Whitecaps MLS news

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by SpikePhanta

Anyways don't get me wrong the CFL is a great product, its just eventually it will be surpassed by soccer in the Vancouver and Montreal area, its just the matter of when.

I understand that is your contention. But you have failed to provide any compelling evidence or argument to support it. North America is a continent of immigrants and has been absorbing immigrants and their tastes for centuries. Yet professional soccer has hitherto failed to excite the imaginations of North Americans. Thus, pointing to more immigration is unpersuasive.

MLS in Vancouver might be new, but soccer isn't. Professional and amateur soccer has existed here for generations. The Whitecaps, in one form or another, have existed for almost thirty years and children's soccer has been one of the most widely-played sports in B.C. for even longer. Yet professional soccer has hitherto failed to command significant attention or attract a significant ticket-buying fanbase in all these years. Thus, claiming that soccer just needs more time to catch-on is groundless. It has had plenty of time.

The problem that professional soccer has in North America is not a lack of immigrants or lack of time to develop. It has had plenty of each. The problem with soccer is the game of soccer itself. To the vast majority of North Americans, soccer is just not a very exciting game to watch. Thus, it's not something that many North Americans want to spend their money on, especially when there are much more exciting alternatives.

That said, I think there is a market for MLS in Vancouver. But to claim that MLS will overtake the CFL in popularity or market share is preposterous and demonstrates a fundamental miscalculation.

P.S.: In a past post, I think you indicated you are originally from Montreal. If that's correct, it's remarkable how out of touch you seem with the cultural landscape of your own region. Nowhere in Canada are all levels of football (high school, CIS and CFL) more popular than in Quebec. For instance, in the CIS, 20,000 tickets were sold for the Laval v. Western game yesterday. In the CFL, the Montreal Alouettes sell out every regular-season game at Percival Molson Stadium (25,000), and today they sold out Olympic Stadium (60,000) for the Eastern Division Final. If they hope to overtake the Alouettes for popularity, the Montreal Impact, which now average 11,000 per game, have their work cut out for them.

P.P.S.: I have been watching the MLS championship game this evening. BMO Field has a capacity of only 22,000 and is located in the heart of Toronto, a city of 5 million, with a much stronger European immigrant population than Vancouver. Despite this, there are many empty seats. Empty seats at the championship game! In a stadium that holds only 22,000! It's a little embarrassing.