Co-owner pitching a global vision
Like his transatlantic rugby league team, Wolfpack co-owner David Argyle calls Toronto home but spends most of the year away.
The 57-year-old Australian, who works in the mining, energy and agriculture sectors often in emerging markets, travels more than 200 days a year. But while passionate about raising the profile of the Wolfpack, Argyle is happy to stay in the background.
“As soon as the focus becomes on the owners, sports clubs can go sideways,” Argyle said in a rare interview. “The focus should be on the team, the coaches, the fans, the sponsors, the broadcast distribution platform.”
“So it’s really the philosophy that (when) an owner has the attention drawn towards them then I think it’s a distraction from where the real energy should be,” he added.
While still a work in progress, the second-year Wolfpack are poised to make history. Toronto is on the verge of securing promotion to the top-flight Super League after topping the second-tier Betfred Championship during the regular season.
The Wolfpack, third in the playoff standings with a 4-2-0 record, wrap up Super 8s Qualifiers play on Friday at the firstplace Leeds Rhinos (5-1-0).
The Super 8s Qualifiers group the bottom four teams in the elite Super League (Leeds, Hull Kingston Rovers, Salford Red Devils and Widnes Vikings) with the top four in the secondtier Championship (Toronto, London Broncos, Toulouse Olympique and Halifax RLFC).
The top three in the standings will secure automatic places in the Super League while No. 4 faces No. 5 in the so-called Million Pound Game on Oct. 7 to see who joins them.
A win in Leeds and Toronto is assured of at least a place in the Million Pound Game. A loss and the Wolfpack will need help from other teams to keep its promotion hopes alive.
Getting the Wolfpack into Super League is only part of Argyle’s plan. He wants to create a global sports platform for the sport with Toronto as the centre, bringing other events to town.
The team, which currently pays for TV production of home games, says it already reaches 115 million homes around the globe through its broadcast partners.
And what is good for the Wolfpack is good for Toronto and its surrounding attractions, Argyle argues.
Argyle says the Wolfpack attracted a little more than 1,000 British visitors to Toronto last season and an estimated 3,000 this year. Next year, if in Super League, they hope to attract 15,000 tourists to their home games.
The franchise is also bidding to host a Tier 1 international match here — possibly at BMO Field — which could bring another 10,000 visiting fans. The team has somehow managed to turn 9,600-capacity Lamport Stadium into a fun place, with its craft beer and other food and drink stalls.
“I love Lamport, I love it. I love the grittiness,” said Argyle. “Yes, it needs a facelift, but I don’t want to ever leave Lamport. It needs a facelift, but it doesn’t need to be a high-tech stadium. It doesn’t need to have all the frills. In fact I think because of the stadium it adds to the experience.”