Canada's Octo Schedule

[Club Linesman]

Normally I would agree that almost every game would be in Toronto, but because of the uncertainty about fans in the stands and the fact that TO will most like have the most cases (even if it is decreasing), and what Ford will allow, it is a crapshoot to predict right now.  We need to have butts in the seats for these games and large media involvement.  The generated buzz for this team will lead to financial benefits that I assume we haven’t seen since 86.  These games better not be played in the US or it will cost us significantly in multiple ways.

[Addona]

One bad thing about our schedule is that we get the 2 giants away early, which means both will be looking for 3 points with high priority. The teams that get Mexico and the US very late, they may already be qualified and not as motivated.

[Yoginess]

I’m very happy we get to have the where should we play games debate again, it means we have meaningful games! 
 

As a Vancouverite I love games here but I’m fully on Team PlayGamesAtBMO weather/COVID dependant. 4 home games there and sprinkle the other 3 around. Last Canada game I went to was 2-0 vs USA. What a thrill

[Ivan]

22 minutes ago, Yoginess said:

I’m very happy we get to have the where should we play games debate again, it means we have meaningful games! 
 

As a Vancouverite I love games here but I’m fully on Team PlayGamesAtBMO weather/COVID dependant. 4 home games there and sprinkle the other 3 around. Last Canada game I went to was 2-0 vs USA. What a thrill

And the main point being, our fan interest aside, the players want the games at BMO.  Perfect grass pitch (although the Argos season is apparently happening), stadium amenities, easier travel in and out of Toronto, and a lot of the players are from the GTA.

[spinrack]

7 minutes ago, Ivan said:

And the main point being, our fan interest aside, the players want the games at BMO.  Perfect grass pitch (although the Argos season is apparently happening), stadium amenities, easier travel in and out of Toronto, and a lot of the players are from the GTA.

BMO Field holds no advantage over Stade Saputo, except for higher capacity.  Sure, there is player preference, but that should not matter so much.  And maybe less away fans, depending on the opponent.

Stade Saputo also has no chance of CFL scheduling conflict.

Edited June 16, 2021 by spinrack

[Corazon]

3 minutes ago, Ivan said:

And the main point being, our fan interest aside, the players want the games at BMO.  Perfect grass pitch (although the Argos season is apparently happening), stadium amenities, easier travel in and out of Toronto, and a lot of the players are from the GTA.

Just a quick stat - 11 of the 15 players that played yesterday are from Ontario.  Wotherspoon has no direct affiliation to a province.  Although Davies originally landed in Ontario, him Adekugbe and Kennedy are from Alberta.

Of the remaining 10 from the bench yesterday, 6 are from the Greater Toronto area.  Sturing with no direct affiliation to a province and then 3 from Quebec.

I would like to see some of the games distributed across the country but know some of the players and I know that they prefer playing at BMO over other stadiums.  Mind you, most players are from the Toronto area but I also think the the pitch is overall the best in the country.  I am from Toronto and selfishly, I will admit, I want as many games here as possible.  However, I also watched Toronto FC face Seattle in the MLS Cup final in December and it was unbearably cold that night.

 

[Yoginess]

10 hours ago, TGAA_Star said:

This is the schedule for our qualifying games in order via Canada Soccer IG account

1- Honduras (Home) (September 2nd, 2021)

2- USA (Away) (September 5th 2021)

3- El Salvador (Home) (September 8th 2021)

4- Mexico (Away) (October 7, 2021)

5- Jamaica (Away) (October 10, 2021)

6- Panama (Home) (October 13, 2021)

7- Costa Rica (Home) (November 2021)

8- Mexico (Home) (November 2021)

9- Honduras (Away) (January 27, 2022)

10- USA (Home) (January 30, 2022)

11- El Salvador (Away) (February 2nd, 2022)

12- Costa Rica (Away) (March 24th 2022)

13- Jamaica (Home) (March 27th 2022)

14- (Final matchday) Panama (Away) (March 30th 2022)

But exact dates are TBD still well in November anyway

Just looking at these dates for the Home Games

Honduras: has to be at BMO (or Saputo?) for Euro players. 3 games in a window, not going to fly another 4 hours to Vancouver for no reason

El Salvador: can be anywhere since away to US is close anyways in that second match of the window. Montreal? Vancouver? Moncton? 

Panama: 4 hour flight from Jamaica to Toronto vs 7 for Vancouver, gotta think this is BMO

Costa Rica: first game of the window, I'd guess BMO but can't recall if November is too risky for weather (maybe that's our advantage)

Mexico:  Same as above. My photo is from the last WCQ against Mexico in Vancouver. It was a pre-COVID world but I'd say about 20,000 Mexico fans came out (a lot were locals too). Maybe let's just throw a November game in Edmonton, Davies trained in snow up there ya? haha

USA: Got to be an indoor match for this one. Can't see it being anything other than BC Place. 

Jamaica: These 3 game windows have so much back and fourth. Similar to the panama game, it would add about 3-4 hours over 2 legs to do this one the west coast vs Toronto or Montreal. 

[Corazon]

7 minutes ago, spinrack said:

BMO Field holds no advantage over Stade Saputo, except for higher capacity.  Sure, there is player preference, but that should not matter so much.  And maybe less away fans, depending on the opponent.

Stade Saputo also has no chance of CFL scheduling conflict.

Although Toronto does have a largest Latin American population, Montreal will absolutely be filled with Latin American fans from Honduras, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador & Mexico.  Not that Toronto will be much different and than add Jamaica on top of that as well.  A blessing and curse for Canada.  Blessing to be such a diverse country (represented in our squad) and curse that we will almost always have a large contingent of local fans of opposing nations.

Edited June 16, 2021 by Corazon

[SpursFlu]

I have a question. Ill ask it the only way I know how. Has Toronto woken up? Will they show up? 16k for Davies home coming against the US was embarrassing we can all agree. 

If there are no restrictions, would the home opener against Honduras sell out or will they have to pay Drake to tweet about it or something. Be honest.. whats the vibe like out there? 

Edited June 16, 2021 by SpursFlu

[TGAA_Star]

How about playing in Winnipeg at IG Field or playing in Ottawa at TD Place for World Cup qualifiers 

[Ansem]

Don't know about you guys but the only place we should host Mexico and Costa Rica in November is ATCO Field in Calgary.

 

[TGAA_Star]

27 minutes ago, Yoginess said:

Just looking at these dates for the Home Games

Honduras: has to be at BMO (or Saputo?) for Euro players. 3 games in a window, not going to fly another 4 hours to Vancouver for no reason

El Salvador: can be anywhere since away to US is close anyways in that second match of the window. Montreal? Vancouver? Moncton? 

Panama: 4 hour flight from Jamaica to Toronto vs 7 for Vancouver, gotta think this is BMO

Costa Rica: first game of the window, I'd guess BMO but can't recall if November is too risky for weather (maybe that's our advantage)

Mexico:  Same as above. My photo is from the last WCQ against Mexico in Vancouver. It was a pre-COVID world but I'd say about 20,000 Mexico fans came out (a lot were locals too). Maybe let's just throw a November game in Edmonton, Davies trained in snow up there ya? haha

USA: Got to be an indoor match for this one. Can't see it being anything other than BC Place. 

Jamaica: These 3 game windows have so much back and fourth. Similar to the panama game, it would add about 3-4 hours over 2 legs to do this one the west coast vs Toronto or Montreal. 

Honduras- BMO Field (Toronto)

El Salvador- Olympic Stadium (Montreal)

Panama- BMO Field (Toronto)

Costa Rica- Commonwealth Stadium (Edmonton)

Mexico- Commonwealth Stadium (Edmonton)

USA- BC Place (Vancouver)

Jamaica- BMO Field (Toronto)

[narduch]

4 minutes ago, Ansem said:

Don't know about you guys but the only place we should host Mexico and Costa Rica in November is ATCO Field in Calgary.

 

So it will be either 15 C or -20 C.

[RS]

6 minutes ago, Ansem said:

Don't know about you guys but the only place we should host Mexico and Costa Rica in November is ATCO Field in Calgary.

 

 

2 minutes ago, narduch said:

So it will be either 15 C or -20 C.

And there will be (at least) 20 divots on the field.

Seriously, ATCO is the worst of the grass surfaces available in the country. Wanderers Grounds should be considered well ahead of ATCO, and both are far behind BMO and Saputo in terms of natural surfaces (and every other amenity).

[BrennanFan]

2 minutes ago, SpursFlu said:

I have a question. Ill ask it the only way I know how. Has Toronto woken up? Will they show up? 16k for Davies home coming against the US was embarrassing we can all agree. 

If there are no restrictions, would the home opener against Honduras sell out? Be honest.. whats the vibe like out there? 

Nations League was a tough sell, being the first edition of the competition, people didnt really know what it meant.  Everyone knows what World Cup qualifying is.

Assuming no restrictions...

The baseline for World Cup Qualifying games in Toronto against decent Concacaf teams since 2008, has been 18K-20K.  

I suspect the fact we are in the final round of qualifying would give us a bump up to 25K.  

If we play well in September, and the team generates a buzz, I'd expect we will start getting close to selling out (30K) against Panama in Oct.  I want to believe if we are in the mix, scoring goals and playing well, we will have sell outs for Costa Rica and Mexico in Nov.  

This is what happened last time around in Vancouver.  The Honduras win generates a buzz, and the next big game against Mex sells out. 

[Ansem]

1 minute ago, RS said:

 

And there will be (at least) 20 divots on the field.

Seriously, ATCO is the worst of the grass surfaces available in the country. Wanderers Grounds should be considered well ahead of ATCO, and both are far behind BMO and Saputo in terms of natural surfaces (and every other amenity).

The pitch can be improved

I think we should just make it a pain to play in Canada - Toronto or Montreal would be a walk in the park for Mexico while they enjoy hosting in altitude. Why not play in colder temperature...

Besides, the team needs to play in more locations otherwise - it won't grow its popularity nationwide. Can't be just the 3 cities all the time

 

[Obinna]

11 minutes ago, RS said:

 

And there will be (at least) 20 divots on the field.

Seriously, ATCO is the worst of the grass surfaces available in the country. Wanderers Grounds should be considered well ahead of ATCO, and both are far behind BMO and Saputo in terms of natural surfaces (and every other amenity).

Even as a Calgarian I must admit the surface at ATCO field would be dodgy in November. Would be a good venue for a random summer friendly at some point though, or the September window if the governments in other provinces have restrictions in place. Jurisdictions that allow fans should and probably would be favored over those which don't, but should Alberta be one such jurisdiction you'd think Commonwealth stadium would be ahead of ATCO field, unless we really don't want to play on that turf, I guess. 

@Ansem Yes where there is a will there is a way. The surface can be improved for an event of such a magnitude, but November is a big ask and even October could be trouble. 

Edited June 16, 2021 by Obinna

[BrennanFan]

1 minute ago, Ansem said:

The pitch can be improved

I think we should just make it a pain to play in Canada - Toronto or Montreal would be a walk in the park for Mexico while they enjoy hosting in altitude. Why not play in colder temperature...

Besides, the team needs to play in more locations otherwise - it won't grow its popularity nationwide. Can't be just the 3 cities all the time

 

Popularity will grow nationwide if the team is winning.  

Colder temperatures will not benefit us.  Never has.  Our players are simply not used to it.  It would offer no advantage. 

CPL fields do not have the facilities the team needs.  Non starter.

Lets accept our reality: the vast majority of these games will be played in Toronto.  The January game will be played in Vancouver due to the weather.  Montreal will get a game only if BMO is unavailable for whatever reason.  

[Obinna]

6 minutes ago, BrennanFan said:

Popularity will grow nationwide if the team is winning.  

Colder temperatures will not benefit us.  Never has.  Our players are simply not used to it.  It would offer no advantage. 

CPL fields do not have the facilities the team needs.  Non starter.

Lets accept our reality: the vast majority of these games will be played in Toronto.  The January game will be played in Vancouver due to the weather.  Montreal will get a game only if BMO is unavailable for whatever reason.  

I agree with this in general, but do we play at BMO if fans aren't allowed? Do we choose an unrestricted Commonwealth over a BMO artificially restricted to 15% capacity, for instance? 

The other factor regarding unrestricted secondary venues (anything not BMO/Saputo/BC Place) is demand. Commonwealth or IG field could technically be unrestricted, but if the demand sucks it may actually be better to go with a restricted BMO. 

Planning is going to be tricky for the CSA. I don't envy them.

Edited June 16, 2021 by Obinna

[jonovision]

6 minutes ago, BrennanFan said:

Popularity will grow nationwide if the team is winning.  

Colder temperatures will not benefit us.  Never has.  Our players are simply not used to it.  It would offer no advantage. 

CPL fields do not have the facilities the team needs.  Non starter.

Lets accept our reality: the vast majority of these games will be played in Toronto.  The January game will be played in Vancouver due to the weather.  Montreal will get a game only if BMO is unavailable for whatever reason.  

What facilities are these, exactly? Surely the CFL stadia in Winnipeg, Ottawa, and Hamilton would be well equipped. 

That said, I agree with your conclusion.

[BrennanFan]

2 minutes ago, Obinna said:

I agree with this in general, but do we play at BMO if fans aren't allowed? Do we choose an unrestricted Commonwealth over a BMO artificially restricted to 15% capacity, for instance? 

100% yes.  I hate to burst our bubble, but fan support is well down the priority list compared to reducing travel and jet lag, and surface quality. 

[SkuseisLoose]

2 minutes ago, BrennanFan said:

100% yes.  I hate to burst our bubble, but fan support is well down the priority list compared to reducing travel and jet lag, and surface quality. 

There's not a chance we're going to play a game in front of 0 fans just to save an hour or two on flight time. 

Edited June 16, 2021 by SkuseisLoose

[BrennanFan]

1 minute ago, jonovision said:

What facilities are these, exactly? Surely the CFL stadia in Winnipeg, Ottawa, and Hamilton would be well equipped. 

That said, I agree with your conclusion.

Training facilities with multiple fields, boardrooms for team sessions and video review, hotel close to the fields, all that stuff.

The team's usual training base in Nottawasaga, north of Toronto, has all of this.  

[Obinna]

Just now, BrennanFan said:

100% yes.  I hate to burst our bubble, but fan support is well down the priority list compared to reducing travel and jet lag, and surface quality. 

That's not the rhetoric coming from Herdman and the players. They seem to think fan support is of the upmost importance based on the post-game interviews. You may be right though, travel, jet lag and surface quality are definitely important. 

For all we know everything will be opened as per usual by September anyways, so it might all be moot. 

[Obinna]

@BrennanFan BC Place scores low on travel, jet lag and surface, which shows those factors are not the end all, be all. We also had friendlies scheduled for Westhills stadium, don't forget.