Sports in Canadian culture

[Gerrard]

Originally Posted by Acajack

I guess I have a more ownership and originality related view of culture.

Yeah 'cause Quebecois culture is totally in situ based and not like completely influenced by the culture of another country.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Originally Posted by elly63

Considering that the CFL is still more popular than the NFL in most of Canada why isn't the CIS regularly broadcast? The EPL gets rated in the Top 20 sports of the week why don't we show Conference league games? Why do some want to suck on the teat of a foreign country to the exclusion and betterment of their own?

Probably because the CIS isn't the CFL.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by BretttheRiderFan

And I guess my views are rooted in what culture actually is.

Culture is not just including things specific to one group. There are a lot of things that are a part of Canadian culture and American culture. There are things common to all cultures. Culture isn't a niche, it's our way of life.

Sure. Being acculturated to another country's culture to an unparalleled degree is part of Canada's culture and way of life.

I've known that for quite some time.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by Gerrard

Yeah 'cause Quebecois culture is totally in situ based and not like completely influenced by the culture of another country.

Of course, if it actually was impermeable to outside influences, you'd be slamming it on here for being insular.

Damned if it does, damned if it doesn't.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Originally Posted by elly63

There's a great interview with Carleton basketball coach Dave Smart posted in this thread. This is the guy whose basketball program is as good as teams in the MM. He basically says that US programs are bigger than they should be and Canadian programs are smaller than they should be. It is not incumbent on the universities to invest money in sports, they are in the education business and I think the majority of Canadians support that.

But it is criminal what our big two sports broadcasters are doing. They could invest (time, effort, money) in these CIS programs as TSN did with the CFL and over time achieve results. There isn't a large audience in this country clamouring for NCAA sports, so what is their motive in airing it.

The same with NFL football. TSN knows it has a successful property on their own network (CFL) so they (Bell) build strategies to popularize the NFL on the main (non cable) network. That's business, but unfortunately the wider the exposure for the NFL the more it takes away from the CFL and that's wrong.

I disagree. Saskatchewan has the highest percentage of NFL fans in Canada according to the latest poll. People who watch the NFL are actually highly likely to also watch the CFL.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Sure. Being acculturated to another country's culture to an unparalleled degree is part of Canada's culture and way of life.

I've known that for quite some time.

I have no problem admitting this at all. You seem to think this is a problem, I don't. It is a fact that following American sporting leagues is a part of Canadian sporting culture.

This doesn't make us particularly unique in the world.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by BretttheRiderFan

People who watch the NFL are actually highly likely to also watch the CFL.

In Saskatchewan.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Listening to British music is part of our culture. So is listening to Canadian music. Watching hockey and CFL and curling is part of our culture. As is watching the Olympics, the Super Bowl and World Cup. We eat steak and potatoes and dim sum and pho. We drive cars made in Ontario and Honshu and Bavaria. This is our culture and most people are alright with that.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Originally Posted by elly63

In Saskatchewan.

All over the country.

There are far more who watch both than watch one but not the other.

[BretttheRiderFan]

Unless of course you believe football is more popular in this country than hockey, since if you add the CFL and NFL numbers in that poll they far eclipse the NHL.

Are these unique, exclusive groups? Of course not.

[rousseau]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Still trying to figure where those TV viewers that give the CFL reasonably decent ratings in Ontario are. If they are not in the GTA and are not outside the GTA, then where are they folks?

Who said they weren't in the GTA? My guess is that they are in Ottawa, Toronto and Hamilton. Almost exclusively.


http://angusreid.org/one-quarter-can...val/#more52789

Who was it in this thread who claimed that the CFL was more popular than the NFL in Ontario?

And then this:

Another telling, and troubling story for the CFL comes from an Angus Reid Institute poll released earlier this month, showing more than one-third (37%) of 18-to-34 years olds say they are diehard NHL fans. In turn, this survey shows two-in-five (40%) Canadians in this age bracket saying they follow the NHL closely, compared to just 16 per cent the same age who follow the CFL closely.

And who was it in this thread that disagreed with the CFL commissioner himself who said in a CBC interview that the CFL has a small presence with the under 55 demographic? (Yes, just the 18-34 group is given here, but you can obviously infer that the numbers for the 35-55 group are clearly not very high either, if the commissioner of the phreakin' league himself has any clue what he's talking about).

It's one thing to like the CFL and be defensive about it, but when you make ridiculous claims that don't pass the smell test, and are then shown to be untrue by people who actually live in the area in question, then I think you need to accept reality.

[elly63]

Originally Posted by rousseau

the CFL commissioner himself who said in a CBC interview that the CFL has a small presence with the under 55 demographic? (Yes, just the 18-34 group is given here, but you can obviously infer that the numbers for the 35-55 group are clearly not very high either, if the commissioner of the phreakin' league himself has any clue what he's talking about).

First of all I'd like to see that quote because you're basically saying nobody under 55 watches the CFL which is patently ridiculous and how can you obviously infer the numbers for 35-55 aren't good. Show me the proof. Somebody's watchin' and they can't be all on life support.

[isaidso]

Originally Posted by BretttheRiderFan

Watching American sports doesn't make them Canadian, but that doesn't mean it's not a part of our sporting culture.

We should make a distinction between American sports and American leagues/teams. If it's baseball, basketball, hockey, football, or lacrosse those are our own sports. Whether one is dialed into ones own leagues and teams is another matter. Speaking of that, I wonder if those football loving people in Windsor bothered contributing to this list below. I don't imagine they did.


Canadian University Football
(END OF REGULAR SEASON)




Cumulative Attendance: 357,397
Average Attendance (108 Games): 3,309

[isaidso]

One Grey Cup tradition played out as a Calgary fan rode a horse into a Vancouver hotel lobby. This has happened every year since 1948 when Stampeder fans rode a horse into the lobby of Toronto's Royal York Hotel.

Tuffy the horse enters downtown Vancouver hotel



Courtesy of the CBC

The Grey Cup Parade

Courtesy of the Vancouver Sun

[isaidso]

Grey Cup Sunday!
'The Biggest Day in Canadian Sport'



From the Twitter page of the 102nd Grey Cup Festival in Vancouver

• Video Link

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by rousseau

Who was it in this thread who claimed that the CFL was more popular than the NFL in Ontario?

I don't think anyone did. Speaking for myself, I simply presented empirical evidence which shows that Southern Ontario viewers for CFL broadcasts are equal to or greater than Southern Ontario viewers for NFL broadcasts. And thus whatever one chooses to say about the CFL in Southern Ontario (e.g. "small potatoes," "lacks popularity," "off the radar") must logically apply to the NFL in Southern Ontario too.

And the Angus Reid poll is further confirmation of that. It shows that, in Ontario, CFL popularity and NFL popularity are separated by only 5 percentage points. (In 2013, it was just 3 points). That's not just close; that's within the poll's own margin of error. Therefore, as I said before, any characterization of the CFL's popularity in Southern Ontario is equally applicable to the NFL's popularity in Southern Ontario, since the empirical evidence shows the difference in popularity between the two leagues in the region is statistically insignificant.

Thus, if one says the CFL "lacks popularity" in Southern Ontario, then logically he cannot escape saying the same thing about the NFL in Southern Ontario too.

[Stryker]

CFL fans gotta give it a rest, like seriously, your not a major league.

[Gerrard]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Of course, if it actually was impermeable to outside influences, you'd be slamming it on here for being insular.

Damned if it does, damned if it doesn't.

Naw I wouldn't. But sometimes you have to understand it's in a really unique position versus English speaking Canada (which is great, sometimes "thank God for Quebec etc...). The history of Ontario is somewhat unique as well, it just happens that the major influence in its historic formation was Americans ("fleeing" ones) but Americans nonetheless (not exactly exotic on this continent). I mean it's basically why we celebrate Thanksgiving in this country, and Halloween etc.

I don't get into the football arguments because, like Rousseau it's akin to trying to choose which One Direction song is the best most layered expression of modern music when I'd rather have my teeth drilled.

But while Canadians do love our hockey (not me) and we popularized ice hockey, it's not exactly our invention nor a Canadian game. So getting up in arms about which sports people choose to play or follow seems fairly childish. Especially considering the amount of emotion I've seen people express over it on this forum. It makes the Marxist in me kinda sad really.

[Prometheus]

Originally Posted by Stryker

CFL fans gotta give it a rest, like seriously, your not a major league.

Which has intriguing implications for the other leagues within the Canadian sports landscape.

Last week's top sports broadcasts:

1. NHL, Habs-Bruins/Wings-Leafs/Pens-Isles, Saturday, CBC/Rogers: 2,200,000

2. CFL, Eskimos at Stampeders, Sunday, TSN: 1,505,000

3. CFL, Alouettes at Tiger-Cats, Sunday, TSN: 1,234,000 (412,000 RDS viewers not included)

4. NHL, Devils at Canucks, Saturday, CBC: 894,000

5. NHL, Hockey Night In Canada pre-game, CBC/Rogers: 717,000

6. NFL, Lions-Pats/Packer-Vikes, Sunday, CTV: 635,000

7. NFL, Dolphins-Broncos/Cards-Seahawks, Sunday, CTV2: 530,000

8. NFL, Cowboys at Giants, Sunday, TSN: 481,000 (NBC viewers not measured)

9. NHL, Canadiens at Rangers, Sunday, City: 437,000

10. NHL, Blackhawks at Canucks, Sunday, Sportsnet Pacific: 412,000

11. NBA, Bucks at Raptors, Friday, TSN: 365,000

12. Curling, Grand Slam National semis, Saturday, Sportsnet: 354,000

13. Curling, Grand Slam National final, Sunday, Sportsnet: 349,000

14. NBA, Raptors at Bulls, Saturday, TSN: 283,000

15. Figure skating, Trophee Bompard, Saturday, CBC: 235,000

16. Auto racing, F1 Abu Dhabi GP, Sunday, TSN: 232,000

17. Figure skating, Trophee Bompard, Sunday, CBC: 197,000

17. Soccer, Man U at Arsenal, Saturday, TSN: 197,000

19. NHL, Islanders at Penguins, Friday, Sportsnet One: 169,000

20. NHL, Hometown Hockey pre-game, Sunday, City: 165,000

21. NHL, Devils at Oilers, Friday, Sportsnet West: 152,000

22. CIS football, Mount Allison at McMaster, Saturday, Sportsnet360: 148,000

Source: https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/eh...3.html#more-id

[TownGuy]

^ Nationally televised playoff games vs meaningless regular season games.

Someone mentioned this earlier I believe but CFL (and NFL) definitely get beefed up TV numbers because all the hype goes into one game a week. The nature of the short schedule, during the regular season, also means each game carries more meaning.

If you want to do a fair comparison of the numbers posted, to say the NBA, you would have to have the Raptors play a game 7 in the conference finals. For it to be really fair you would have to bring the Grizzlies back to Vancouver and make it an all Canadian matchup like CFL games. The NBA numbers would destroy the CFL in that case most likely. Same thing with the MLB if the Jays ever theoretically played the Expos in the playoffs.