OUT OF THE TUNNEL: EXAMINING THE COMMISIONER’S PITCH

BY: RODPEDERSEN.COM STAFF

This Mother’s Day reminded me a little bit of one back in the 1980s. I remember going to my mom asking for a fancy new bike because my old one had been stolen. My pitch to my mom was a little like CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie’s tepid pitch to the Federal government for money to help the league get through the restrictions caused by the COVID-19 outbreak.

The bike I wanted was a 20-speed road bike that was way above what I needed. 

My mom called me out on it. “Why do you need such a bike?” she asked. 

“Are you going to lock this one up? Do you need 20 speeds? And is a $300 bike necessary if a $100 one will do?” she pressed on.

I was dead to rights. 

This felt like Ambrosie’s pitch last week.

He asked for an astronomical amount of money, $30-million for this year and up to $150-million if the season is cancelled and the CFL is affected into 2021.

The questions the MPs involved in the House of Commons Standing Committee on Finance (FINA) asked exposed the many weaknesses in the CFL Commissioner’s argument. 

Much has already been made of the absence of the CFLPA in the proposal which could have been an easy fix. 

The true shocker was the numbers Ambrosie was throwing around. Where are the financial statements to support this need?

Let’s stick to the numbers that shocked FINA, CFL fans and media members alike: the CFL loses $10 to $20-million each year.  

There are three different types of ownerships in the CFL.

The community owned teams: Edmonton, Saskatchewan and Winnipeg. We know the complete financial in’s and out’s of these three teams because, as a community-owned franchise, they must present their statements each year.

There are three teams that are a part of a sports and entertainment group: Toronto (MLSE), Calgary (CSEC) and Ottawa (OSEG). 

Finally, there are three teams with sole ownerships: B.C. (David Braley), Hamilton (Bob Young) and Montreal (Sid Spiegel and Gary Stern). 

So where does the $20-million dollar shortfall come from?

Looking at the three community owned teams’ statements it might be tough to figure out.

In 2018, Saskatchewan had $1.46-million excess revenue over expenses. That was with a home playoff game, so we can assume the 2019 mark will be close to the same. We won’t know for sure until June.

Winnipeg, in 2018, had $2.6-million in operating profit all without a home playoff game. This should be close to the same in 2019 however you need to account for the expense of sending a team to the Grey Cup.

Edmonton did well in 2018 with a $2.8-million net profit. This was buoyed by a successful year hosting the Grey Cup. There are rumblings though, that the Eskimos will take a hit in 2019.

It’s tough to figure out how the three teams that are part of larger sports groups really fare financially. Front offices usually work for multiple teams depending on the season. Many pundits think Ottawa is basically a break-even venture and the same could be said for Calgary. 

As for the Toronto Argonauts, they are the last dog to the bowl in the vast Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment group. Past ownership will say that it’s almost impossible to make a profit or break even in the CFL’s biggest city.

The solo owners are a bit of a mixed bag. Bob Young has the financial stability and support to potentially ride this ebb and flow. The new owners in Montreal need to start to make a dent in their investment. David Braley and the B.C. Lions run very thin and he wants to sell the team but can’t find an appropriate owner. 

No matter what the numbers are, it is commonly known that the CFL is a gate-driven league and even having games without fans would be nearly impossible financially to sustain.

To find the substantial losses in this picture is tough but not impossible. The league’s three biggest markets, Vancouver, Montreal and Toronto, have been in financial peril for years and are having a tough time climbing out of it. 

The league had to pick up the bill in Montreal last season with the vacated ownership by the Wettenhall’s. This in itself would have cost the league well into the millions. 

Randy Ambrosie went before FINA woefully ill-prepared. He needed to be transparent and honest about the needs of the CFL and not tug at heartstrings and playing the “CFL is essential to the fabric of Canada” card.

His presentation seemed disingenuous and may have done more harm than good.

We feel the Feds will ultimately help the CFL. The league has to get all of its ducks in a row and present a solid argument with financial statements from the league and its nine member clubs. What potential losses will look like with a truncated season with fans, without fans, or ultimately what the losses would look like without a season. 

The CFL also needs to have a better relationship with the CFLPA so it looks like a complete team effort across the board.

There will also need to be an agreeable relationship with the provinces and municipalities to help out the teams. Maybe not this year, but in 2021 to get the league up and running again.

What may work against the CFL is if they do receive money, then so would all of the professional and junior sports teams across the country. That would be an interesting precedent to be set.

This can be seen as an opportunity for the league to reset and be open and honest with its fans when it comes to how the league is truly faring. For once being clear and honest in the sharing of their finances and not the mysterious questions of who’s sinking and who’s successful. 

The moral of the story…I got a bike…the $100 one. And it was still pretty awesome. Let’s hope the CFL gets their act together and gets their bike too. But ultimately, it’s up to them to make the most of it.

(RODPEDERSEN.COM STAFF)