Rogers Center AP Photo/Canadian Press, Frank Gunn
With the impressive attendance numbers for the two NFL games held in Toronto at the Roger’s Center many are under the impression that Toronto will get its very own NFL franchise in the near future.
There is an argument to be made that the NFL has a market in Canada. 48,434 fans showed up fro a pre-season game held at the Rogers Center featuring the Buffalo Bills against the Pittsburgh Steelers. In a regular season match up the Bills were able to draw 71,405 fans.
Those numbers seem to indicate that Toronto has a strong interest in NFL style football and that a franchise could prosper there. Of course that brings up the question on which team would move there. Currently there seems to be a few NFL teams in a state of flux including: The Oakland Raiders, Minnesota Vikings, New Orleans Saints, and the Bills themselves.
Los Angles already has plans to build a new NFL stadium in hopes to lure team there. It seems likely that the Raiders, who face an unfriendly specter of new stadium construction in the San Francisco Bay area, are the most likely team to end in the LA area.
The Minnesota Vikings are unlikely to get a publically funded stadium in Minnesota given the current economic harsh times and the amount of money the public is spending to build the Minnesota Twins a new ball park.
If a team is to move to Toronto is probably is not going to be the Bills. In fact a key marketing tool for any NFL team in Toronto would be having the Bills 100 miles away. If the NFL were to place both teams in the AFC East there is a natural rivalry that could be exploited by both teams.
The bet there is fans would travel the 100 miles to attend both division games. Given the strength of the NFL marketing machine is seems highly likely that this would occur.
Comments
the numbers for the nfl games in toronto were terrible, not to mention the fact they gave away 18,000 tickets for the preseason game
Is is interesting to read an article if is is carefully written and is is insightful.
Who cares about the NFL lets bring a UFL team to Madison!
The Bills wouldn't be likely to move to Toronto to create a rivalry? That's quite a stretch. The Bills are already in Toronto on how the team is marketed. When 90 year old Ralph Wilson takes leave of our earthly plane the organization's choice will invairably come to this: North to Toronto, or west to Los Angeles. And since Ted Rogers is waiting in the wings it will most likely be the former. At least the good people of Buffalo will be able to still drive to games.
First of all Ted Rogers is Dead. ( god rest his soul) Most important Currency exchange is in favor of the dollar my 28% 2nd if a NFL team left its home market their can be a fine by the NFL up to 700 million. ( please do not forget that the comis is From Western New York) 3rd no staduim . 4th Math, team cost 700 million/ team gets fined 700 million/ toronto builds new staduim 1 billion total is 2.4billion now let at 28% for currency exchange( WOW) looks like the Bills will stay in Buffalo
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