The Missing Point about the Toronto Games

[VaBillsFan]

While all the Chicken Little posters are moaning about the Bills playing 8 of their games in Toronto over the next 5 years, there's one point many seem to be missing:
The NFL has made it clear that in the coming five years they want every team in the league to play at an international venue every season.
By locking in the Toronto games, the Bills have made certain that they wont have the huge, expensive, schedule-disrupting trips to Europe, Japan, Australia or South America.
Instead, the Bills will take a bus ride to Toronto and play a game in front of their own fans while building their home fan base.
Teams that play their games overseas might please a few fans in the host city and help the NFL in total, but they will be doing nothing to build their own fan base while paying huge expenses for costly and disruptive overseas travel.
This is a very smart move by the Bills and I'd bet that playing 1/8th of their home schedule in Toronto is no worse than the Packers playing one game a year in Milwaukee.

[ThirdMan75]

The NFL has made it clear that in the coming five years they want every team in the league to play at an international venue every season.


I like your thinking, but is it possible that EVERY team EVERY year will be doing this in 5 years? Do you have a link?

[BillsExpert]

I did not realize the NFL was forcing all teams to play international games. If you take that spin, they beat the system. Why give up a home game and deal with jet lag.

[blizzard83]

Thats it guys... spin it however you like, the bills are out of buffalo and we as season ticket holders should not renew this year... I know I wont, if this is how they want to treat us for loyalty then the hell with ralph

[dqw 87]

While all the Chicken Little posters are moaning about the Bills playing 8 of their games in Toronto over the next 5 years, there's one point many seem to be missing:
The NFL has made it clear that in the coming five years they want every team in the league to play at an international venue every season.
By locking in the Toronto games, the Bills have made certain that they wont have the huge, expensive, schedule-disrupting trips to Europe, Japan, Australia or South America.
Instead, the Bills will take a bus ride to Toronto and play a game in front of their own fans while building their home fan base.
Teams that play their games overseas might please a few fans in the host city and help the NFL in total, but they will be doing nothing to build their own fan base while paying huge expenses for costly and disruptive overseas travel.
This is a very smart move by the Bills and I'd bet that playing 1/8th of their home schedule in Toronto is no worse than the Packers playing one game a year in Milwaukee.

Nice try! The NFL is not expecting EVERY team to play an international game EVERY year. They were looking at playing one regular season game for the entire league outside the U.S. every season. Not quite what you are trying to say.

[trm_btb]

While all the Chicken Little posters are moaning about the Bills playing 8 of their games in Toronto over the next 5 years, there's one point many seem to be missing:
The NFL has made it clear that in the coming five years they want every team in the league to play at an international venue every season.
By locking in the Toronto games, the Bills have made certain that they wont have the huge, expensive, schedule-disrupting trips to Europe, Japan, Australia or South America.
Instead, the Bills will take a bus ride to Toronto and play a game in front of their own fans while building their home fan base.
Teams that play their games overseas might please a few fans in the host city and help the NFL in total, but they will be doing nothing to build their own fan base while paying huge expenses for costly and disruptive overseas travel.
This is a very smart move by the Bills and I'd bet that playing 1/8th of their home schedule in Toronto is no worse than the Packers playing one game a year in Milwaukee.

NOT SO FAST. When they were originally discussing this on WGR a couple months ago, they said flat out that the Toronto games WILL NOT COUNT towards the "international requirement". Right or wrong, that IS what they said...

[Hurricane Marv]

Thats it guys... spin it however you like, the bills are out of buffalo and we as season ticket holders should not renew this year... I know I wont, if this is how they want to treat us for loyalty then the hell with ralph

it's a 5 ****ing year contract. this completely deflates your argument about ralph " selling our team bit by bit to a foreign country " every year.

this is going to strengthen our team you tard. judging by your posts though i can't tell whether i should tell you to do your homework and go to bed, or put the alcohol down...

[blizzard83]

strengthen the team?! just like outsourcing strengthened our economy... right on hurricane marv

[trm_btb]

it's a 5 ****ing year contract. this completely deflates your argument about ralph " selling our team bit by bit to a foreign country " every year.

this is going to strengthen our team you tard. judging by your posts though i can't tell whether i should tell you to do your homework and go to bed, or put the alcohol down...

While I don't believe in the "bit by bit" argument, I personally still have MAJOR reservations about home games "out of town". Forgetting that we're crossing a border and looking strictly at proximity, that would be like Pittsburgh deciding to play a game a year in Columbus, OH to try to gain more fans, or Atlanta playing a game in the capital of Montgomery. If there are fans that can be acquired, you probably already have them. Why alienate your season ticket holders (losing a game) to try and get people that are already there if they care.

[primetime3]

they prolly see all the people whining about season ticket prices and feel this is a way to help them out....

[trm_btb]

they prolly see all the people whining about season ticket prices and feel this is a way to help them out....

Ya, watch, the pre-season kids' day game will probably be the one in Toronto and I'll have to lug my two boys up there and pay anyways...

[primetime3]

haha very true

[MarshawnLynch#23]

I look at it two ways

1) Yes the Bills game in Toronto might = more money and Canadian fans

2) Your slapping the Buffalo season tickets holders in the face and could lose ticket sales and fans for home games in Buffalo

[derek2sun]

i cant imagine the nfl making the bills play another international game besides toronto.

[Billsrock61]

Plus the tickets are 250 dollars a piece!! holy smokes!

[RoCkPiLe23]

Before we play another International game other than Toronto I want to see Jerry Jones give up a home game once a year...

[MarshawnLynch#23]

Before we play another International game other than Toronto I want to see Jerry Jones give up a home game once a year...Jerry Jones was quoted as saying he didnt like International games for it is a "ROAD" game for his team saying that equals 7 home games and 9 road games......

I agree with Jerry on that

[ozzymetal628@aol.com]

I look at it two ways

1) Yes the Bills game in Toronto might = more money and Canadian fans

2) Your slapping the Buffalo season tickets holders in the face and could lose ticket sales and fans for home games in Buffalo

Words on an intelligent man.Truthfully

[BrutallyHonest]

While all the Chicken Little posters are moaning about the Bills playing 8 of their games in Toronto over the next 5 years, there's one point many seem to be missing:
The NFL has made it clear that in the coming five years they want every team in the league to play at an international venue every season.
By locking in the Toronto games, the Bills have made certain that they wont have the huge, expensive, schedule-disrupting trips to Europe, Japan, Australia or South America.
Instead, the Bills will take a bus ride to Toronto and play a game in front of their own fans while building their home fan base.
Teams that play their games overseas might please a few fans in the host city and help the NFL in total, but they will be doing nothing to build their own fan base while paying huge expenses for costly and disruptive overseas travel.
This is a very smart move by the Bills and I'd bet that playing 1/8th of their home schedule in Toronto is no worse than the Packers playing one game a year in Milwaukee.

The NFL IS NOT forcing teams to play an internationl game EVERY YEAR. The NFL wants EVERY TEAM to take a turn at playing internationally, so the math works out to 1 international game every 16 years...NOT EVERY YEAR! Your attempt to put a positive spin on this is based on totally false /incorrect information.

TRY AGAIN, only this time use the correct facts!!!

[edwardsakafranchise]

If the Buffalo Bills moved to Toronto, I'd be so pissed......period

[VaBillsFan]

When the Packers started playing one game per season in Milwaukee, I remember the Green Bay fans were worried about losing the Packers to Milwaukee, but the Pack is still in Green Bay, as it always will be.

[Chris_Brown]

Plus the tickets are 250 dollars a piece!! holy smokes!

And the regular season game will sell out in hours. The ticket price is not even an issue for Torontonians. They pay those kinds of prices all the time just like fans in New York, Washington, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco. It's no secret the cost of living is higher in all of those cities. It's literally the price they pay for living there. The Bills want to tap into that vast revenue stream to make the team more financially competitive while still staying in Buffalo.
The difference in price should be a sign to everyone about how lopsided the NFL landscape is right now. Imagine having an average ticket price of $125 to $150 for eight games every year. Bills average ticket price is around $46 dollars. Then realize that 60% of all revenues go to the players. What are you left with at the end if you're average ticket is $46 and what are you left with if your average ticket is $150?

[ugo]

And the regular season game will sell out in hours. The ticket price is not even an issue for Torontonians. They pay those kinds of prices all the time just like fans in New York, Washington, Boston, Chicago, San Francisco. It's no secret the cost of living is higher in all of those cities. It's literally the price they pay for living there. The Bills want to tap into that vast revenue stream to make the team more financially competitive while still staying in Buffalo.
The difference in price should be a sign to everyone about how lopsided the NFL landscape is right now. Imagine having an average ticket price of $125 to $150 for eight games every year. Bills average ticket price is around $46 dollars. Then realize that 60% of all revenues go to the players. What are you left with at the end if you're average ticket is $46 and what are you left with if your average ticket is $150?

Right on the money!! This is all about getting extra revenue. WNY can't afford ticket prices at the NFL average, so instead of hikes, they'll take away games. Sucks but it's better than the LA Bills.

[orlandobillsfan]

bETTER START PISSING ! CUZ THEY ARE GONE WITHIN 5 YEARS, ITS A CERTAINTY LIKE HILLARY BEING THE NEXT PRESIDENT

[MAINMANMIKE]

I think the PACKERS played up to four games in Milwaukee a season for a few
years.That would really suck.
Im wondering what game will be played in Toronto.What if its late in the season and it has playoff implications?

[craigaharrington]

It's clear and simple, games in Toronto generate more interest and more profit.

If Ralph wants to sell the team to a local investor, that investor needs a relaive guarantee that the team will be profitable. This is a tactical effort to prove to investors that the Bills are worth buying "as is."

[jrober38]

What about all the Canadian season's ticket holders who may not even get a seat to the game (me). After tickets get sold to the Argo and Tigercat fans, they will be given to the Bills season's ticket holders in the form of a lottery. If I don't get tickets to the game after having been a season's ticket holder for almost 20 years, I am going to be so pissed.

And the thing is that I probably wont. I figure most CFL fans will subscribe for the tickets regardless of the cost, because worst case scenario they can make their money back in a second by selling them online. I work with an Argo's seasons ticket holder who pays $350 a year for 9 home games to the Argos, at the 25 yard line in the lower bowl. He will be able to get almost double that if he chooses to scalp the ticket online, paying for his Argo's seasons tickets, with one ticket to the Bills game in TO. Once the CFL fans get their tickets, there will be hardly any left for Bills fans. And I bet they put a limit on the number of tickets for Bills fans because they want them to go on sale to the public as well.

I understand trying to expand your fan base, but do it by giving Canadian season's ticket holders seats, so that they can bring people who might not have ever been to a game, and see what its truly like to be a Bills fan. In a situation like this, I would at least like a little thanks in the form of having a chance to get a seat, instead of a slap in the face for my 20 years of dedication to the Bills.

[ugo]

What about all the Canadian season's ticket holders who may not even get a seat to the game (me). After tickets get sold to the Argo and Tigercat fans, they will be given to the Bills season's ticket holders in the form of a lottery. If I don't get tickets to the game after having been a season's ticket holder for almost 20 years, I am going to be so pissed.

And the thing is that I probably wont. I figure most CFL fans will subscribe for the tickets regardless of the cost, because worst case scenario they can make their money back in a second by selling them online. I work with an Argo's seasons ticket holder who pays $350 a year for 9 home games to the Argos, at the 25 yard line in the lower bowl. He will be able to get almost double that if he chooses to scalp the ticket online, paying for his Argo's seasons tickets, with one ticket to the Bills game in TO. Once the CFL fans get their tickets, there will be hardly any left for Bills fans. And I bet they put a limit on the number of tickets for Bills fans because they want them to go on sale to the public as well.

I understand trying to expand your fan base, but do it by giving Canadian season's ticket holders seats, so that they can bring people who might not have ever been to a game, and see what its truly like to be a Bills fan. In a situation like this, I would at least like a little thanks in the form of having a chance to get a seat, instead of a slap in the face for my 20 years of dedication to the Bills.

Honestly they don't care about us, they don't need us to be there. They want those corporations that can't get leaf tickets to buy their overpriced tickets. I for one am not paying $2000 for five regular season games and 3 preseason games.

NFL is all about money. Say good by to Buffalo, and New Orleans when people forget about katrina, and Jacksonville.

Five years from now LA area has two teams and Toronto has a team.

[Canadian_Bills_Fan]

While all the Chicken Little posters are moaning about the Bills playing 8 of their games in Toronto over the next 5 years, there's one point many seem to be missing:
The NFL has made it clear that in the coming five years they want every team in the league to play at an international venue every season.
By locking in the Toronto games, the Bills have made certain that they wont have the huge, expensive, schedule-disrupting trips to Europe, Japan, Australia or South America.
Instead, the Bills will take a bus ride to Toronto and play a game in front of their own fans while building their home fan base.
Teams that play their games overseas might please a few fans in the host city and help the NFL in total, but they will be doing nothing to build their own fan base while paying huge expenses for costly and disruptive overseas travel.
This is a very smart move by the Bills and I'd bet that playing 1/8th of their home schedule in Toronto is no worse than the Packers playing one game a year in Milwaukee.

Agreed man, Toronto is barely an hour and half away from Buffalo, seriously, people are complaining about that? How'd you feel about the Bills playing in London, Rio de Janiero, Mexico City or Tokyo?

[BronxBomber21]

If this helps keep the Bills in Buffalo then I don't give a **** where the play. Them makeing this deal means Bill fans don't have to worry about the team moving every offseason for another 5 season by then hopfully Jim can buy this team.

[uncleted327]

Agreed man, Toronto is barely an hour and half away from Buffalo, seriously, people are complaining about that? How'd you feel about the Bills playing in London, Rio de Janiero, Mexico City or Tokyo?

Its an hour and a half away if you live on the border, I live another two hours further east of Orchard Park and I make it to every game. So why should people in Toronto get a home game every year when I live further away than they do? What makes them so special? Besides if they wanted to go to Bills games they would already be making the drive anyway. So where do we stop, lets play a game in Albany every year so people in Eastern New York will get interested, how about a game in Binghampton too so we can draw from Pennsylvania? Please the bottom line is Loyal current Bills fans are getting screwed out of a prime late season, possibly playoff deciding game every year. And people wonder why alot of people are getting pissed.