CBL goes belly up!

[Rodway]

www.slam.ca/Slam030717/bbl_cbl-cp.html

This is why we shouldn't pursue a national soccer leaugue. We just don't have the fan base to for it to be successful.

[DoyleG]

Hard to prosper considering that there are no real rivalries with the league. The product was rushed onto the field and there wasn't the talent to back it up.

Far different than what might affect a Canadian League.

[Krammerhead]

quote:Originally posted by Rodway

www.slam.ca/Slam030717/bbl_cbl-cp.html

This is why we shouldn't pursue a national soccer leaugue. We just don't have the fan base to for it to be successful.


What an ignorant comment.

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison

[Krammerhead]

By the way, I heard that the proposed Canadian tiddlywinks league has gone under before it started.

Surely this proves that a soccer league is not viable in this country!

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison

[Rodway]

Of course my "ignorant" opinion is not based solely on the fact that a baseball league could not survive in Canada. It is simply another example that Canadians live in a Americanized pro sports environment. People care about the NHL, NBA, NFL, MBA.

One of the major reasons for this I suspect is because that's what the media decides to shove down our throats. But also because it is the sport played at its highest caliber. The majority of Canadian soccer fans fellow the EPL rather then the A-league. That's just the canadian culture! I think it would be very hard to get enough Canadians to care about a domestic soccer league in order to make it financially viable.

Oh and thank you Krammerhead for further proving my point. I was not even aware that plans for a domestic tiddlywinks league had been scraped. Just one more example of people not supporting a Canadian product.

[Daniel]

From the moment I saw that the Montréal team was ignorantly called the "Royales" (which is feminine) and had no place to play, I could have told you that this league wouldn't see a second season.

Allez l'Impact!
Allez les Rouges!
Allons Ultras!

[Daniel]

From the moment I saw that the Montréal team was ignorantly called the "Royales" (which is feminine) and had no place to play, I could have told you that this league wouldn't see a second season.

Allez l'Impact!
Allez les Rouges!
Allons Ultras!

[Duane Rollins]

quote:Originally posted by Krammerhead

By the way, I heard that the proposed Canadian tiddlywinks league has gone under before it started.

Surely this proves that a soccer league is not viable in this country!

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison


Whereas its a bit of a non sequitur to suggest that the failure of a baseball league indicates the inability of a national soccer league to be successful, there is a glimmer of truth to the idea.

In Canada, baseball is a much more traditional sport. The potential initial fan base of a baseball team is much greater than that of a soccer team (suggesting anything else is dreaming in Technicolour). I say initially because, although there is a growing number of soccer fans in this country, most, as we all know, know more about The Beckham's and Owen's of the world, than the Stalteri's and deVos's. Although it s possible, that in time, The 'Europoseur' will make the jump to watching domestic soccer, it would not likely happen overnight. Right now, *most* Canadians are far more likely to go watch an amateur baseball game than they are an amateur soccer game, so, IMO, the fan base is bigger.

The baseball league faced the same difficulties that a potential soccer league would. Huge travel, no traditional rivalry between the teams, a difficulty to maintain media attention, etc. If it, a traditional sport, couldn't succeed, it doesn't bode well for a non-traditional sport such as soccer.

I don't think the failure of the CBL means that a national soccer league could never be successful, but it does demonstrate how difficult it is to start any league. It also can't bode well for inspiring confidence in potential investors in a CUSL.

The failure of the CBL is bad news for Canadian soccer. It's been a bad week for Canadian soccer.





I HATE the fact I had to sign up for this forum. HATE. HATE. HATE.

[Duane Rollins]

quote:Originally posted by Krammerhead

By the way, I heard that the proposed Canadian tiddlywinks league has gone under before it started.

Surely this proves that a soccer league is not viable in this country!

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison


Whereas its a bit of a non sequitur to suggest that the failure of a baseball league indicates the inability of a national soccer league to be successful, there is a glimmer of truth to the idea.

In Canada, baseball is a much more traditional sport. The potential initial fan base of a baseball team is much greater than that of a soccer team (suggesting anything else is dreaming in Technicolour). I say initially because, although there is a growing number of soccer fans in this country, most, as we all know, know more about The Beckham's and Owen's of the world, than the Stalteri's and deVos's. Although it s possible, that in time, The 'Europoseur' will make the jump to watching domestic soccer, it would not likely happen overnight. Right now, *most* Canadians are far more likely to go watch an amateur baseball game than they are an amateur soccer game, so, IMO, the fan base is bigger.

The baseball league faced the same difficulties that a potential soccer league would. Huge travel, no traditional rivalry between the teams, a difficulty to maintain media attention, etc. If it, a traditional sport, couldn't succeed, it doesn't bode well for a non-traditional sport such as soccer.

I don't think the failure of the CBL means that a national soccer league could never be successful, but it does demonstrate how difficult it is to start any league. It also can't bode well for inspiring confidence in potential investors in a CUSL.

The failure of the CBL is bad news for Canadian soccer. It's been a bad week for Canadian soccer.





I HATE the fact I had to sign up for this forum. HATE. HATE. HATE.

[DoyleG]

Baseball is still alive. It's fans have moved away from major ball towards the minor leagues and independant leagues.

The CBL was a victim of bad planning and execution. There's a lot a Canadian soccer league can learn from.

[Glenn]

I've got to agree with Doyle on this one -- starting a men's team with a feminine name (did no one in the Montreal franchiase actually speak French?) and without a home field screams that the league was rushed into play.

Also, where did they think they would get AA/AAA players for $14,000 a year? There's no shortage of minor league teams in the northern US and Canada, and I'm sure they can offer real salaries to the players.

I think that the CBL experience argues for very careful planning if there's to be a new soccer league. As Doyle pointed out, there's a growing gulf between the superstar sports, where players earn millions upon millions, and the fans who can barely afford to see their teams play anymore. If a Canadian league (or even the A-League teams) play their cards right, they can cash in on this.

Glenn

[coppercanuck]

The CBL has proved to me that the only way a new league in Canada (baseball, soccer or otherwise) will have to start quietly and build. the CBL tried the flashy adverts and national TV package but it didn't seem to matter.

Canadian Soccer needs to keep pumping teams into the USL system. Why? I think it has become the most stable option. Yes, Yes I know all about the turn over of teams and ownership problems that some teams seem to go through more than once. Currently I don't think there is a better option.

I would love to see a new CSL but there will always be the issue of getting fans to watch. Currently there are not enough watching to gain that momentum. Yes, yes, I know there are more than last year and I agree it is getting better but we're not there yet.

Montreal, Vancouver and to some extent Toronto have proven to be more valuable to the USL than the USL to the teams. Without them you take away an average of about 13,500 fans per game away from a league average that sits at abot 3,100. Significant? I think so.

Calgary will survive. The USL and Edmonton need Calgary to survive. With Edmonton on board that "Battle of Alberta" will be born again. With talk in Ottawa and Hamilton of joing the A-League how much longer until this years test markets of Saskatoon and Quebec are buzzing. Even if Winnipeg goes the PDL route, it might not take long before they pull a Calgary of their own; jumping to the A-League and leaving a reserve side in the PDL. Thunder Bay has been quietly plugging along taking the much talked about Des Moines Menace to the last weekend of the season and splitting the season series 2-2 with 7 goals apiece. The Abbotsford Rangers will hopefully be playing a full season next year as I believe they stepped up to the plate when Calgary's prospects team went down.

Is the state of Canadian club soccer so terrible? Aside from the blip in Calgary, I think things are on the move up. Now if we can just get that Montreal v. Vancouver A-League final......sweet!:D

-----------------------
aka JTPenney
"We love peace. We use our might to make the world a more peaceful place." George W. Bush

[DoyleG]

Coppercanuck,

The ads do work as long as people have continuous infomation. The CBL waited till the last minute to release the schedules and the rosters.

The CBL can work if it has the proper people in charge. In this case, it did not.

[Krammerhead]

Man everybody keeps telling me that baseball is much more a traditional sport here than soccer. I must have ****ing dreamt about the success of the NASL here in Vancouver. I must have imagined 100000+ here for the soccerbowl parade when the Whitecaps returned from New York in '79. I forgot that soccer is actually a new sport that was introduced into Canada in late 1990's.

Also yes, the failure of a crappy baseball league that had no real business plan (or else they'd at least survived to play a full year) really does indicate the interest and success of a soccer league.

Forgive my ignorance please.

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison

[DoyleG]

quote:Originally posted by Krammerhead

Man everybody keeps telling me that baseball is much more a traditional sport here than soccer. I must have ****ing dreamt about the success of the NASL here in Vancouver. I must have imagined 100000+ here for the soccerbowl parade when the Whitecaps returned from New York in '79. I forgot that soccer is actually a new sport that was introduced into Canada in late 1990's.

Also yes, the failure of a crappy baseball league that had no real business plan (or else they'd at least survived to play a full year) really does indicate the interest and success of a soccer league.

Forgive my ignorance please.

"As nothing in this life that I've been trying
could equal or surpass the art of dying"-George Harrison


Your just paranoid.