Quote:
Originally Posted by Pliddy
We lost the Cannons because nobody wanted to spend money on a stadium, now there is people here who want to ride the Stampeders out of town because, having a football stadium is a waste of time and now we have the oldest arena in the NHL. Are we a world class city of over a million people or are we some dirt road frontier village, where you only stop for gas and stare at the inbred locals. Chew on this Calgary, both Edmonton and Winnipeg, the left and right armpit of North America, have facilities that blow ours out of the water. Thank God we have the U of C or we would be in same category as Toledo, or even Hamilton...oh that's right even Hamilton has a new stadium
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I really think we need a moratorium on the use of the phrase "world class city". Calgary will never be a world class city, not when for tourists it's primarily a gateway to Banff and Canmore and the mountains. But it's a fun buzzword to try and convince people we have to spend money on a facility that will get used 9-12 times a year by a minor league (cause when you think world class, you think CFL....). Ironically Canada's only undisputed world class city is the worst CFL market, no one cares and even at BMO Field they still won't care that much. Argos are behind the Leafs, Raps, Jays and TFC in the Toronto pecking order (probably the Marlies too). If the Argos left or folded, Toronto would still be a world class city. Yet Calgary needs a new CFL stadium to be considered in the "world class city" argument. Gotcha.
HotHotHeat really nailed it, but investing in the CFL is a poor investment. The younger generation prefers the NFL by a significant margin. 10-15 years from now the CFL could be irrelevant as a live sport, especially since live football is right there with baseball as the worst sport to watch live. Even the NFL has had to relax the blackout rules because live football isn't worth it compared to watching at home.
And don't worry we're getting the arena, so soon enough you'll have the chance to pay 40% more for tickets and 60% more for beer and concessions to (maybe, if designed right) spend 3 fewer minutes in line, all for the exact same live in-game experience. Cause you know that's really what being a "world class city" is all about, paying way more for like a 3% improvement in the experience.