Time will tell if Miller, Bombers dropped the ball by bringing NFL to Winnipeg By: Mike McIntyre Posted: 7:00 PM CDT Wednesday, Jun. 5, 2019

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This article was published 04/06/2019 (2032 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

This might just be the biggest gamble we see all season down at IG Field.

Forget about going for it on third-and-inches, or sending the house on an all-or-nothing blitz: the Winnipeg Blue Bombers are putting quite a bit more on the line by inviting the NFL to play in their backyard.

Sure, there could be some kind of temporary payoff if they can pack the place on Aug. 22 as the Oakland Raiders host the Green Bay Packers in a pre-season game. But the question nobody at Wednesday’s news conference wanted to spend much time considering is this: what if this ends up being a hopeless Hail Mary?

It’s not out of the realm of possibility, considering the sticker shock a lot of local football fans were clearly feeling when ticket prices were rolled out Wednesday. The cheapest ticket will cost you $75 (available in very limited numbers), while the most expensive has been set at a hefty $340 (taxes and fees not included).

The eight pricing options average out to $226.88, which, if you multiply by the 33,000 seats they hope to sell, comes to $7.5 million. That figure will actually be much higher, considering there are far more tickets available in the four highest-price ranges than in the four cheapest ones. Throw in parking and concessions and folks are being asked to dig deep.

Sure, you might get to see Aaron Rodgers chucking some passes for the Cheeseheads, or Antonio Brown hauling in a ball or two for Raider Nation, as starters on both teams are expected to at least play a couple quarters, given that it’s the third week of the pre-season. But that’s still a ton of dough to dish out to see a bunch of otherwise no-name hopefuls, some of whom could be landing on a CFL roster near you in the not-too-distant future.

The Bombers say there’s no direct financial risk to them, as they haven’t paid any kind of up-front fee to host the first NFL game in the city’s history. But I can’t help but wonder what this could ultimately mean to their own bottom line.

After all, Winnipeg is already a saturated sports market, now with more options than ever, including the Bombers, the Jets, the Moose, the Goldeyes, upstart Valour FC and, coming this fall, the Winnipeg Ice of the Western Hockey League.

There’s only so much disposable income to go around, and you have to think that people who decide to shell out big bucks to watch some four-down football up close are going to have to find other areas to pinch. You can’t just pull $7.5 million out of people’s wallets (again, likely to be much, much higher when all other factors are considered) and not create a ripple effect elsewhere.

The hope for the Bombers, of course, is that they’re not hurting themselves.

Bombers president and CEO Wade Miller wouldn’t divulge any specifics about the dollars and cents of hiosting an NFL game, or how exactly the Bombers’ bank account would benefit. The Raiders get the majority share (and face the biggest financial risk) for taking their show north, and the third-party agency they worked with to land in Winnipeg, On Ice Entertainment Ltd., will get a cut as well.

“Oakland is running this as a home stadium event. They’ll make the gate and take care of that revenue. It’s their event, but I’m not going to get into the financials,” Miller said.

Translation: we’ll have to wait for the team’s 2019 financial report to be issued early next year to get a better idea. For the record, the Bombers posted a $2.6-million operating profit in 2018, down from $5.1 million in 2017. They cited a lack of major events outside of football for the sharp decline.

“You know better than I, but Wade’s not a dummy. He’s a smart man,” John Graham, the president of On Ice Entertainment, said about what the Bombers are risking.

“You can’t be afraid that somebody’s coming into your market. You work with them and build, and if there’s anybody that understand that, it’s Wade and the Bombers.”

Graham also defended the ticket prices, which his group set in conjunction with the Raiders, as being fair value for fans.

“You can’t compare it to a CFL pre-season game, and that’s not putting a CFL pre-season game down. But I can’t compare, and I mean this respectfully, an AHL scenario — and I’m not saying the CFL is AHL (compared to the NHL) — but I can’t compare that division in leagues. And I don’t think anybody in their right mind does,” he said.

“It costs X number of dollars to put on an event. If the Stones are in town and there’s a band that sings Stones cover songs, and again that’s not a reference to CFL versus NFL… I’m just pointing out, that if you bring Aaron Rodgers and Antonio Brown and those guys are in town, those are the best.”

Anyone with concerns is in pretty good company. It’s worth noting even the legendary radio voice of the Bombers, Bob Irving, expressed serious doubts earlier this spring when he tweeted, “Any CFL team that offers to host an NFL pre-season game should have their franchise revoked. And I might not just be kidding.”

Not surprisingly, Miller wanted to focus on what he views as the positives: showcasing the city and facility on an international stage, perhaps making Winnipeg a more attractive landing spot for future free agents and possibly winning over some new fans in the process. Which all sounds good in theory, of course.

“The prices are obviously different than they would be for a CFL game,” Miller admitted before comparing this to hosting a large concert at the venue.

“It’s more than a pre-season NFL game. It’s kind of a once-in-a-lifetime experience that you’re coming for.”

But is it, really? After all, Winnipeggers craving an NFL fix have always had the option of driving a few hours south to watch the Minnesota Vikings up close. Miller brought up examples such as the NHL Heritage Classic and the FIFA Women’s World Cup, but I dare say the stakes for those matchups were considerably higher than an otherwise meaningless NFL exhibition game.

“It’s going to be a positive for everybody,” Miller insisted.

He believes having Green Bay as the visiting opponent — it’s technically an Oakland home game — makes it even more lucrative in terms of bringing in outside fans. They better hope so, because the soon-to-be Las Vegas Raiders are more laughingstock than legendary in recent years. And I have serious doubts the Winnipeg market alone can make this venture a success.

“I truly believe there will be a big financial economic impact to the city and province with the ability to attract people from Western Canada, northern Ontario and the surrounding (U.S.) states,” said Miller.

This event will also bring to the surface some elements of Canadian football fandom that exist: namely, there are CFL diehards who have no interest in the NFL, and vice versa. Get ready for a new wave of water-cooler arguments over which is the more entertaining product, although perhaps this might help bridge the gap.

“I truly believe you can be a great fan of an NFL team and a great fan of the Blue Bombers. We want to get all those NFL fans in to see what the stadium is like and a game-day experience at IG Field,” said Miller.

Will it all be worth it? The Bombers are certainly banking on it.

mike.mcintyre@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @mikemcintyrewpg

Mike McIntyre
Sports columnist

Mike McIntyre grew up wanting to be a professional wrestler. But when that dream fizzled, he put all his brawn into becoming a professional writer.

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