Let’s hope all parties can work together

Re: CFL

Recently, the commissioner of the CFL Randy Ambrosie testified before a House of Commons Committee requesting up to $150 million to assist the league to survive in the years to come. The league can be said to represent a long standing Canadian cultural tradition. He indicated that 90 per cent of the team revenue is gate generated and there is a possible scenario where there won’t be any games this year. I have heard that each team in the NFL can survive with huge TV revenues and little if no fan attendance. Some say, “Why should we bail out wealthy owners?” In Canada, these so-called wealthy owners are community minded and not likely to enjoy the tremendous franchise capital appreciation of their NFL counterparts. However, unlike the NFL, some teams are community owned and might fold and this would end the CFL. Has the CFL considered replacing lost attendance with “pay per view” for the 2020 season? Obviously revised discussions would have to had with the current TV providers. Perhaps the players’ union could to agree to a percentage salary cut but with some revenue sharing if the league enjoys some financial success. There are many stakeholders who will suffer if the league folds including the fans, players, suppliers, municipalities (facility rental) and all levels of government etc.

Lets hope that all these parties can work together for the survival of a wonderful long standing Canadian tradition.

Bill Moffat, Waterdown