CFL IN BATTLE TO AVOID ‘FATAL’ LOSSES
The Canadian Football League, fearful its very existence is imperilled by the COVID-19 pandemic, has made a desperate public plea for financial aid from the federal government.
CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie spoke publicly on Thursday afternoon to members of the Standing Committee on Finance, reiterating a previous ask for an initial $30 million to counter the current cash flow crunch and a further $120 million if the 2020 season is wiped out entirely, which he acknowledged is now the “most likely scenario.”
Training camps and the start of the regular season have already been postponed, and Ambrosie fears the pandemic could affect the CFL’S business beyond this year.
“It’s very challenging to be precise on what additional help we might need because COVID-19 has literally created a world of uncertainty,” Ambrosie told the 12-member committee. “Will we have games this fall? Or no season? What about 2021? Can we pack our stadiums then? Or not?
“One of our most famous
Grey Cup games was called the Fog Bowl because the players couldn’t make out what was in front of them. A friend of mine says we’re all operating in a Fog Bowl right now.
“But we did our best to consider what might be ahead of us. And we estimated that we could need as much as $120 million over the next two years, if the most negative scenarios, all of them, come true.
“But here is our bottom line: we want the support we need to get through this crisis and not a dime more.
“We support the decisions governments have made. But their effect on our business is devastating. We just don’t want it to be fatal. A ban on large gatherings means no revenue, no business, for us. We want to ensure it also does not mean no CFL, for the future.”
Ambrosie was one of eight witnesses assembled to make presentations to the committee during an online panel. The federal government aims to distribute $500 million in aid to arts, culture, sports and charitable organizations struggling to get through the pandemic, funding that is part of an initiative announced April 17 by Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault. The CFL will essentially be vying with media, publishers, festivals, non-profits, arts and cultural organizations for aid.
Ambrosie repeatedly said he didn’t want the CFL to get in line ahead of needy Canadians. However, if the 2020 season is indeed cancelled, the trickle of cash flow into league coffers could become a torrent of repayments flowing back to season ticket buyers and sponsors. That would be devastating for a nine-team league that Ambrosie said already loses $10 million to $20 million in a good year, and lost $20 million last season.
“Our best-case scenario for this year is a drastically truncated season. And our most likely scenario is no season at all. We are currently operating on the money our fans and to a lesser extent our broadcasters and sponsors pay us in advance for games.
“The day is fast approaching when we will have to cancel several games and perhaps the season. And then our fans and partners will have every right to demand their money back. At that moment, our financial crisis will become very real and very big.”
If the effect of COVID -19 is to reduce league revenues to zero, as Ambrosie expects would happen in a cancelled season scenario, leaguewide losses would “quadruple or more.”
The community-owned teams in Saskatchewan, Edmonton and Winnipeg routinely post modest to handsome profits, but franchises in Toronto, Montreal and B.C. suffer significant losses that would only be magnified if gate receipts, which are the acknowledged lifeblood of the league, are diminished or wiped out entirely.
“We survive because of the passion of our fans, the dedication of the volunteers who guide our community-held clubs, and the civic philanthropy of the people who own, and subsidize, our privately held teams,” said Ambrosie.
The TSN TV deal, which was renegotiated last season, brings in an estimated $50 million per year for an 81-game regular season, playoffs and the Grey Cup. That revenue would be cut significantly in a shortened season and entirely if there are no games played at all.
The league has been proactive to a point in managing costs.
CFL head office staff took pay cuts and many team personnel have done the same. Eskimos president Chris Presson said the team will be dipping into a contingency when necessary but that wouldn’t solve the league’s financial problem. The Bombers and Riders also have contingency funds to tap.
But some costs were unavoidable, including significant off-season bonuses paid to some players. When asked how much of the financial aid would flow to players, Ambrosie said that has yet to be worked out. He also said the CFL and CFL Players Association would be meeting Friday afternoon to work on contingencies like that.
Ambrosie also reiterated a pledge to repay the funds.
“We want to earn this money — and pay taxpayers back — by delivering real value through a partnership with government,” he told the committee. “We can share our in-stadium, online and broadcast assets so government can deliver important information. And we can build on our track record of service to the community.”