By Bob Mackin
The good news is the BC Lions were in the Canadian Football League (CFL) playoffs for the 19th consecutive season; the bad news is the team lost a first-round playoff game on the road for the third straight year.
While the Lions closed Level 4 to create a more intimate atmosphere at home games in 2015, fewer fans showed up. Total regular season attendance at BC Place stadium fell by 50,000 to less than 200,000. The team averaged 21,290 per game, down from 28,011 in 2014. The Lions refuse to release attendance figures, claiming the data is a trade secret.
The Lions launched a TV ad campaign emphasizing the fun to be had for 30-somethings, a strategy to keep the team relevant in competition with its co-tenant, the Vancouver Whitecaps, which boasts the best sporting atmosphere in Vancouver. The stadium’s Edgewater Lounge was rebranded as Club Orange with $45 tickets and a nightclub vibe. Otherwise the range was $38 for end zones on up to $123 for club seats, plus Ticketmaster fees.
Rookie Lions quarterback Jonathon Jennings, a 23-year-old undrafted free agent, dazzled in relief of Travis Lulay. He threw four touchdown passes and caught another in a 46-20 win over the Saskatchewan Roughriders on October 3 in his home starting debut. But even then, the club was criticized for leaving the retractable roof closed on what was arguably the most pleasant Saturday of autumn.
The Lions pay no rent on the first $9 million in net ticket sales, according to their contract with the BC Pavilion Corp. They bring in approximately $4 million a year from the league’s TSN/RDS broadcast deal, which was extended through 2021. The league-imposed salary cap in 2015 was $5.05 million.
“The product on TV is so good,” said Aziz Rajwani of the Langara College School of Management. “If you watch it at home, you’re paying $1.50 to $2 for a good can of beer. You’re paying $9 for that same can of beer at BC Place. Things get pretty expensive.”
Rajwani added that the club needs to have sections for “family-friendly” ticket pricing and must do more to attract female fans.
“Not just market it as a sporting event, but [as] a social event,” he said, pointing to the league’s challenge to find a younger audience.
A poll released before the 2014 Grey Cup, hosted at BC Place, showed younger fans are opting to watch National Football League games.
According to the Angus Reid Institute, Canadians preferred the Super Bowl over the Grey Cup 52% to 48%, but two-thirds of those aged 18 to 34 preferred the Super Bowl, while 61% of the CFL’s hard-core 55-plus following chose Grey Cup as their favourite football championship.
Canada’s aging population could make matters worse if the CFL doesn’t cultivate a younger audience. The 2011 census counted nearly five million people 65 and over, a 27% increase over 2001. During the next 25 years, the “grey” population will double to 10.4 million.
Rookie CFL commissioner Jeffrey Orridge has new ideas announced in time for the Grey Cup. The former CBC Sports executive director is leading the league in expanding its international audience and becoming more technologically hip.
The entire CFL playoffs, including the 103rd Grey Cup in Winnipeg on November 29, are being streamed live on YouTube in territories where the league has no TV deal, the only major exception being China. Otherwise, the TSN/RDS feed is appearing on ESPN2 in the United States, Mexico, Caribbean, South America and South Pacific and BT Sport in the U.K. and Ireland.
It’s the first time a major North American professional league has streamed its playoffs live free on YouTube. As for Twitter (NYSE:TWTR), the CFL has launched a #GreyCup hashtag that displays a tiny icon of the storied trophy.
During Grey Cup weekend, the CFL is partnering with the Ryerson Centre for Cloud and Context-Aware Computing, IBM Canada and Big Data University for SportsHack 2015. Software developers in Vancouver, Halifax and Toronto will be granted access to the CFL statistics database, game footage and website analytics to create new software. A panel will choose the best product for development.
Bell Canada and Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment chairman Larry Tanenbaum will take over ownership of the Toronto Argonauts and move the team out of Rogers Centre, home of the Toronto Blue Jays, and into BMO Field, home of Toronto FC. That leaves David Braley with ownership of the Lions.
The Hamilton auto parts magnate told TSN 1040 earlier this year that he keeps getting offers to buy the club but will entertain proposals only during the off-season. •
