major announcement - big changes to cfl playoff and season start

[jets4life]

Need to go back to a time before cable when we only had 3 channels on TV, early to mid 70's would have seen peak attendance for Argos, Als and the Esks.  Free trade kicked down the door to American culture.

Peak attendance for the Alouettes and Argos peaked in the late 70s. Eskimo attendance peaked in 1983.

We have to keep in mind that Montreal did not play in Olympic Stadium until 1977 (first full year), and Edmonton did not play in Commonwealth stadium until 1978, and even then, the stadium was not full expanded, which would occur in the early 80s, at 60,000. Toronto peaked in the late 70s.

In the first half of the 70s, Edmonton and Montreal did not have the capacity to draw huge crowds.

Montreal peaked in 1977 (59,525/game)
Toronto peaked in 1976 (47,356/game)
Edmonton peaked in 1982 (57,901/game)
BC peaked in 1986 (46,638/game)
Winnipeg peaked in 2025 (32,343/game)
Saskatchewan peaked in 2013 (37,503/game)
Calgary peaked in 2009 (36,502/game)
Ottawa peaked in 1975 (28,104/game)
Hamilton peaked in 2005 (28.002/game)

[jets4life]

West



East




League avg attendance:

[bomber beetle]

I would say the CFL was in it's heyday period prior to 1980.
In the 50's and 60's, almost every football fan in Canada was a CFL fan.
That started shifting to the NFL, maybe in the late 70's?
Now there are more NFL fans than CFL fans in this country and the gap continues to grow.
That is the big problem that needs to be solved...not saying it is by converting NFL fans but by having football fans follow both leagues.

[Throw Long Bannatyne]

Except the 45+ crowd just happens to be the huge majority of the loyal STHs.  Until they are all dead you can't just ignore them and tick them off with unwanted changes.

There is a constant stream of people turning 50, many of them football fans, with age lifestyles and hobbies change.  Why cheer for a team in a far flung location with no real connection, when you can cheer for a team playing in your own city and experience a true connection with other fans?