These aren't places on the map that ppl point at and say, hey i want to take my children to steeltown and watch the ticats, or take my children to regina the city that rhymes with fun(local radio station ad - cracks me up all the time) but we still have cfl teams. that's because the marketing idea is good. In regina we market the crap out of the prairies because that's what we, the fans, can relate to. " Hey i used to live on a farm, maybe i should go to taylor field because in their ad they said something about a farm" not saying that happened, but you get the point. Victoria would be a perfect place for a CFL team, and i'll tell you why. Victoria is a place where alot of ppl go to retire. As you know, the CFL still draws the older crowd out. Long story short, the CFL will prosper where ever it goes, simple as that

Yeah I think a team in saskatoon would be great. I could just imagine a greycup game between Saskatoon and Regina!

Expansion to Saskatoon likely won't happen. Griffiths isn't large enough, and I don't believe the population is enough to sustain two teams. There are only 990,000 in all of Saskatchewan. Northern Saskatchewan is sparsely populated. There are fewer areas north of Saskatoon to draw on than there are closer to Regina.

Well there making Griffiths all nice and stuff for the Vanier Cup. And i know The CFL expanding to saskatoon is far fetched but one can dream.

My CFL Timeline

2007- Ottawa
-stadium talks in Quebec City, Halifax, Windsor(or London)
2008-stadium built/ revamped in 2 locationg
2009-Two new CFL clubs.
2010-12th team is add.

It would be nice though jmo2......the Province would go Football nuts...
It could split the province, into upper n lower .....Saskatchewan...lol..

Although Saskatchewan is CFL mad there is just not enough people in the province to support two franchises. The Riders rely on out of town ticket sales to support the team and a team in Saskatoon would take away from that.

As a Saskatoon Boy and a big Riders fan, i would be very very torn, cuz, Regina sucks, but the riders, I can't say enough good stuff about them aside from, move them to Saskatoon, and put a new franchise in Regina.

Ouch...move the Riders...can't see it..
It would have to be put to a Provincial vote..first..
Take over by the city of Saskatoon.....
Still called theSaskatchewan Roughriders...sorry, Regina..