CFL to Saskatoon?
 

Saskatoon Rough Riders?
By David Kirton
Updated February 14, 2008 - 11:39am

Kent Smith-Windsor, the executive director of the Saskatoon and District Chamber of Commerce says he's spoken to the group of business people who are floating the idea of a 32 thousand seat football stadium in Saskatoon.

He confirms to News Talk Radio that there is a group that is at least talking about the idea.

Smith says the Chamber was approached during a break at an unrelated meeting.

He says the idea is in its very early stages.

Smith won't disclose who the group is, but he says he says it's the kind of people he would be excited about formulating a plan like this.

News Talk Radio's John Gormley says he has spoken to the group, who would like to move the Saskatchewan Roughriders to Saskatoon or would seek an expansion team with the CFL.

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The Riders will never move to Saskatoon, nor should they. The history is down there. That said, it sure would be nice to get a team here, not to mention a new 32 thousand seat stadium! The Battle of Saskatchewan would be great.

I would like to see an expansion team in Saskatoon (along with Quebec City and Halifax), but I doubt those in Regina would agree with moving the Green Team to Saskatoon.

*Cracks open a beer and waits*

I made a comment in the Canada section about how the CFL was dying, and the NFL would replace it eventually, and obviously to not as many markets. But in my opinion, saskatchewan has some of the most, if not the most enthusiastic fans in all of sports. I woulden't doubt if there could be 2 CFL teams in Saks. I would go as far to say that if the possibility was there, Sask. could even have a permanent and successful NHL frahchise. there are 1million people in sask. that means 1million saskachewan NHL jerseys, and a million long waiting list for season tickets.

If the CFL does manage to stay reletivaly successful, i say bring another sask team!

Saskatoon could likely draw enough fans, the question is would they support a team other than the Riders?

Rebranding the Riders as the Regina Roughriders should be enough to turn 90% of Saskatoon Rider fans to whatever local team would be created. I'm no great Rider fan, nor do I care to watch the CFL with any regularity, but I think it would be terrible to move the team here. I would welcome an expansion team and would likely attend a few games. As long as the build the stadium DOWNTOWN this time damn it.

I'll buy seasons tickets on the 55 yard line.

I can say this because it's never going to happen.

This really puts things into perspective, a vision to relocate the Roughriders to Saskatoon, or having two CFL teams in Saskatchewan...I'd enjoy that very much.

Any of you were old enough to remember (I wasn't even born) when Bill Hunter championed the idea of moving the St. Louis Blues to Saskatoon? The current situation must evoke similar feelings of excitement.

I'd prefer they keep the Riders in Regina (we'll never hear the end of that one) and create a new team for Saskatoon, if feasible.

If not, we'll gladly accept the Riders as our own and a 32,000 seat stadium (perhaps a downtown location, but we should be open to alternative locations, something with a well thought plan which incorporates public transit), history aside, they are the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

There is about as much chance of that happening as Rosie O'Donnell playing linebacker for the BlueBombers. Riders will never leave Regina no matter how much people in Saskatoon wish they would. Check Riderville.com and see who's on the Riders Board of Govenors. There would be a revolt and allout warfare if this would ever happen (which it won't). Regina is growing and booming just like Saskatoon and anyone who honestly thinks this would happen should seriously put down the crackpipe.

ps....since you say that you'd gladly accept the Riders 'as your own' if they moved up there, does that mean that the Riders currently belong to Regina???

They belong to Regina in a physical sense (they play in a stadium there) more than anything, of course there's some history too (Kent Austin was the quarterback, then the coach, and now has left...where is he now?), but they are the Saskatchewan Roughriders and Saskatoon is in Saskatchewan.

Perhaps the group floating the idea feel that Saskatoon represents Saskatchewan culture (err Rider Nation) more than Regina does...who knows, maybe instead of a 32,000 seat stadium being built in Saskatoon some group may come along and propose one for Regina :shrug:

Sports teams match business interests with consumer interests. This group of investors is floating an idea based on their collective curious thoughts.

As a fan who resides in Regina, do you oppose such an idea? What if it were the best thing for the Rider franchise? or the best thing for the fan base? I suppose the answers to those questions seem irrelevant to you because you enjoy having the province's only professional team in your backyard. Are things good enough, could things be better? Is the team fine where they are?

But not nearly as much as Saskatoon.

Anyways, I think the population in Saskatchewan would have to grow by one more million to secure a stable fan base for two CFL teams in the province.

And also, as small a posibility this may be, if the NHL were to come back into Canada, they would likely expand into cities like Winnipeg, Hamilton or Quebec City before entering into Saskatoon or Regina. There just isn't enough of a fan base there currently to warrent expansion possibilities.

If Saskatoon wants a CFL team then fill out the paperwork for an expansion team. I find it offensive that these 'business guys' want to move the team when the team iself isn't sitting at the table and knows nothing about this. And as a fan who resides in Regina, you bet your ass that I oppose such an idea for relocation. There is too much tradition and Rider 'culture' here in Regina to just pack up and move. From what I understand, there are infact business people here in Regina that are throwing around ideas for a new stadium or to continue refurbishing Taylor field like they did in Chicago and Greenbay with their older stadiums. A guy like Paul Hill would never let this happen. So Saskatoon sports fans can keep on dreaming and not attending Blades games!!!:tup:

Who cares???? Regina is about to become the major transportation hub of central Canada. As a matter of fact, recently more people have moved from Saskatoon to Regina than the other way around. Right now Saskatoon sits at about 240K and Regina is at about 210K. Both are growing but it ain't that much of a difference and like I said already, once the new transportation hub gets going over the next few years, the population gap is likely to get smaller. Oh and did I mention the 2Billion dollar expansion to Regina's Coop Upgrader???

Not sure about THE major, but a major hub it will be. Edmonton with the port of Prince Rupert, and Winnipeg with the Port of Churchill will also become major hubs of transportation aswell. And with Winnipeg's position as the most central location acessway to the US and Mexico, I would likely bet this city will become one of the largest cargo distribution centres in North America. It's just too ideal of a location to dismiss.

Anywho, in terms of sports franchises in Saskatchewan, my previous comments still stand. With SIGNIFICANT population growth comes opportunity for expansion, but Saskatchewan just ain't there yet and won't be for a while.

Welp, I'm done with this thread.

Wow, quite the discussion...interesting nonetheless. Would like to see Saskatoon get a team if it didn't jeopardize the Riders....but I don't think that's feasible given our population.

Can't see the Riders moving there....don't Saskatoon residents hold only 500 season tickets or so to the Riders? That seems off, but I thought I heard that somewhere. Correct me if I am wrong.

Bold terms represent absolute truth.

Us Saskatonians have already devised a replacement for Gainer....tada :apple:...we'll win so many more Grey Cups with an apple mascot :jester:

Yes we will keep dreaming, one day Saskatoon will convince you to relocate, it is not a question of if, but when :haha:

Migs, who is Paul Hill and why wouldn't he let this happen?

Owns pretty much half of Regina! You know all those glass towers in downtown Regina????.....most of them are his.

http://www.hillcompanies.com/links/c...executive.html

.....is also on the Riders Board of Governers (which is a who's who of Regina business people).

http://www.riderville.com/modules.ph...ticle&artid=30

Paul Hill has a love of Regina and its always been rumoured that he's wanted to build a stadium of his own here in Regina. Hopefully this gets the ball rolling....

Okay, so why hasn't he proposed a new stadium...what if he is part of this group floating the idea for Saskatoon?

I've already lived there.....couldn't get out fast enough.;)

I have heard rumblings that he's secured land near the airport for a new stadium but nothing concrete. And I would eat my hat if he's part of that group which I hardly believe is a possibilty (given all of his interests and assets in Regina).

Yeah, big city life isn't for everybody.

Perhaps he is looking to diversify, maybe something in Saskatoon...you know, spread your money around?

Actually I've lived in Calgary, Edmonton, Minneapolis (for a year), Saskatoon, and Regina. Loved Minneapolis the most. Saskatoon has about 30K more people than Regina so if you wanna call Saskatoon a 'big city' then so is Regina. And how come more people are moving from Saskatoon to Regina than the opposite???;) :cheers:

Hats are pretty tasteless, unless you Reginan's have a mean hat recipe your not sharing with the rest of us :jester:

For the water? or maybe...hmmm, government jobs? I don't really know, do you have some insight to that phenomenon?

Pretty simple really. Paul Hill's bread and butter is in Regina......do you think its good for his business's if he takes the only professional sports franchise out of the city where he makes the majority of his wealth???? Not likely but you do have lots of experience in 'dreaming' so carry on......:cheers:

You give us your Fuddruckers and I'll give you my hat.:tup:

I guess the truth will prove itself eventually.

Do you have a photo of your hat that you could share with us?

Just curious if you know who any of these Saskatoon Business people are???

I haven't the slightest clue....probably Alberta money if anything, a 32,000 seat stadium is quite expensive I am sure.

How about I describe it to you. Its green and white with a big S on the front. You've been dreaming about it for years hey???:cheers:

Like this?

http://www.msugear.com/ProductImages...pGreenBill.jpg

Perhaps something like, I don't know...Preston Crossing?

There you go, or Eau Claire in Calgary eh? Paul Hill is quietly stepping away from his reliance on Regina.

If I were you I'd rather he wasn't bringing developments like Preston Crossing.

Roughriders not moving to Saskatoon: CEO Hopson
By Doug McConachie, TheStarPhoenix.com
Published: Thursday, February 14, 2008

Don't go making those Saskatoon Roughriders T-shirts just yet.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders are not interested in moving to the Bridge City and would not survive in Regina if a CFL franchise expansion team was awarded to Saskatoon, Riders president and chief executive officer Jim Hopson says.

"I'm an eternal optimist," Hopson said Thursday, but the Riders survive only because "we have the support of the whole province."

On his talk show on CKOM, host John Gormley said Thursday there's a group of Saskatoon business people interested in either moving the team north or bringing a new franchise to town. Gormley did not disclose their identities.

"Hey, it's good that they're talking about the Saskatchewan Roughriders in the middle of winter," Hopson said in a StarPhoenix interview, "but I haven't heard a thing.

"It's news to us . . . nobody has approached us."

Hopson concedes that fans always talk about having the Riders in Saskatoon and having the training camp in Saskatoon, but never anything serious about moving the franchise.

"I was in Saskatoon (last Friday) and nobody from the City of Saskatoon, no businesses, said anything."

If there were two football teams, you'd be talking about 60,000 supporters per game, Hopson said. But for far too many years, the Riders weren't even close to drawing sell-out crowds. This year the team turned it around and "the support we got from the whole province was phenomenal . . . the way people from Lloydminster, North Battleford, Saskatoon and Prince Albert drive to our games.

"If we just had to rely on Regina, we wouldn't (survive)."

Hopson said the cost of a state-of-the-art stadium would likely range from $150 million to $200 million. Regina already has a facility in place in Mosaic Stadium and has said there are plans for further expansion and upgrades. The Riders have also made every effort to reconnect with fans across the province, not only with the recent Grey Cup tours, but throughout the year.

Next week, the team is back in Saskatoon, he pointed out, for the Mayor's Breakfast on Feb. 23. There will also be a day with kids and coaches and a session of "101 Football for Women".

The team will also come to Saskatoon this summer for a Green-and-White game while training camp goes on in Regina. As far as moving the training camp to Saskatoon, as they did in the 1990s, it's difficult, Hopson said, indicating it's not likely to happen.

[email protected]

Source

Reginans say the proposal is dead in the water? Yes

What else are these wealthy businessmen going to throw their money into, Regina's stadium? Doubtful

We could use a baseball stadium, maybe.

Well that didn't take long!:haha:

Yes, you are right. About 10 more people, WOW - What a stat!! And when did Regina hit about 210k?? Last estimates you guys barely broke the 200k mark. BTW, Saskatoon is sitting at 241,439 and Regina 201,514 - just so you can get your facts straight. :tup:

Honestly, I think it would be cool if Saskatoon got a CFL team. A Regina / Saskatoon rivalry would be the best in the country!

I don't think having two teams in the province would hurt the riders very much. Probably about 90% of the people at each rider game are from Regina and surrounding area, there's probably only a couple thousand that actually drive in from as far as Saskatoon for each game.

But seriously, people need to give up on the idea of the Riders moving to Saskatoon, it's never going to happen. The riders were born in Regina, Regina has always been their home, and Regina will always be their home. Anyone who thinks that they're going to pack up and move just because Saskatoon has slightly more people is crazy.

I was going by the population numbers that Gormely said on the radio this morning.

And even if it is 10more people, there are still more coming here than going there. That could change or it could continue, either way both cities are booming which is great news for this province. That said, personally I think Saskatoon should go for a minorleague baseball team as Hopson pretty much put a nail in Saskatoon's CFL dreams.

Where are those numbers from? I hadn't even realized Regina broke the 200k mark yet.

I thought Saskatoon was at about 235k and Regina about 193k'ish.

If I can quote my buddy Stephen Larose from another forum........

:haha: :tup: :cheers:

Swilley is correct!

http://www.statcan.ca/english/freepu...00/t013_en.htm

Cool! I had no idea we broke the 200k barrier!

1. I didn't know I was your buddy.

2. Check out the Iluyshin Il-2 Stormovik yet? ;-)

3. I forgot to add this:

Anyone who seriously think Saskatoon's civic and business community could pull this of should think of two words: 2007 Universiade.

Thanks for quoting, saves me about five minutes..:cheers:

Yeah I consider everyone that didn't want to run my out of town for my Shivers tirades as buddie's:D :haha:

And yeah I sure did, I've done alot of research the past couple years on WW2 Russian aircraft. Love the 'flying tank'...kinda like the modern version of the A-10
http://goodies.pcastuces.com/vignettes/0216.jpg