Canadian Football Playoffs
There’s usually supposed to be a murmur in the air when June comes along. 2004 June was complete with the Calgary Flames’ fairytale playoff run that ended in a heartbreaking game seven loss. When the dust settled sport-feverish Calgary sports fans quickly turned their attention to a revamped Calgary Stampeders.
The Canadian Football League team saw complete changes on and off the field. The result? Well the city was abuzz, but does late NHL runs take away from CFL? Obviously, the game seven match of 2006 between Carolina and Edmonton coincided with season opener between the Stamps and the Edmonton Eskimos. This time it hurt, but historically, how have the Stamps and the Flames compared with it come to exposure and city support?
Well let’s take a look at the pros and cons of the both franchises. For starters, despite hockey holding a cornerstone in Canadian society, it is the Stampeders who hold a deep history with the city. The Flames came to the city in 1980 whereas the Stampeders have been here since 1935. A richer history which should give the edge to the Stamps.
Currently the Saddledome, where the Flames play, holds just under 20,000 whereas McMahon holds just under double at about 38,000. That’s double the people (if they all come out) to watch the team play. Point Stamps, but not so fast.
With only 18 regular season games, 9 of which are at home, the Stamps have a season that’s about a quarter of the regular season of 82 games for the Flames (41 at home). Certainly far more opportunity for fans to see the Flames play. (These numbers don’t include playoff games but CFL playoffs are 3 games long whereas the NHL may go 28 games max.) More exposure for the Flames means more sports love.
Perhaps the biggest difference between the teams other than games played is the fact the exposure on TV is significantly different. Of the 18 games for the Stamps, half are played at home, and all home games are generally subject to black-out policies. That means in a given year, 50% of all games aren’t even broadcasted. This does not bode well when trying to capture more fans to come to games. The first 3 games of the 2006 season went like this: game 1 blacked out, bad weather, game seven of Stanley Cup = bad exposure. Game 2 was on air. Game 3 blacked out–you get the idea.
I know the TV deals are different, but let’s compare this to the Flames season. This past 2005-06 season saw almost 76% of games televised (including 5 pay-per-view). This also amounted to zero local blackouts. The new season will see almost all games on TV (not including Bell Center ice but including PPV) .
So what does this all mean? More exposure of the Flames, more money for the Flames, more fans coming to the games for the Flames, and angry Stamps fans, who are probably Flames fans. It’s no secret the organization has to win back the confidence of the fans, the streak of sold out games hasn’t come back since the Feterik years. The CFL should really do something about (and the teams) blackouts. You just can’t get a city going for a team they see 9 times a year (maybe 11) so MORE STAMPS on TV!
Visit the unofficial official Calgary Flames fan forum and picture web site Flamesforum.com. The Calgary flames forum site also include a dedicated Calgary Stampeders fan forum. Join today to start posting.
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Canadian Football Leagues $14.14 Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher’s book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Canadian Football League, Canadian Interuniversity Sport, Maritime Football League, Canadian Junior Football League, Alberta Football League, Quebec Junior Football League, Quebec Rugby Football Union, North American Indoor Football League, Maritime Women’s Football League, Quebec Bantam Football League, Manitoba Rugby Football Union, Quebec Senior Football League, Quebec Juvenile Football League. Excerpt: The Canadian Football League or CFL ( in French) is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of Gridiron football. Its eight teams, which are located in eight cities, are divided into two Conferences of four teams eachEast and West. The league’s 19-week regular season runs from late June to late November; each team plays 18 games with one bye week. Following the regular season, the six teams with the best records (regardless of Conference) compete in the league’s three-week playoffs, which culminate in the late-November Grey Cup championship, the country’s largest annual sports and television event. The CFL was officially founded in 1958. It is the highest level of play in Canadian football, the most popular football league in Canada, and the most popular major sports league in Canada after the National Hockey League. Although ice hockey is Canada’s most popular sport, the CFL has increased the popularity of Canadian football in Quebec and Western Canada. Canadian football is also played at amateur levels (i.e. youth, high school, CJFL, QJFL, CIS and senior leagues such as the Alberta Football League). In Southern Ontario, the CFL is recovering from the bankruptcy that plagued the Toronto and Hamilton teams in the 2003 season. Having come under new ownership, bo… More: |
