Quote:
Originally Posted by polak
I think you're more likely to find a rich bored person in Calgary
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Unfortunately, most of the rich people in Calgary are too busy making money to be that bored.
If you did find such a person, the risk would be that he would get bored with his new toy after a few years and move on to something else. The only thing that makes a team viable long-term is a solid fan base. If this city hasn't got 2,000 people who will buy cheap tickets to lower-division games, it's highly unlikely to have 30,000 who will buy expensive tickets to MLS games.
This is a real danger. I'm old enough to remember the NHL–WHA merger. The Calgary Cowboys were a disaster at the gate – I think after their last season, they had sold only 2,000 season tickets before they folded.
The only reason Jim Pattison wanted to keep the team going was in the hope that the Cowboys would be included in the merger with the NHL, and he could then build a new arena to replace the Corral. But the NHL wanted no part of a team that could not even fill the Corral. Even in 1980, the league was against allowing the Flames to relocate until it became clear there was no way of keeping them in Atlanta. The brass were convinced that Calgary would not support a hockey team.
Fortunately, it turned out that Calgarians will turn out to support anything that gives us a chance to cheer against Edmonton. In a way, it was Pocklington and Gretzky that made the Calgary Flames. I doubt whether they will have that kind of outside help in bringing an MLS club to town. That will require grassroots support.