Bombers $7-million loss a CFL reality check

Andrew Harris tears downfield for the Bombers in 2016.

So how much money can CFL teams lose and continue to exist?

It seems we are going to find out.

A sizable group of CFL supporters believe the league can survive anything including the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

This sizable grouping, which seems to be loud and passionate on social media channels, believes the CFL will return and roll like it did in 2019 when the COVID-19 pandemic ends and large crowds can go to stadiums again for games.

Those supporters also seem to believe the financial elephant in the room CFL clubs are facing doesn’t exist.

The financial elephant made an appearance on Monday, when the Winnipeg Blue Bombers released their annual report. The community-owned Bombers announced an overall loss of $6,982,217 for 2020.

Of course, the CFL didn’t play any games in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Bombers experienced a $32.3-million decrease in revenue in 2020 compared to 2019.

No events have been held at IG Field since February of 2020, but the Bomber still incurred $3.4-million in expenses for the upkeep of their home stadium.

The Bombers won the Grey Cup in 2019, which was the last time the CFL held a season. For 2019, the Bombers posted a $3.5-million operating profit.

Still, Bombers president and CEO Wade Miller tried to put a positive spin on things.

“When you lose 89 per cent of your revenue, obviously it’s tough,” said Miller in a statement on Monday. “We didn’t play any football and didn’t hold any events at the stadium, so it was challenging.

Chris Streveler (#17) throws a TD pass for the Bombers in 2019.

“I wish we weren’t presenting a loss like this today, but a lot of work was done by our entire team to mitigate that. Our projections last June were for a $9.5-10-million loss. There have been some things which really helped change that – the federal programs that were set up and the unbelievable response from our corporate partners who stepped up and our season ticket members.

“Our fans, partners and stakeholders have stuck with is and rallied behind the team. I’m going to use the Andrew Harris line: ‘They had our back.’”

All CFL fans would love to see Harris, who is the Bombers star local product running back, tear down the field again like he did in the 2019 Grey Cup in Calgary. In that contest, Harris carried the ball 18 times for 134 yards and one touchdown, and he caught five passes for 35 yards and a major score.

Harris was named the game’s most valuable player and most valuable Canadian as the Bombers romped to a 33-12 victory.

Still, the reality is we don’t know when Harris, the Bombers or any of the CFL’s other eight franchises will be on the field again.

While vaccines for COVID-19 are rolling out across Canada, the spread of COVID-19 variants are raising concerns.

On Monday, British Columbia introduced a three-week “circuit breaker” style lockdown to combat variants.

Saskatchewan’s provincial capital city in Regina, which is home to the CFL’s Saskatchewan Roughriders, is dealing with tighter restrictions along with surrounding areas to combat spread of COVID-19 variants. The rest of Saskatchewan is dealing with somewhat lighter restrictions.

Ontario is experiencing more concern due to COVID-19 variants.

On the financial side of things, the Bombers are viewed as arguably the healthiest team in the CFL along with the Roughriders. Miller said the Bombers hit the point where they were debt free this past September for the first time since 1992, but that distinction didn’t last long.

Bombers LB Adam Bighill (#4) studies an offensive look in 2019.

If the Bombers lost close to $7-million in a year the CFL didn’t play, one wonders what the losses will be like for the other CFL clubs.

The Canadian Press had previously reported the CFL’s nine teams are expected to lose a collective $60-to-$80-million for the lost 2020 campaign.

As the Roughriders and the Edmonton Football Club are community owned teams, they will have to publicly disclose their finances for 2020 at some point this year.

The British Columbia Lions, Calgary Stampeders, Hamilton Tigers-Cats, Montreal Alouettes, Ottawa Redblacks and Toronto Argonauts don’t have to publicly disclose their finances, but you can expect them all to be crying for financial help.

If the CFL doesn’t play in 2021 or has a shortened season or plays with limited fan attendance, how much more red ink will be added to the already mounting losses?

 Do private owners keep eating the financial losses?

Do creditors look the other way when it comes to community franchises that own them money?

If a team posted a loss like the Bombers did for 2020 in the late 1980s or early to mid 1990s, there wouldn’t even be discussions about the team folding. The team would fold.

It is safe to say a $7-million loss in the current day is viewed differently than a $7-million loss in 1986.

Ultimately, teams will need money in order to continue operating. Your options at that point are hope governments step in and pay off all the debts that are incurred by the CFL member clubs or you attract new owners or investors.

On March 10, news broke that saw the CFL and XFL reveal they’re poised to begin serious discussions about a potential partnership. The XFL is the spring start up league in the United States that was bought out of bankruptcy in August of 2020 by Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital.

The Bombers celebrate a TD from Kenny Lawler (#89) in 2019.

According to the XFL’s website, RedBird Capital manages US$4-billion in assets.

At the moment, no one else with deep pockets has stepped up to dance with the CFL.

Of course, some diehard supporters of the Canadian version of three-down football say they would rather see the CFL die than form a partnership or possibly merge with the four-down XFL game.

Looking at the financial numbers, the Bombers Grey Cup victory in 2019 might go down as the last game ever played in the CFL unless this partnership is explored.

At the moment, no other options seem to be presenting themselves to keep the CFL alive.

“The Rock” is watching

With 15.1-million followers on Twitter and 226-million followers on Instagram, it would be fair it wonder if Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson paid attention to anyone that didn’t remotely approach his star power.

Canadian football supporters got an indication on Saturday that “The Rock” might be paying more attention than you might think.

Football Canada president Jim Mullin and Winnipeg Blue Bombers fullback Jon Rush sent messages back and forth on Twitter talking about a tweet that speculated what a partnership would look like between the CFL and XFL.

Mullin and Rush were commenting on a tweet from Aaron Geisler, who is the executive director of the Ontario Football Alliance. Geisler said he would be interested in a late winter early spring six to eight game CFL/XFL season and then a traditional eight game CFL season that runs August through November.

Johnson along with Dany Garcia and Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital own the XFL.

Mullin said in a tweet that Johnson wanted games at various times of the year. Rush chimed in that he worried about player safety in that type of scenario and injuries could pile up without an adequate off-season to train.

Along with those concerns, Rush worried about time to fully recover physically along with the prospect of players being able to get second jobs.

Out of nowhere, Johnson sent a tweet to Mullin and Rush saying, “Hi gents, I never said that. We’ll figure out a smart season that’ll create phenomenal opportunities for players and be the best experience for fans. I played ball for years and wrestled 280+ night a year (for years) so I know the value of smart scheduling and recovery.”

While there aren’t a whole lot of specifics of what a partnership between the CFL and XFL would look like or how far those discussions have progressed, it is cool to see Johnson is paying attention to what people in Canada are saying about those talks.

Maier becomes Blades all-time wins leader

Nolan Maier won his 86th career regular season game on Wednesday. 

Nolan Maier moved passed one of the Saskatoon Blades all-time greats to capture one of the franchise’s most prestigious career records.

On Wednesday, Maier made 29 saves to backstop the Blades to a 3-2 victory over the Winnipeg Ice in a WHL regular season contest played in a bubble environment at the Brandt Centre in Regina. Maier also chipped in the offensive side of things picking up an assist on the Blades second goal of the contest scored by veteran star left-winger Kyle Crnkovic.

The victory was the 86^th regular season win of Maier’s career with the Blades and moved him past Tim Cheveldae for the franchise’s all-time record in that department.

Cheveldae collected his 85 career regular season wins playing three seasons for the Blades from 1985 to 1988 before moving on to a lengthy NHL career. He was the Blades goaltending coach from 2013 to 2020.

Maier, who turned 20 in January, joined the Blades shortly after the 2017-18 campaign got underway and quickly cemented himself as one of the WHL’s top netminders. He has appeared in 146 career regular season games with the Blades posting an 86-46-12 record, a 2.94 goals against average, a .902 save percentage and eight shutouts.

Brandon Lisowsky and Colton Dach each netted singles for the Blades, while rearguard Aiden De La Gorgendiere has continued to break out as an offensive-defencemen picking up a pair of assists. In the Blades 10 games this season, De La Gorgendiere has two goals, nine assists and a plus-12 rating in the plus-minus department.

Anderson MacDonald and Connor McClennon replied with singles for the Ice. Zachary Benson picked up assists on both Winnipeg goals.

Gage Alexander turned away 25 shots to pick up the setback in goal for the Ice.

With the win, the Blades improved to 9-0-1 to sit first in the East Division, while the Ice fell to 6-4 to sit third in the East Division in the developmental campaign.

The Blades return to action on Friday, when they take on the Moose Jaw Warriors (8 p.m., 98.3 COOL FM).

86 and counting.

Congrats, @NolanMaier1 👏 pic.twitter.com/yLwX5LUUdR

— Saskatoon Blades (@BladesHockey) April 1, 2021

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Can you smell what the CFL and XFL are cooking?

Panic is unwise as leagues embark on partnership talks

Andrew Harris tears upfield for the Blue Bombers.

“Saskatchewan Roughriders for XFL champions in 2022.”

Just saying that phrase alone is enough to get people in Saskatchewan triggered. Since Wednesday, it seems there are a lot of fans, media members and non-practicing media members across Canada have been in a panic, when it comes to the Canadian version of the game of football.

On Wednesday morning, news broke that saw the CFL and XFL reveal they’re poised to begin serious discussions about a potential partnership. No one on either side would say who initiated the talks.

Both sides said they’ve agreed to collaborate on ways to grow football.

For supporters of Canadian football in circles, this revelation seems to be causing lots of panic attacks.

The CFL is a Canadian institution league that awards professional football’s oldest prize in the Grey Cup to its league champion. The Grey Cup was first awarded in 1909 to the University of Toronto Varsity Blues.

It has been awarded 107 times with the last coming on Nov. 24, 2019 to the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.

The three-down Canadian game has a storied and decorated history.

The XFL is the upstart United States spring time circuit that plays the four-down version of the game. The four-down version of football has obtained mythic status in the United States at the NFL, college and high school levels.

Despite the mythic status, spring football has had various stops and starts in the United States. The XFL existed first for one season in 2001 co-owned by World Wrestling Entertainment and NBC.

The circuit featured numerous gimmicks and the occasional use of WWE personalities on game broadcasts including Jesse Ventura, Jim Ross and Jerry “The King” Lawler.

The championship game was dubbed the Million Dollar Game after the amount of money that would be awarded to the winning team. The Los Angeles Xtreme would win the lone championship in the only season that first version of the XFL played.

Legendary WWE kingpin Vince McMahon rebooted the XFL in 2018 under the ownership of his Alpha Entertainment company, which was run separately from WWE. The league would focus on faster and simpler play compared to the NFL but without gimmicks and entertainment elements from the WWE, which the original incarnation of the XFL had.

The rebooted more football focused XFL kicked off in February of 2020 and played five week collecting some fairly good reviews. The season was ultimately called off after Week 5 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world.

Since the circuit was still a startup business, the league filed for bankruptcy on April 13, 2020. On August 2, 2020, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and longtime business partner and ex-wife, Dany Garcia, led a consortium with Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital to purchase the XFL for US$15-million.

Bo Levi Mitchell fires a pass downfield for the Stampeders.

According to the XFL’s website, RedBird Capital manages US$4-billion in assets.

Plans were put in motion for the XFL to return in 2022. After the announcement surfaced about partnership discussions with the CFL, the XFL put its plans for a 2022 campaign on hold.

Of course, the biggest panic attack for supporters of the CFL are fears that the three-down Canadian game will ultimately cease to exist. The fear in Canada is ultimately there will be a merger between the CFL and XFL resulting in using only United States rules.

The CFL has experienced eras of financial success and financial turmoil. It experienced heights financially in the 1950s and 1960s.

From the late 1980s through the entire 1990s, it seemed the league was in a spot where it was always on death’s door.

The circuit had resurgence in popularity from 2001 to 2014 and experienced relatively good financial times despite the fact the Ottawa Renegades were born and folded after their fourth season of existence in the 2005 campaign.

 Uneasy but not terrible financial times followed after the 2014 campaign as the CFL experienced slow erosion in popularity.

The CFL wasn’t able to get on the field in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Canadian Press reported the CFL’s nine teams are expected to lose a collective $60-to-$80-million for the lost 2020 campaign.

Currently, the eight-team XFL is led by a global star in Johnson. Johnson played defensive line in the NCAA ranks with the University of Miami Hurricanes before attempting to crack the roster of the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders in 1995.

He views Wally Buono, who is the legendary and now retired head coach of both the Stampeders and the British Columbia Lions, as a friend and mentor.

After being cut by the Stampeders, Johnson joined the WWE in 1996 and shot up to stardom as “The Rock.”

He embarked on a successful acting career and partook in various business adventures. He has over 223-million followers on Instagram and over 15-million followers on Twitter.

Johnson is viewed as brilliant. For the last 25 years, all he does is seemly succeed at every challenge he takes on.

While the CFL has a great history, there is a fear in Canada the XFL could dictate how things go in a partnership due to the financial resources Johnson can bring.

At this point in time, there still isn’t a lot of information about how this partnership will unfold. Football supporters in both Canada and the United States have to wait for the partnership to play out a little more before drawing conclusions.

Right now, most reactions seem to be coming from a heightened emotional state.

Roughrider OL Brendon LaBatte (#57) gets set to drill an opponent.

Just from a local standpoint here in Saskatoon, the time hasn’t come to go around asking University of Saskatchewan Huskies football head coach Scott Flory, Saskatoon Hilltops head coach Tom Sargeant, officials from Football Saskatchewan or officials from Saskatoon Minor Football if they fear the end of the Canadian game is at hand.

Some interviews with those individuals and organizations have already happened with regards to the CFL interacting with the XFL.

If anyone is realistic, there is a fair chance the CFL might ultimately not survive the COVID-19 pandemic.

The chances of the CFL getting government money for a bailout are likely not good, because it was dealing with business challenges before the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the world. The COVID-19 pandemic has heightened the CFL’s financial woes.

Partnership with the XFL might be the only way the CFL continues on in whatever version that might be.

CPL enters, Marquis Downs horse racing ends, other notes

Horses round the last corner at Marquis Downs in 2017.

How much does it cost to bring a Canadian Premier League soccer franchise to Saskatoon?

Answer: Saskatchewan’s only licensed horse racing track.

In all honestly, there was likely some sort of franchise fee to bring a CPL team to Saskatoon.

Still, Saskatoon’s sports scene still likely hasn’t processed the shock by the earthquake type of announcements that were made Friday morning.

On Friday morning, the CPL announced it has awarded exclusive rights to Living Sky Sports and Entertainment Incorporated to bring an expansion team to Saskatoon. Alan Simpson, who is a 63-year-old businessman from Regina, is the founder of Living Sky Sports and Entertainment and the leader in the effort to bring a CPL team to Saskatoon.

The deal in principle is contingent on Living Sky Sports and Entertainment building a soccer specific stadium that meets the league standards.

In another bombshell, Living Sky Sports and Entertainment identified the Prairieland Park grounds in Saskatoon as the preferred site of the new stadium.

The plan is to build the new stadium on the spot that is currently occupied by the Marquis Downs horse racing track.

Prairieland Park, which is a non-profit corporation, is on board with this plan and confirmed that horse racing at Marquis Downs had been permanently cancelled. Prairieland Park has moved to the point of entering a memorandum of understanding with Living Sky Sports and Entertainment to make the new soccer facility a reality.

Thoroughbred horse racing had taken place at Marquis Downs for 50 years from 1969 to 2019. The 2020 season was cancelled due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic that has gripped the world, and it was announced in late February the 2021 season would be cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Still, it is safe to say most in Saskatoon’s sports community did not expect all this news

Those in the soccer community are thrilled about these developments.

Those in the horse racing community are dealing with shock, disbelief and the feeling of being blindsided.

Prairieland Park has offered to pay compensation to horse owners in the form of $1,000 for each horse that ran three or more races in 2019. That is not going to do much for horse owners.

In an interview with The Canadian Press, Simpson said Living Sky Sports and Entertainment is looking for a stadium that can accommodate 5,000 to 6,500 to start. CPL commissioner David Clanachan told The Canadian Press the plan for the new soccer venue in Saskatoon would see it capable of expanding to 10,000 to 12,000 in the future.

The hope is to have shovels in the ground in 2022 and the team begins playing in 2023. The CPL currently has eight existing franchises located across Canada.

In an interview with Kevin Mitchell of the Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Prairieland Park CEO Mark Regier said Prairieland Park lost $590,000 on horse racing in 2019, which was the last full season held before the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said Prairieland Park and Living Sky Sports and Entertainment would both contribute to the cost of the new stadium.

Horses run down the front straightaway at Marquis Downs in 2017.

While this wasn’t outright said in any media reports, Prairieland Park would likely be able to use the new stadium to attract more and better outdoor concert shows for its annual exhibition and other moments throughout the spring, summer and fall.

These developments offered a lot to digest. They unfortunately bring an end to thoroughbred horse racing in Saskatchewan, because Marquis Downs is the only license horse racing track in the province.

A lot of people still attended races on Marquis Downs, so you shouldn’t expect the horse racing crowd to quietly go away. They will likely be vocal and do what they can to express their opposition.

As for building a new soccer stadium, questions will be asked if taxpayer money is eventually needed for this project.

People will note that the 5,000 seat Saskatoon Minor Football Field exists on the grounds of the Gordie Howe Sports Complex and the 5,743 seat Griffiths Stadium, which has held over 8,000 spectators, is on the grounds of the University of Saskatchewan campus.

With those two facilities in existence, people will ask if Saskatoon needs another similar capacity sports stadium in the city.

Questions will come up if Saskatoon is getting too saturated with elite level sports teams. Saskatoon and surrounding area has a population of about 300,000.

Elite sports teams that call Saskatoon home include the Saskatchewan Rush lacrosse team, the Saskatchewan Rattlers basketball team, the Saskatoon Blades WHL club, the Saskatoon Hilltops CJFL team, the Saskatoon Valkyries WWCFL team and the 15 varsity teams that are part of the University of Saskatchewan Huskies program.

You also have stock car racing at that takes place at the Wyant Group Raceway, which is an annual stop on the NASCAR Pinty’s Series. You also have the Saskatchewan International Raceway auto sport facility, which is home to drag racing.

We haven’t even gotten into the various national championship competitions that make their way to Saskatoon from various minor sports on an annual basis in normal times.

If taxpayer money is needed for a new soccer stadium, it might be a hard sell for some Saskatoon residents who are already upset with the money spent on the Remai Modern Art Gallery and the proposed cost of a new downtown library.

When the City of Saskatoon committed $3-million in 2017 for the Merlis Belsher Place sports facility to be built on the grounds of the University of Saskatchewan, it was a divisive decision for the citizens of Saskatoon.

There are many residents in Saskatoon who believe local government officials have a spending problem, or local government officials spend money like drunken sailors enjoying leave time.

The voyage to build a new soccer facility in Saskatoon for a CPL team seems destined to hit very rough waters.

• On Friday, the WHL’s board of governors unanimously approved Shaun and Gavin Semple of the Brandt Group of Companies becoming the principle owners of the Regina Pats franchise. The Semples shared ownership in the team Anthony Marquart and Todd Lumbard before buying the latter two out. Shaun Semple becomes the Pats new governor replacing Marquart. Lumbard, who was the Pats alternate governor and president, will remain with the team in an advisory role.
• On Friday, the Portland Winterhawks announced they will be able to play the last 11 of their 12 home games in their abbreviated WHL regular season in Portland, Oregon, at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum, which is their regular home rink. The Winterhawks first official home game is actually being played at ShoWare Center in Kent, Wash., on March 21 against the Spokane Chiefs. The ShoWare Center is the home rink of the Seattle Thunderbirds. The Winterhawks first game against at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum is March 26 against the Everett Silvertips.
• On Saturday, the Saskatoon Blades played in their first WHL regular season in over a year. Skating in the East Division bubble at the Brandt Centre in Regina, the Blades downed the Swift Current Broncos 4-2. Brandon Lisowsky, who is a 16-year-old rookie left-winger, scored his first two career WHL goals for the Blades in the win. The Blades selected Lisowsky in the first round and ninth overall in the 2019 WHL Bantam Draft. Previous to Saturday’s contest, the Blades last regular season game was played on March 10, 2020, when they blanked the Warriors in Moose Jaw 6-0.
•  Of course the WHL was buzzing on Friday when 15-year-old phenom centre Connor Bedard made his regular season debut with the Regina Pats in the Regina bubble. The North Vancouver, B.C., product scored twice with his goals coming 48 seconds apart in a 6-3 setback to the Prince Albert Raiders. He is the first player to be given exceptional player status to play in the WHL. Bedard’s first goal on a coast-to-coast rush was a thing of beauty.

🚨 Here’s the history maker

Connor Bedard’s first in ⁦@TheWHL⁩! pic.twitter.com/Wxh2JPChH9

— Regina Pats (@WHLPats) March 13, 2021

If you have any comments you would like to pass along about this post, feel free to email them to stankssports@gmail.com.

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