Match Day 6 - Charlotte @ TFC - Saturday April 1 7:38pm - Fool If You Think Its Over

[BelfastBoy]

Ironically, Argo fans I have talked to feel that Manning has done 'nothing' for the team - despite the championship win. They are more worried about attendance and marketing though than the team performance and believe somehow that firing Manning will alleviate these problems. TFC has the opposite problem in that the stadium would be full if the team lived up to expectations on the pitch.

[Ultra & Proud]

I suspect MLSE is very aware of what revenue per game is like & how much less it is when the weather is cold. What they may not be aware of is how difficult BMO makes it to find warming food - all their food offerings are summer food. And they do not make warm drinks available easily - numerous reports of only 1 place having hot chocolate.

If they sold a goulash....imagine the $ they would have roped in last night.

If they sold a hot cider mulled wine - imagine.

Even pasta.


EMBRACE the winter...don't fight it.

The 7:38pm thing is here to stay, but creative people could figure out a way to get it to work & for early season games to become a winter festival atmosphere.

This is all around the smartest thing I've read on here in a while. Somebody should forward to the TFC/MLSE HQ people. All the suggestions are good.

I wondered why no pasta since they signed Insigne. Even a cup of soup would work from March to May. They should really develop a Fall/Spring menu and a separate summer menu and actually market it like they used to with food reviews from media and pics on the website.

But that hot cidar suggestion is gold.

[Canary10]

Why can't Apple follow the Premier League example? Have three Saturday time slots - 4:00, 7:30 and 10:00. Can accommodate different time zones and early and summer season climate challenges. Also allow fans to watch more than one game on TV. Also allows the UK and Europe to watch a game in the summer when their leagues are in the close season and people are dying for any soccer to watch.

[Ultra & Proud]

Why can't Apple follow the Premier League example? Have three Saturday time slots - 4:00, 7:30 and 10:00.

Because they don't go to sports events. Climate is always perfect when watching from your office or computer room so what do they care? They barely make crowd noise audible as is so attendance/atmosphere is irrelevant.

[Canary10]

Because they don't go to sports events. Climate is always perfect when watching from your office or computer room so what do they care? They barely make crowd noise audible as is so attendance/atmosphere is irrelevant.

Seems to work for the most successful league on the planet.

Part of the problem with the current approach is virtually every game is at the same time. Need some extra slots so people actually into the league can watch some other games. PL does that really well. Would also have the side benefit of playing day games in places where weather sucks in March. And vice versa where weather sucks in summer. I think Ensco's point somewhere that they are throwing away a whole potential summer European audience is a good one too.

[Ultra & Proud]

Seems to work for the most successful league on the planet.

Part of the problem with the current approach is virtually every game is at the same time. Need some extra slots so people actually into the league can watch some other games. PL does that really well.

I think they figure you can watch any match live or from the start so they beat the system.

[Canary10]

I think they figure you can watch any match live or from the start so they beat the system.

Lol.

[JoesphNdo]

If I were betting money, my money would be on a square that has MB upstairs. Or had that as the goal, anyways,...

I think he is too smart and too ambitious to want to be a mere manager. Managers last a year or two, the guys upstairs always get 5-10 years in a job. John Thorrington or Chris Klein, that's who I would model my career on, if I were MB.

So, previously, I would have bet on him going straight to GM. But that required the afterglow that comes from a good, winning situation.

I think the ship on the whole scheme, whatever it was, may have passed, now that Kilbane fired a torpedo into the whole arrangement.

We need a name for that segment - The Kilbane Kill Shot?

I buy everything you're saying here, but a few things push me still to manager

1 I think MB has a substantial ego (One that has always outstripped his capabilities), fair if you don't as I don't know the man personally so it's mostly a baseless read naturally, but I think he'll a) believe he can absolutely succeed as a manager and b) be attracted to the front and centre glory therein
2 I think this has been the play all along. Bob coming in taking in both roles makes the transition further upstairs very easy, Michael slots in. This may change, for sure, but I definitely believe Bob was appointed with this plan in motion
3 Michael has been the marketing face of the club for a long time now and they like the idea of him being prominent (Or liked? Who knows what Saturday meant, but it is something)
4 Manning has no idea how to build an MLS team, like none. All he knows is somehow we got it right in 2017, and the more you can shove 'hey fans, remember 2017!?' in peoples faces the more you can get them to forget what a failure the team has been every since. We've seen this time and again, with contract extensions on that team going on way beyond reason, trying to re-sign Seba and lots of decisions. Just going with our captain then as a manager to placate fans is ridiculously on brand for him. Ridiculously so. He literally does not know anything else

We'll see, though. You may be right.

Re;Apple TV. I absolutely love the games clumped together, but do fully expect them to shift that time to way earlier next season. For the two reasons that have come up here, the fan experience is really bad in the cold winter cities of which there are many, and to get some European views. Why sign Messi, if they pull off the impossible, and play games at a time no European can watch? It would make no sense

[Canary10]

None of my points are meant to say I disagree with the mulled wine suggestion. 100% need to do that.

[Oldtimer]

Sorry Oldtimer have to disagree on this one. The Argos are a dieing team in a dieing league in a dieing sport. They are a financial sinkhole. TFC may be losing money on a cash flow basis but the value of MLS francises has sky rocketed, whereas the Argos are essentially worthless as an investment. Neither Larry T nor Roger's wanted anything to do with them. They are only worth something to Bell as long as TSN has CFL broadcast rights.

Time and the changing demographics of this country will eventually see the demise of the CFL, at least in Eastern Canada.

I don't disagree at all with you about the CFL dying, at least in Ontario and Quebec. I was just giving MLSE's perspective.

[Oldtimer]

This is a possibly legitimate argument but I have never bought it. The whole argo thing is just a stadium utilization thing. Tanenbaum doesn’t care about them. The franchise value of TFC is 50x the Argos.

I gather you didn't watch the Gray Cup? (I don't watch a lot of gridiron but I usually take in that game). One of the most exciting games in years with a dramatic last minute win by the Argos. Larry T was excited to get the trophy. It's not just the bottom line with him like it is for Bell and Rogers. It was Larry who got MLSE to buy the Argos in the first place. So yeah, Manning probably gets a pass on the TFC side, at least for one more season. Larry is the one who will make the call 100%.

[Fort York Redcoat]

Another year, another Argos and CFL is dying... This is the slowest death ever.

I don't need to punch down on the Argos or the CFL anymore. I don't think there's much debate to be had.

If the Argos got their own even tinier stadium I'd love that for them. Then the rest of the league and Bell can prop up the Centre of the Universe oldest team in NA all they like.

But a piece of me would think it funny if the name was given back to a Toronto rugby team and the CFL team was gifted to Hamilton. Once again splitting the Steel city in half between Tigers and Wildcats.

[R.O.]

Look, I know that this is a TFC Forum and it is fashionable to Hate all things Argos, but as a fan of both (was an Argo fan first as they were around before TFC) and a fan of ALL the major Toronto sports teams. I think this hate (not rivalry) is kinda stupid.

Both serve different markets and demos, plus it is good for Torontonians to have options. I realize that BMO's field gets "beat up" during the summer months, but with the money and tech that MLSE has, that shouldn't be a problem.

The reason that MLSE (re: Bell) keeps and finances The Argos is simple. They bring in TV Ratings. The CFL TV deal is a money maker for TSN and gives them summer programming to put on against the Blue Jays.

Divisional finals TV ratings 2022:

Montreal at Toronto — 629,000
B.C. at Winnipeg — 1,200,000

Average: 914,500
Division finals TV ratings 2021:
Hamilton at Toronto — 846,000
Saskatchewan at Winnipeg — 1,346,000

Average: 1,096,000


2022 Week 13 TV ratings:

Friday
Ottawa at Montreal — 310,400
Sunday
Winnipeg at Saskatchewan — 796,000
Monday
Toronto at Hamilton — 332,300

Edmonton at Calgary — 433,300
Total Week 13 average: 468,000
(These numbers do not include viewership from RDS, TSN’s French-language affiliate, which has averaged approximately 200,000 viewers for Alouettes games in 2022.)
2021 Labour Day Weekend ratings:
Friday
Montreal at Ottawa: 255,800
Sunday
Winnipeg at Saskatchewan: 979,700
Monday
Toronto at Hamilton: 435,900
Edmonton at Calgary: 580,500

Total average: 562,975



Semi-Final Sunday TV ratings 2022:

Hamilton at Montreal — 516,200
Calgary at B.C. — 753,500

Average: 634,850
2021
Montreal at Hamilton — 684,000
Calgary at Saskatchewan — 1,061,000
Average: 872,500



You can clearly see that The Argos bring in the best Eastern Ratings, and without them, they lose a good deal. Plus, they spend like 6-10 million a year on the team, which is one DP contract on TFC.

Owning both teams does not seem to hamstring both Franchises at all.


Also re: Franchise value, TFC benefits from being in a league with the majority of teams are American. American Dollars and Audience are a big thing for value, if the CFL had American Teams their value would be bigger as well.

[Fort York Redcoat]

Amazing. To now be Billy big boots with MLS DP $. It wasn't that long ago that the salaries were a lot closer. And we shouldn't be invoking USA teams in the CFL again. We know that doesn't help the league maintain its cultural status for handouts. How bout dem Montreal Stallions?

[benito]

I sent a note to my ticket rep today about the evening kickoffs in March and April. He said he’s already received a few emails from SSHs and let will share with the league. The schedule is a league decision but the club is aware of the fans viewpoint.

[Hala Hrvatska]

I sent a note to my ticket rep today about the evening kickoffs in March and April. He said he’s already received a few emails from SSHs and let will share with the league. The schedule is a league decision but the club is aware of the fans viewpoint.

Hope it helps....thanks.

Its absolutely ridiculous to have these late March/April starts.

Nothing better than going to the stadium on a warm Sat/Sun afternoon for a game...get there early, have some food/drinks, etc...get home at a reasonable hour also.

[Bushmancan]

Hope it helps....thanks.

Its absolutely ridiculous to have these late March/April starts.

Nothing better than going to the stadium on a warm Sat/Sun afternoon for a game...get there early, have some food/drinks, etc...get home at a reasonable hour also.

OK, rant almost done. Response from my ticket rep... he is a good guy and clearly there is a common company line.

"I do apologize for the scheduling of matches this year. It is something that we understand to be an issue with many fans. We will continue to address these concerns with the league in the hopes of enhancing the game day experience for all of our members. These 7:30pm matches were mainly scheduled due to the Apple TV deal that was newly formed this season. Ultimately, MLSE has very little control over the scheduling of matches. The league has the final say on the date and time of matches."

I responded that I appreciated his work but send this one up, they have a share ownership of MLS Soccer so they are part of the decision, we don't play in Dallas in the summer because it is 108°F so why are we playing at night in the NE in the spring.

Additionally, it would have been so easy to give out hand warmers, or a TFC blanket, or... ??? (thanks Ensco) Anything to share that the club knew that this was not ideal, and they were interested in fans relations. The one i just don't get is the complete lack of preparation at the concessions.

btw... MLS Soccer gave me MLS_faninquiry@mlssoccer.com to send my dissatisfaction there. on the task.... LOL