Canadian Football League

In his proposal, Paul Godfrey advocated that the SkyDome be used as the new home for the Toronto Argonauts. During the 1980’s and early 1990’s, the Canadian Football League was booming in Toronto. Fans were dedicated to the Argonauts, and were not wishing for a National Football League expansion to Toronto. According to the attendance records for the Toronto Argonauts, attendance was booming in the late 1980’s and the early 1990’s. For example, during the last season at Exhibition Stadium in 1988, the Argonauts drew an average of approximately 23,000 fans per game[1]. This team also qualified for the playoffs [2]. The following season, played at the SkyDome, drew an average of 35,000 fans. This was a drastic increase, and attendance stayed relatively the same until 1994, when the team started a decade of unsuccessful seasons[3]. Moreover, attendance has been increasing recently due to the surging success of the Argonauts. This demonstrates that although the Canadian Football League is not as popular as the National Football League, fans continue to attend the games. When the Argonauts are experiencing great success, the fans are more than willing to attend.

Furthermore, the stadium also provided the fans with exactly what they wanted. After the 1982 Grey Cup, fans were jeering for a new domed stadium. As a result, in 1989, they were given just that. The current argument that the stadium is “useless” as it could not support a National Football League team is invalid. This is because although the seating capacity may not be comparable to NFL stadiums, it does meet the needs for the CFL. The SkyDome has a seating capacity of approximately 54,000. In comparison to average NFL stadiums (approximately 65,000), it is evident why the stadium can be seen as “useless[4].” However, the stadium was not built to host an NFL franchise thus, the seating capacity is proportionate to its intended purposes and audiences. Additionally, when compared to other CFL stadiums, the SkyDome has one of the largest capacities. For example, the average seating of a CFL stadium hovers around 30,000. During Argonaut games, the seating capacity gets limited to 30,000 in order to provide fans with a better viewing experience[5].

Moreover, in Paul Godfrey’s proposal, there was no mention that the stadium would be used to become the home of a possible Toronto based NFL franchise. It was proposed to be the home of the Toronto Argonauts. This demonstrates how the SkyDome does fulfill its purpose of being the home to Toronto’s Canadian Football League team. Additionally, this once again draws upon numerous questions about planning for the future. When proposing the stadium, the CFL was still popular in Toronto, thus having plans for a future NFL team may have seemed unrealistic for Paul Godfrey.

Additionally, historically, the Argonauts drew a large crowd on average, meaning that Paul Godfrey would not have expected the numbers to drastically decrease. An example of this is comparing two losing stretches from 1974-1981 and 1992-2001. During those stretches, the Argonauts experienced miserable seasons and only qualified for the playoffs twice (1996 and 1997). Surprisingly, during the 1974-1981 stretch, the Argonauts continued to draw fans to the fame. In fact, in 1976, an average 47,000 fans attended games, which is the highest average for home games[6]. This ultimately illustrates how difficult it is to plan for the future, because in the past, fans attended the games regardless of the team’s success. Additionally, the push for a NFL franchise has been very recent, and has been strongly advocated by current Toronto Mayor Rob Ford. The SkyDome has hosted numerous NFL games since its construction, however the push for an actual team has been recent. Currently, there has been talk about relocating Buffalo’s team to Toronto. In an article in the Toronto Star, it is explained that the possibility of relocating the team would not work. The article explains how the team would not be “Toronto’s” team for numerous reasons. Firstly, Toronto citizens associate themselves with the Toronto Argonauts. Secondly, Torontonians who watch American football do not necessarily favour Buffalo’s team just because it is the closest in proximity[7]. This article demonstrates how Canadian football is still important in Toronto.

Therefore, it is evident that the SkyDome does fulfill its purpose as outlined in Paul Godfrey’s proposal. It functions as a home to Toronto’s Canadian Football League team, and provides the fans with a large, dry, and comfortable venue to watch the games.

[1] “Toronto Argonaut’s Home Game Attendance.” Accessed March 14, 2014.

http://www.argonauts.ca/page/home-attendance

[2] “Toronto Argonaut’s Home Game Attendance.” Accessed March 14, 2014.

http://www.argonauts.ca/page/home-attendance

[3] “Toronto Argonaut’s Home Game Attendance.” Accessed March 14, 2014.

http://www.argonauts.ca/page/home-attendance

[4] “Toronto Argonaut’s Home Game Attendance.” Accessed March 14, 2014.

http://www.argonauts.ca/page/home-attendance

[5] “Toronto Argonaut’s Home Game Attendance.” Accessed March 14, 2014.

http://www.argonauts.ca/page/home-attendance

[6] “Toronto Argonaut’s Home Game Attendance.” Accessed March 14, 2014.

http://www.argonauts.ca/page/home-attendance