The Real Canucklehead

Last comment on relocation finances: Ted Rogers wouldn't have to write a check from his personal account. He regularly finances deals worth more than this - and the banks underwrite it all. He pays the nut out of operational revenue, plus starts earning from an appreciating asset the moment he takes over (if he was to). Again, finances won't dictate how this plays out...

Except that there has been professional football in Toronto for over 100 years, the Argonauts being North America's oldest sports franchise in its original city and with its original name... And if you look at TV ratings for the NFL in the Toronto market, where there is no local team, you'll see it's in the top ten for NFL audience viewership...

The stadium hotel at the Rogers Centre - which by being added stole the space for some 20-30,000 seats - could apparently be ripped out and replaced with seats for a surprisingly small expense, bringing football seating up to about 71,000. The original stadium design, we're told, was always such that the hotel could be in or out... The whole relocation (team purchase, league relocation fee, and stadium renovation costs) could cost as little as $1.7 billion. Given that Ted Rogers acquired the stadium for a few million in the first place, this represents a very affordable model... And given the near parity of the Canadian dollar these days, it must seem a bargain to Rogers compared to what he was looking at even two years ago... Money may well not be the determining factor.