New CFL boss puts his focus on fans
JEFFREY ORRIDGE
With the CFL regular season about to kickoff Thursday in Montreal with the RedBlacks-Als game, the Star spoke to newly named league commissioner Jeffrey Orridge this week. Here’s an edited transcript:
How have you been preparing?
Today I was doing a feature with TSN (no publicly announced air date) about where I grew up (East Elmhurst, N.Y.) and how I grew up and why sport was such an influence in my life. Sport and education and politics kind of ruled the day in my household. I’m not sure when it will run. One of your goals was to attend as many CFL cities as possible. What are your plans this week?
I will be at the opener in Montreal on Thursday. I will be at Calgary’s home opener on Friday and I will be at Saskatchewan’s home opener on Saturday. Why do you think it’s important for you to get out to these games?
Our customer comes first and we are fan-focused league. In order for me to gain as much knowledge about the market, I’ve got to be in the market, and I’ve got to talk to fans because each stadium and each team is unique. You’ve been on the job only a couple of months. What have you learned?
I think I can better appreciate the energy and the passion CFL fans have for this game. I’ve been stopped so many times by fans at pre-season games wanting to take a picture with me and wanting me to sign something. It’s not because of who I am because I’m nobody. It is because of what I represent. I represent the league and their attachment to the league goes that deep. What are you excited about for the opening of the season?
I’m particularly excited to see the firm rosters now after the pre-season and now that people have gotten more comfortable with the new rules, from the officiating, the coaches, the players, administrators as well as broadcasters. What impact will the new rules have on the game?
With the rule changes, the game has changed to be more offensive and the unpredictability will make an unpredictable game even more unpredictable and more exciting. We know the flow of the game will be increased, there will be more pace to it and more opportunities for scoring. How gratifying was it to have the Argos sold to Bell Canada and the Kilmer Group and to have stability in Toronto before the season?
Their move into BMO Field is much more conducive to this type of sport and the type of energy that’s created by the fans. Providing a first-rate fan experience is paramount to the move, and we’ve got incredible partners, who really know how to do sports in this country. Have you made any concrete decisions on host city for the 2016 Grey Cup and future Grey Cups?
We decide those things one year at a time, and there hasn’t been any public announcement about where it’s going to be in 2016. You say there’s been no public announcement. Has a decision been made internally?
There have been no public announcements on where the Grey Cup will be held in 2016.