Can Toronto Sustain an NFL Team
 

With all the recent news today about the talks going on between the CFL and NFL making it easier for the CFL if/when a NFL team comes to Toronto, do you think Toronto could even sustain an NFL team? I think it could, it's the biggest market outside of LA that doesn't have an NFL team, and I believe in the next 10 years it should for sure. I can't wait to see how things go once the Buffalo Bills go on the market..

Here's a link to a new article today about the recent news: News Story

about as good as they do their baseball team :)

I doubt they will be able to.

There is always a chance! Let's face it, The Raptors found a way to convert Torontonian Traffic. An NFL franchise would be most welcome in our wannabe World Class City in Waiting.

Toronto is the 4th largest city in the US and Canada

New York, LA, Chicago and then Toronto

Toronto can EASILY support an NFL anyone who says otherwise has no clue about the city.

But with the CFL here which is 100 years old (older then the NFL) we will never get a team. So I am not even dreaming of getting an NFL anytime soon.

For sure it can. But will it ever happen? Toronto is probably a better choice than many US cities. I wonder if the Bills would fight against it though as it will pull from their fan base.

They can barely handle a baseball team.

No it cannot becuz the NFL is fueled by U.S television contracts and unless Toronto gets part of those revenues. it could never sustain it.

That's because no one cares about baseball anymore. It's by far the most boring "sport" out there. And we did used to sell out the dome game after game when baseball was still fun and the guys weren't being paid ridiculously huge sums of money to sit on their ass or stand around waiting for something to happen.

You can not compare baseball to football. It is like comparing apples to a dead bolt lock...they are completely different. Dave is right in that Toronto is a big city by North American standards, we have enough people living in Toronto and the GTA to support an NFL team if it ever happens. The catch will eventually be what will happen to the Argos fan base if we do get a team and where are the going to play?

Bring it on, the Alouettes are waiting ;-)

With the current exchange rates, I think that Canada can support 2 or 3 NFL teams, likely Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal. The CFL games in Montreal attract 20,000+ fans per game, and that is for CFL football. With NFL teams coming into Canada and US national TV coverage, I would expect those numbers would go way up.

I think though that Canada should be more interested to get NHL hockey back to Winnipeg and Quebec City first.

Does the average Canadian sports fan care more about the NFL or CFL???

While Toronto could easily sustain a time, but I doubt iit'll never happen. There will be outcry from both sides of the border, and I'm sure there'll be a huge push to keep any and all NFL teams in the US.

I'm a diehard Argo/CFL fan. I don't watch the NFL at all because Toronto doesn't have a team.

I'm not about to follow a NFL team that I can never go see live.

But taking over the Bills is a terrible idea. We need a half decent team or people will not care and they will fold withing 5 yrs.

We need a winning NFL team within 5 yrs

Toronto can easily support an NFL team, they support well their soccer team, baseball team and hockey team. NFL here would be awesome.

and btw, in Europe some much smaller cities support 3-4 soccer teams, example Lisbon, Portugal with about 4 big league soccer teams and a population of only about 1.2 million

I have been a bills fan for over 30 years. For the past 10 years thats all we have heard about is how the team could move to Toronto. The team for the most part has been terrible for a long time but still sells out one of the biggest stadiums in the league (and we are a small market).

Would Toronto stand behind a team that doesn't perform well year after year? I seriously have my doubts that Toronto fans would show up 79k strong week after week for a bad team. I am sure they could afford to but I doubt they would.

They would... they love NFL here dude... all my friends are HUGE NFL fans, no one I know watches CFL regardless of what they tell you... an NFL team here would be a sellout allt he time

They can, but doubt there will be a NFL team in Canada

It's only a matter of time. MLB, NBA and MLS found homes here, NFL will too.

It's not only about who will support the Toronto Team, but don't forget there are thousands of people in the GTA who already cheer for an NFL team, they will come out to the games just to see there favorite team play.

I think a team could definitely work here.

lol....I guess you don't follow the Toronto Maple Leafs

Everyone already knows that the CFL is only a waiting room for the NFL. They just get the guys who can't make it in the NFL or the scumbags that get kicked out.

Sure they can but the NFL won't allow it

Don't go and start throwing reality at these people. They're under the impression that Toronto contains porn webmasters, strip clubs and random wolves in the streets at night because of the complete lack of people.

No way we'd have a city larger than ones in the USA... :1orglaugh

they have a team stick with that

about as well as vancouver sustained a basketball team

...and Americans should concentrate on putting football back in LA.

we have a CFL team... the CFL bites Dave.

No offense but Toronto and Vancouver are in no comparison when talking about supporting a Sport.

first Vancouver did support the Grizzlies - their attendance was far from the worst in the NBA - the Grizzlies had the WORST fucking management ever and the NBA fucked over both the Raptors and Grizzlies by not letting them have top draft picks like every other expansion team that had ever been in the NBA - Orlando in its first two years picked #1 and got Shaq and Penny Hardaway. Poor Vancouver had to pick Bryant Big Country Reeves and Toronto did marginally better with Damon Stoudamire. Vancouver had a piece of shit owner too. Raptors are one of the better supported teams in the NBA.

NFL in Toronto is inevitable as long as the Canadian dollar remains abover 90 cents US. Rogers Center is not acceptable to the NFL - it's too small. A new stadium has to be built for the NFL - the franchise itself is at least a billion. When the dollar was shitty it was just too big a pricetag even for Rogers - close to 2 Billion in Canadian. Now it's doable.

Buffalo sadly when Ralph Wilson dies will likely lose the Bills - I dearly hope not - not to Toronto not to anybody. I am hoping the Jacobs family buys the Bills from Ralph's estate and keeps them in Buffalo. Toronto will get an expansion team or some owner looking for greener pastures or a huge payday to sell.

I can't see why not, question is will the NFL league owners allow it?

biggest market in Canada, don't see why not

I am a Sabres fan. I know the leafs well they have an excellent following but you are talking about a different sport. Not to mention stadium sizes. A good 60k difference.

I agree 100% and this is why I answered no.