Bills pre-season game in Hogtown moved back to Orchard Park

[R.J]

http://www.tsn.ca/nfl/story/?id=388432

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- There's growing optimism the Buffalo Bills will renew their deal to play games in Toronto beyond this season.

And Bills fans shouldn't worry about losing more than one regular-season game a year north of the border.

That was the message delivered by Rogers Communications Media president Keith Pelley on Tuesday.

"We continue to have dialogue, just as we did at the Super Bowl in Indy, and we're optimistic that an agreement could be reached," Pelley said. "We're definitely interested in continuing the relationship with the Bills in Toronto."

Pelley wouldn't provide specifics on the length or terms of a potential extension to the existing five-year deal, but did say Rogers is not looking to expand the number of regular-season games the Bills play in Toronto.

"No," he said. "At this point, without getting into any details of the conversation, I think that it would be a deal that would that would certainly work for both sides.

"We're not looking to increase the number of games."

That's a switch from before, when Rogers vice chairman Phil Lind expressed interest in Toronto hosting more than one regular-season game.

The Bills-In-Toronto series enters its final year after the team and Rogers negotiated a five-year, US$78 million agreement in 2008 to have the Bills play five annual regular-season and three preseason games at Toronto's Rogers Centre.

Though talks are ongoing, it's expected the new deal would be similar to the existing contract.

Bills owner Ralph Wilson said in December he's optimistic an extension would be reached, while adding Rogers is asking to cut ticket prices, which could reduce the overall value of the deal.

For the Bills, the series has served as an opportunity for the team to expand its market into Canada's largest city and financial capital. For Rogers, it was regarded as an opportunity to bring the NFL to Toronto, and for the communications giant to build ties with North America's most lucrative sport.

The series has so far paid off for the Bills, who have experienced a significant boost in season-ticket sales from fans in southern Ontario, who now represent about 15 per cent of the team's base.

On Tuesday, Bills CEO Russ Brandon noted negotiations with Rogers were under way.

"Our core goal is to continue to regionalize our franchise," Brandon said, "and continue our series in Toronto, which has served us so well."

The Bills announced Tuesday they are losing their preseason game at Toronto this summer as a result of scheduling conflicts at Rogers Centre. The preseason game will now be played at Orchard Park.

The Bills will still play their scheduled regular-season game at Toronto, which will be determined once the NFL schedule is released in the next two months.

Pelley said he offered the preseason game back to the Bills because Rogers Centre was running out of open dates in August. The Blue Jays have a lengthy 10-game homestand that spans two weekends, and Pelley said another event that has yet to be announced has been added to the calendar.

Pelley called the series a chance for Rogers to bring a premium event to Toronto, and showcase the Bills.

"The bottom line is, the Bills are premium content, and that's what we're obviously looking to bring to Rogers Centre," Pelley said, noting Rogers has a "terrific" relationship with the Bills. "It's a complete partnership, and that's what we've tried to build.

"And if we are to be successful in extending the deal, then the partnership will get stronger."

Pelley did acknowledge some hiccups, and added Rogers is still attempting to address fans' concerns Ontario laws are more strict in limiting their ability to tailgate the same way they can at Ralph Wilson Stadium.

Another issue has been the price of tickets, which initially averaged about $180. Rogers has responded by offering more than 10,000 tickets for under $100.

The Bills also announced Tuesday there will be no increase to their season-ticket prices, and have dropped prices for certain sections by as much as $15 per seat for the upcoming season.

The Bills already had among the NFL's lowest ticket prices. And they're coming off a season in which they failed to sell out their final three home games last year.

The team's season-ticket base dropped to 37,555 last year, down from 44,000 the previous season. The Bills blamed the drop on the NFL lockout wiping out most of the off-season, when the team generates most of its sales.

"Everyone in the organization is committed to building upon our strong foundation," Brandon said, "and taking a significant step forward this year."

A bit more info. was added.

[Ron]

This should be in the Sports Board section as it has nothing to do with the Argos or CFL.

[argonaut11xx]

The "annouced crowds" are just a wee-bit inflated...

[ArgoRavi]

I wonder if Rogers is getting a refund on this one game.

[1argoholic]

Bills and Rogers blow!

[Invader]

The ticket distribution projections for that exhibition game were probably so poor the NFL had no choice but to pull the game out of Toronto. At least in Buffalo they could draw 40,000 paying customers and avoid an embarrassment to the league. According to Rogers, ticket distribution for the last exhibition game dropped 11,000 from the first game. In contrast to the International NFL success in London (which didn't sellout this year) and Mexico City, the Bills in Toronto series has been the NFL's biggest blunder since the stillborn Shanghai game (which was canceled, not because of poor ticket sales but so the NFL could "concentrate" on the London game).

Rogers already paid $9.5 million for that exhibition game. If Ralph Wilson is feeling kindly, he might turn over some of the ticket revenue from the game to Rogers...but I wouldn't bank on it. Rogers must be so thankful they won't have to paper 40,000 seats again, they probably gave the game back for free.

[ArgoRavi]

The ticket distribution projections for that exhibition game were probably so poor the NFL had no choice but to pull the game out of Toronto. At least in Buffalo they could draw 40,000 paying customers and avoid an embarrassment to the league. According to Rogers, ticket distribution for the last exhibition game dropped 11,000 from the first game. In contrast to the International NFL success in London (which didn't sellout this year) and Mexico City, the Bills in Toronto series has been the NFL's biggest blunder since the stillborn Shanghai game (which was canceled, not because of poor ticket sales but so the NFL could "concentrate" on the London game).

Rogers already paid $9.5 million for that exhibition game. If Ralph Wilson is feeling kindly, he might turn over some of the ticket revenue from the game to Rogers...but I wouldn't bank on it. Rogers must be so thankful they won't have to paper 40,000 seats again, they probably gave the game back for free.

Who would buy a ticket for a Bills preseason game in Toronto? You would have to be a complete idiot to do so with all of the freebies floating about. In fact, I would question why anyone would buy a ticket for a Bills regular season game in Toronto given all of the heavily discounted tickets that are out there.

[argolio]

Scheduling conflicts -- that's a good one.

[llb9977]

The dream is over , lol

[R.J]

Pelley on Prime Time Sports http://www.fan590.com/ondemand/media...21_174839_4840

[argonaut11xx]

arrggghhhh...i really liked Pelley when he was with the Argo's, his drive and compassion were commendable...after listening to this interveiw...its pretty obvious he is nothing but one of the SHEEP..being controlled by the rogers media empire, and the finaciers who control this market

[R.J]

Bill Lankhof of the Toronto Sun wrote this. http://www.torontosun.com/2012/02/22/bye-bye-bills

[R.J]

Dave Naylor on the Bryan Hayes show http://iphone.tsn.ca/tsnpodcasts/DaveNaylor_022212.mp3

[argolio]

So I guess it's safe to say there will only be regular season games if they renew this deal. The Bills might agree to a small discount from the current $10 million/game but I'm sure Rogers is pushing for a pretty big one.

[T-Bone]

If the deal is extended with the Bills does that eliminate the grass for the Jays?

[ArgoRavi]

If the deal is extended with the Bills does that eliminate the grass for the Jays?

I am guessing that all of the Bills games would be in November and December following the Jays' season so Beeston and Pelley won't have a problem with them playing on the Jays' grass.

[T-Bone]

I am guessing that all of the Bills games would be in November and December following the Jays' season so Beeston and Pelley won't have a problem with them playing on the Jays' grass.

But one of the issues with the grass being there was that the seating could not be converted to football format because of it. However in the off season would the grass be removed somehow?

[Ticats85]

Heres what the bonehead Greg Brady and the former CFL supporter Jim Lang had to say on their show about the bills in T.O http://pmd.fan590.com/podcasts/brady...(7am-hour).mp3

[R.J]

Brady just peeves me off, never knew the Argos/CFL only had 11 fans in Toronto. While I do believe an NFL Toronto team would do extremely well in the beginning, but I doubt it could sustain itself over the years. Let alone the big 4 networks and Espn are not going to want to pay for a Canadian team, the NFL has seen what the NBA and MLB looks like and they don't want that. The NFL is growing enough as is in this country and a team in Toronto could actually hurt them more then help em. Brady is a douche and Lang disgusts me for being the turncoat he is.

[argolio]

I don't get what Sportsnet sees in those two tools other than being total corporate yes-men.