I AM F'N LIVID!

[Bill Brasky]

Season-ticket holders of the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats will get first priority to buy tickets for eight Buffalo Bills games that will be played at Rogers Centre in Toronto over the next five years.

tickets would average out at $250 and that fans would have to buy the entire multi-year package and pay for them upfront.

tickets would be dispersed by a lottery format that would include Toronto and Hamilton season-ticket subscribers.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080131.BILLS31/TPStory/

http://torontosun.com/Sports/Football/2008/01/31/4803704-sun.html

[Dr. Lecter]

I expeced something like this. The point of going to Toronto is expand the fan base and is, unfortanetly, probably the only way this team has any chance of staying here.

The Bill absolutely must be able to sell more suites. They did not sell out their luxury boxes last year, despite them being amongst the lowest prices in the NFL. Teams need that revenue to be fucntional in today's NFL, since it is unshared.

I don't like it anymore than you do, but I really think you are over-racting here. With the seating capacity in the SkyDome, giving Bills ticket holders first crack would, in essence, make the reason for the game meaningless.

BTW, the NFL is driving this bus and making decisions.

[Forward_Lateral]

Bills season ticket holders will also get first crack. I heard it yesterday and read it today on tsn.ca

[Forward_Lateral]

The Fan also reported tickets would be done via lottery, with first crack going to Argos and Ticats season-ticket holders, then Bills season-ticket holders. The average price would reportedly be C$250 a game and fans would have to purchase all eight tickets and pay for them upfront.

[Jan Reimers]

Wouldn't you think that loyal Argo and Ti-Cat season ticket holders would get first priority in Toronto?

We have sold this game to Canadian interests (or the NFL?), and it is therefore their perogative as to ticket sales and distribution.

[ddaryl]

You want the Bills to stay in Buffalo you better be willing to open up the area and allow others to become hardcore fans.

This is economics. If you are that livid about this situation then you need to tell the Bills to increase ticket prices $20 per ticket per game.

But then watch what happens. The Bills WILL NOT SURVIVE IN BUFFALO unless these types of desperate measures are enacted... this is fact.

[Dr. Lecter]

Link to TSN (http://www.tsn.ca/nfl/news_story/?ID=228553&hubname=)

The sources said the Bills will play a regular-season game at Rogers Centre in 2008 after the CFL season, avoiding possible conflicts with both the Argos and Ticats. As part of that deal, season-ticket holders with both clubs will be given some sort of priority at purchasing tickets to Buffalo's game here.
However, The Fan 590, a Toronto all-sports radio station, reported the Bills' agreement only ensures that the 2008 game won't conflict with the CFL schedule and that it wasn't clear whether that stipulation would also apply to the other four years of the deal.
The Fan also reported tickets would be done via lottery, with first crack going to Argos and Ticats season-ticket holders, then Bills season-ticket holders. The average price would reportedly be C$250 a game and fans would have to purchase all eight tickets and pay for them upfront.

[patmoran2006]

The games will all be in December.. meaning a lot of bills fans in Buffalo won't get a chance to see the team play a potential home game that could decide their playoff fate.

I hate this ****.. There has to be another way. Doesn't really matter what I think now though, it's already a done deal. Unfortunately, I think the Bills sticking around in Buffalo past the next five years is as well.

[Bill Brasky]

I expeced something like this. The point of going to Toronto is expand the fan base and is, unfortanetly, probably the only way this team has any chance of staying here.

The Bill absolutely must be able to sell more suites. They did not sell out their luxury boxes last year, despite them being amongst the lowest prices in the NFL. Teams need that revenue to be fucntional in today's NFL, since it is unshared.

I don't like it anymore than you do, but I really think you are over-racting here. With the seating capacity in the SkyDome, giving Bills ticket holders first crack would, in essence, make the reason for the game meaningless.

BTW, the NFL is driving this bus and making decisions.
Look man, I totally understand their reasoning for doing a game in TOR.

What irritates me is:

1 - It's the BUFFALO BILLS, not the TORONTO BILLS. I pay for my season tickets, and have for years. If you want to move the game, so be it, but HOW DARE THEY give priority to Toronto fans over us. If I was a season ticket holder over the course of several decades like some of you, this would be the end for me. This is a HUGE slap in the face to our current season ticket base - basically, we are worthless to them. This team has been SO BAD for SO LONG no businesses want to invest in box seats to watch a team score 2 fg's and win a handful of games, now the "regular joe" season ticket holder pays the price. F THAT!

2 - Nobody said this was a 5 year deal, raping us of 8 total games. This is completely unfair. 31 teams in the league get 8 home games and 2 preseason games, but Buffalo fans get screwed out of 1-2 per year?

The NFL should be embarassed at the way they treat this franchise. Our owner has ran this franchise in the ground by not paying for talent or putting winning teams on the field. Yet the fans continue to sell out for a team that hasn't won anything of significance in over a decade... and now this?

BLATANT DISRESPECT to people that have been forking over thousands of dollars for years on end... thanks for leaving us in the dark Ralph, Toronto, and the NFL.

[Forward_Lateral]

Freeman, Bills season ticket holders get priority too. What's the big deal?

[Dr. Lecter]

Freeman, the point is this team can no longer survive on us and us alone. They have to expand how regional this team is. They have to make this venture as appealling to Toronto and the associated Canadians as possible. They have to expand the team up to the much larger Toronto market as well.

nobody is syaing we are worthless; rather that the support is no longer enough. Again, it is not about season tickets, It is about attracting real money from businesses and luxury suites. Season ticket holders do not support an NFL financially to any great extent. The reality of today's NFL is that the big money (suites and the such) has to be rolling in. The Bills sold 156 of 160 boxes last year. That will nto work whatsoever.

Also, we knew this was a multi-year deal. I did not know how long, but am not shocked.

Again, it is not pleasant, but much better than the realistic alternative.

[Bill Brasky]

Freeman, Bills season ticket holders get priority too. What's the big deal?
Ask Sabres fans how that worked for the Ice Bowl.

You don't forsee a bunch of morons gobbling up all the tickets before Bills fans even get a crack? Give me a break.

This franchise has survived for upwards of 50 years with little to no help from Toronto fans. All the sudden they're the savior... if we give them one game it's going to intice them to trek to Buffalo for the other 7 games? Especially with the garbage that Wilson puts on the field? You guys really believe that this is going to help sell luxury boxes? Don't you think if Toronto businesses wanted in on the action they would have done so at some point over the past 15 years?

We can't even get people from the suburbs to come watch this crap team. What rock are you people living under?

[Forward_Lateral]

Then stay home. Nobody is putting a gun to your head FORCING you to buy the package. Also, you failed to mention the part about season ticket holders not having to pay for 8 games in Buffalo, only 7. You don't lose ANYTHING on this deal.

[Dr. Lecter]

Ask Sabres fans how that worked for the Ice Bowl.

You don't forsee a bunch of morons gobbling up all the tickets before Bills fans even get a crack? Give me a break.

All Sabres season ticket holders got tickets to that game.

And the comparison is two totally different situations, especially when you are talking about ponying up $2,000 a seat upfront.

[Bill Brasky]

You don't lose ANYTHING on this deal.
I LOSE A HOME GAME. I lose a weekend watching the team. I lose a weekend hanging out with friends/family/having a good time. I don't care that I don't have to pay for it, the money is not the point for me... the point is that this is a home game we no longer have at the expense of luxury boxes and appeasing CFL fans. It's complete and utter garbage.

Also - this is going to be a late season game... that works out really f'n well if the team is in the playoff hunt. Play a game with playoff implications in the skydome in front of Argo fans. It's all rainbows right now, but watch people like myself come out of the woodwork if that becomes the case.

[DMBcrew36]

If this is what it is going to take to increase the team's long term viability and revenues, so be it. If this is what we must do to keep our team, then I'm all for it. It sucks, but they're still OUR team. Sometimes sacrifices must be made.

[Pride]

As long as they arent AFCE games... I dont care.

[Bill Brasky]

hypothetical situation here

after the decade long losing streak we're on, let's say this coming season the bills are in the playoff hunt. say they are sitting at 9-5 with 1 home remaining. this game ultimately being the toronto game.

i guess i don't see how it's remotely fair that argo and ticat fans will get priority over us to see this team clinch a playoff birth after buffalo fans have sat in **** weather waiting for upwards of a decade.

[Jeff1220]

The idea for a Canadian game is also a positive for reaching more fans in that it will give the Bills much needed national (international) exposure each year. Look at all the hype that surrounded the relatively meaningless Phins/Giants game in London. Even if it's as close to us as Canada, it's still an international game and the NFL will hype the crap out of it each year. I'd be surprised if this game isn't slotted for prime time, with extra NFLN and ESPN coverage to boot.

[Bill Brasky]

it will give the Bills much needed national (international) exposure each year
international exposure - it might be a great thing for the NFL, but will it really get people from london, africa, or australia to come into buffalo to watch bills games? i don't see how media hype is gonna help this team. whenever we're on a national platform the NFL sets us up to play NE or some other powerhouse that ultimately blows us out of the water making us more of a laughing stock than we already are.

[don137]

Reality is Buffalo and WNY economy is not strong enough to have the Bills charge even close to the league average NFL ticket price. The Bills charge one of the lowest ticket prices in the league because they realize they could not fill the stadium if they charged even the average ticket price. Some Bills fans do not realize how cheap it is to go to a game or have season tickets.
Check out other NFL cities where ALL season ticket holders have to spend thousands of dollars on Personal Seat Licenses just for the right to buy season tickets. If you don't pay for your season tickets then you lose your PSL.
The Bills want to stay in Buffalo but need to expand its revenue to compete or else soon there will be no team. Last I checked seven home games is a lot better than zero home games and no team.

[Bill Brasky]

The Bills charge one of the lowest ticket prices in the league because they realize they could not fill the stadium if they charged even the average ticket price.

or because the team blows for years and years on end. if this team was winning, i'd pay more. i'm sure others feel the same.

[hydro]

Could always watch it on TV like 99% of the fan base does.

[don137]

or because the team blows for years and years on end. if this team was winning, i'd pay more. i'm sure others feel the same.

Just because you can afford it does not mean every season ticket holder can afford it. Its basic economics of supply and demand. The higher the prices the less demand. No team does well every season (except for New England) so what are the Bills going to do the time they have a bad year drop there prices again so people will buy the tickets?

[Bill Brasky]

Just because you can afford it does not mean every season ticket holder can afford it. Its basic economics of supply and demand. The higher the prices the less demand. No team does well every season (except for New England) so what are the Bills going to do the time they have a bad year drop there prices again so people will buy the tickets?
tell it to the sabres fans that had no problem shelling out a grand or two for tickets. or a couple hundred for the ice bowl. or bills fans dumping three-four times above face for the dallas game. bs excuse that doesn't hold water. people here will spend money on a winner. the problem is the bills don't win.

i don't buy the weather excuse either. this team was solid in the 90's and fans CRAVED late december games. why? because they were winning. now it's a cop out for people to use the bad weather excuse simply because they aren't winning.

[THATHURMANATOR]

I am honestly not pissed at all Freeman.

If they are going to host a game in Toronto what would be the point if all the Bills fans in Buffalo bought all the tickets? How would that help market them in Toronto?

It sucks for sure but I am looking at this as Thurm gets 5 years of Road trips to Toronto to party it up.

[THATHURMANATOR]

It will be a joke though if the game is a meaningful late season game and Stupid Canadian fans don't cheer correctly. That Will make me livid.

[hammerbillsfan]

Stupid Canadian fans

thanks THURM, that really helps :rolleyes:

[Bill Brasky]

If they are going to host a game in Toronto what would be the point if all the Bills fans in Buffalo bought all the tickets? How would that help market them in Toronto?

I don't know, it's our team not there's? They're not the ones that have supported the team for the last 5 decades. They should come here if they're so into the franchise and have a vested interest, not the other way around.

[raphael120]

The way I see it, Buffalo has no room to complain...it's give up one game a season, or give up the team. No games. Period. It's the harsh reality of what's going on but it is what it is.

[THATHURMANATOR]

I don't know, it's our team not there's? They're not the ones that have supported the team for the last 5 decades. They should come here if they're so into the franchise and have a vested interest, not the other way around.
I agree Freeman but in todays climate we have to do what we have to do to keep the team. 7 games is better than 0 right?

[THATHURMANATOR]

The way I see it, Buffalo has no room to complain...it's give up one game a season, or give up the team. No games. Period. It's the harsh reality of what's going on but it is what it is.
I am with you on this.

[THATHURMANATOR]

thanks THURM, that really helps :rolleyes:
You know what I mean Hammer. Of course there are great Bills fans like yourself but honestly are you going to tell me that if the game is a very important late season game you would be confident that a Toronto crowd would cheer correctly? Maybe they would but I would be nervous.

[Bill Brasky]

I agree Freeman but in todays climate we have to do what we have to do to keep the team. 7 games is better than 0 right?
I guess it doesn't matter, really. Once the team is for sale, they'll probably move there for good, so in the end we'll end up with 0 games anyways. This whole "it's only 1 game" gimmick is only the asphalt for a road leaving town. But as long as those boxes are filled with unpassionate Toronto businessmen it's all good. That one game will really light a fire under their ass to come to Buffalo 7 more times a year.

They're doing this to increase revenue, right? So I guess when Toronto fans all the sudden get Bills Fever and start coming to the Ralph the prices will rise and the Ralph will be Skydome 1-A... you know, since people in Buffalo are so poor they won't be able to afford it.

[Wys Guy]

Season-ticket holders of the Toronto Argonauts and Hamilton Tiger-Cats will get first priority to buy tickets for eight Buffalo Bills games that will be played at Rogers Centre in Toronto over the next five years.

tickets would average out at $250 and that fans would have to buy the entire multi-year package and pay for them upfront.

tickets would be dispersed by a lottery format that would include Toronto and Hamilton season-ticket subscribers.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080131.BILLS31/TPStory/

http://torontosun.com/Sports/Football/2008/01/31/4803704-sun.html

And what do you think will happen when they find out that even at greater prices the demand exceeds what it does in Buffalo, and that they don't need to consistently sell 20K tickets to fans of opposing teams?

The writing's on the wall.

Meanwhile, where's the fans' best friend, Mr. Ralph Wilson on this?

Feigning senility no doubt. Anyone wonder why he's kept such a low profile yea these past 18 months or so?

billszone.com = shipoffools.com sometimes.

[Bill Brasky]

And what do you think will happen when they find out that even at greater prices the demand exceeds what it does in Buffalo, and that they don't need to consistently sell 20K tickets to fans of opposing teams?

the fact that nearly everyone is failing to comprehend this makes me laugh cry and hurl at once.

blind mice running around this board failing to see the long term issues.

[hammerbillsfan]

You know what I mean Hammer. Of course there are great Bills fans like yourself but honestly are you going to tell me that if the game is a very important late season game you would be confident that a Toronto crowd would cheer correctly? Maybe they would but I would be nervous.

Makes me think about that wine and cheese party when Buffalo played in Washington this season. Their fans had no clue what to do cause most of them are coporate snobs.

[Wys Guy]

Reality is Buffalo and WNY economy is not strong enough to have the Bills charge even close to the league average NFL ticket price. The Bills charge one of the lowest ticket prices in the league because they realize they could not fill the stadium if they charged even the average ticket price. Some Bills fans do not realize how cheap it is to go to a game or have season tickets.
Check out other NFL cities where ALL season ticket holders have to spend thousands of dollars on Personal Seat Licenses just for the right to buy season tickets. If you don't pay for your season tickets then you lose your PSL.
The Bills want to stay in Buffalo but need to expand its revenue to compete or else soon there will be no team. Last I checked seven home games is a lot better than zero home games and no team.


Just because you can afford it does not mean every season ticket holder can afford it. Its basic economics of supply and demand. The higher the prices the less demand. No team does well every season (except for New England) so what are the Bills going to do the time they have a bad year drop there prices again so people will buy the tickets?

Don't bring your negative economic stuff in here don. No one wants to hear it!


Some people just do not get it. I have said it before and I will say it again. Sports is an outlet for most people from the real world. There is so much negativity and hatred in the world I never understand why some individuals want to bring all their negativity and hatred into sports.

Besides, sports is like a game of golf, right.


There is no guarantee that the Bills will or will not turn it around next year but most fans want to look at the positive and enjoy "what might be" instead of doom and gloom.

Being a sports fan is like playing golf. Sure I have more bad shots then good shots but the good shots keep me coming back.

So quit bringing who can afford tickets and who can't into the equation. Don't your doom and gloom economic factors into it. Most fans want to look, at the positive and enjoy "what might be" instead of doom and gloom.

Or are you exempt from delivering that doom and gloom regardless of how blatant it is now?

[hammerbillsfan]

$250 a game? what the ****?!?!?!

[Wys Guy]

$250 a game? what the ****?!?!?!

The force is strong in this one!

I'm sensing negativity here hammer! Tsk, tsk!

People just don't want to hear it!

[Jan Reimers]

Don't bring your negative economic stuff in here don. No one wants to hear it!



Besides, sports is like a game of golf, right.



So quit bringing who can afford tickets and who can't into the equation. Don't your doom and gloom economic factors into it. Most fans want to look, at the positive and enjoy "what might be" instead of doom and gloom.

Or are you exempt from delivering that doom and gloom regardless of how blatant it is now?
Watch out, don. You dared disagree with his opinions - which are always superior to the rest of us - so he's on the warpath now

[hammerbillsfan]

Nobody with Tiger-Cats or Argos season tickets is going to pay over $2000 for a block of Bills games, I can tell you that.
I payed under $200 for season tickets with the Tiger-Cats.
The scale is way off!

[THATHURMANATOR]

Reality is Buffalo and WNY economy is not strong enough to have the Bills charge even close to the league average NFL ticket price. The Bills charge one of the lowest ticket prices in the league because they realize they could not fill the stadium if they charged even the average ticket price. Some Bills fans do not realize how cheap it is to go to a game or have season tickets.
Check out other NFL cities where ALL season ticket holders have to spend thousands of dollars on Personal Seat Licenses just for the right to buy season tickets. If you don't pay for your season tickets then you lose your PSL.
The Bills want to stay in Buffalo but need to expand its revenue to compete or else soon there will be no team. Last I checked seven home games is a lot better than zero home games and no team.
Unfortunately I agree again!

[Wys Guy]

You want the Bills to stay in Buffalo you better be willing to open up the area and allow others to become hardcore fans.

This is economics. If you are that livid about this situation then you need to tell the Bills to increase ticket prices $20 per ticket per game.

But then watch what happens. The Bills WILL NOT SURVIVE IN BUFFALO unless these types of desperate measures are enacted... this is fact.

The thing is ddaryl that if the demand for NFL football is what I suspect it will be up there, then the demand and potential for team revenue will dwarf what it is here and the team will simply move there.

From the article:

"The Bills attract a solid group of fans from southern Ontario, between 10,000 and 15,000 a game, depending on the opponent. Metro Toronto boasts a population of about five million people, compared to 1.25 million for the metro Buffalo area. Another factor, too, is the strength of the Canadian dollar and the health of the southern Ontario economy compared to the economic sluggishness plaguing Western New York.

That has prompted many to see the Bills' plan as the first step toward relocating to the richer, more financially appealing Toronto marketplace. Wilson, 89, fanned those flames last summer when he announced he wouldn't sell the Buffalo franchise in his lifetime but that it would be sold to the highest bidder upon his death."

That's from 25% to nearly 40% of the existing season ticket base here. Not saying that all those people are ST holders, but many may be. What I am saying is that all they'd have to do is slightly more than double that figure to match, perenially, what we put up here for STs.

Suppose for a second, and IMO it's a great supposition, it is validated that there would be an instant demand for 50-60K STs or more up there, which IMO is a shoe in in a market four to five times the size of Buffalo's in the States, which would appeal to a potential buyer more, continuing to host a game or two or several up there, or simply moving the team to where there are no more issues in this way?

The only way that doesn't unfold as such is if the demand for NFL football in Ontario is low. I simply don't see that happening given what it is for MLB and the NBA. There's far more money in Toronto too, the financial capital of Canada, than there is in the entire WNY region put together. And unlike WNY they don't have their economic engine in reverse.

It's not a happy scenario, but for those interested in reality, the writing's clearly on the wall. Any new owner could clearly easily put all the games in Toronto if he/she/they wanted to. The tougher thing would be having them in LA or elsewhere w/ a five-year contract w/ Toronto, or more.

[Wys Guy]

Nobody with Tiger-Cats or Argos season tickets is going to pay over $2000 for a block of Bills games, I can tell you that.
I payed under $200 for season tickets with the Tiger-Cats.
The scale is way off!

You've been living in Buffalo for too long.

Certain season tickets with PSLs etc. go for even more than that elsewhere now in the NFL.

[Bill Brasky]

guys let's not ruin this thread with insults and whatnot.

this is a very big issue that i don't feel is being discussed correctly. remember when we all touted ralph for balking at the cba agreement? i feel like this is somewhat the same... most are looking at the one or two big positives to this deal without really examining all ramifications it can and will bring.

[Wys Guy]

Watch out, don. You dared disagree with his opinions - which are always superior to the rest of us - so he's on the warpath now

LOL

What Jan, you guys get to choose who can be negative and bring in unpleasant thoughts here and who can't?

Doesn't sound very fair or American to me. But hey, that's what BZ is all about, right, censorship, BILL-ieving in the things that make the least sense or have the least basis, while hoping for the least likely.

Ya know, I hate to be the one to break it to you and others here, but BZ ain't exactly a bastion of socialization these days. LOL

[Wys Guy]

Watch out, don. You dared disagree with his opinions - which are always superior to the rest of us - so he's on the warpath now

BTW Jan, would you care to take his side of the argument, or is this yet merley another instance of a cheap shot trying to snuff out views that don't equal your own?

I mean hey, why think, conduct any research, debate the actual merits of any points one way or the other when we can stick our heads into the commode, flush, give ourselves a swirly, and call it a bath, eh.

[THATHURMANATOR]

guys let's not ruin this thread with insults and whatnot.

this is a very big issue that i don't feel is being discussed correctly. remember when we all touted ralph for balking at the cba agreement? i feel like this is somewhat the same... most are looking at the one or two big positives to this deal without really examining all ramifications it can and will bring.
What ramifications Freeman?

[Wys Guy]

guys let's not ruin this thread with insults and whatnot.


:roflmao:

Oh, thanks for the literally side-splitting quip.

On that note, onward to work for the rest of the afternoon!

[Bill Brasky]

What ramifications Freeman?
re-read my posts in this thread, i honestly don't want to repeat myself like many here do.

as bad as you guys rip on wys, and i'll admit i hardly agree with him, he raises valid points regarding this topic.

it would be better for the board if people would read what a person is saying instead of skimming through and relegating him/her a *****/complaint artist while at the same time failing to ever see opinions from the other side of the fence.

those comments are in general and in no way aimed at solely at you thurm.

[L.A. Playa]

well if nothing else old Ralphy is still a smart business man, with this deal to play in Totonto he has increased the value of the team

[hammerbillsfan]

You've been living in Buffalo for too long.

Certain season tickets with PSLs etc. go for even more than that elsewhere now in the NFL.

I'm just saying it what I know from living in Hamilton/Toronto and what we pay for games.
I can get a whole season of football for less than one Bills game in Toronto!

[Jeff1220]

Why don't we just rename every BZ post to "Negativity vs. Optimism - which is superior?" because that seems to be the debate on every single thread whether or not the topic is really about that.
I don't post as much as many of you guys, but I've been here pretty much since this thing started and I've really never disliked reading and posting in the BZ more than over the past couple of months. It's more than okay to have an opinion, but the tone of posts these days all wreak of illusions of superiority.

[yordad]

QUESTION: Do you get tickets to this game if you buy season tickets? If not, does that mean season ticket will be cheaper?

[THATHURMANATOR]

QUESTION: Do you get tickets to this game if you buy season tickets? If not, does that mean season ticket will be cheaper?
You dont get a ticket but you do get 3rd crack at them

Not sure if seasons will be cheaper.

[THATHURMANATOR]

re-read my posts in this thread, i honestly don't want to repeat myself like many here do.

as bad as you guys rip on wys, and i'll admit i hardly agree with him, he raises valid points regarding this topic.

it would be better for the board if people would read what a person is saying instead of skimming through and relegating him/her a *****/complaint artist while at the same time failing to ever see opinions from the other side of the fence.

those comments are in general and in no way aimed at solely at you thurm.
Ok I will re read. I am agreeing with WYS in this thread By the way.

[hydro]

QUESTION: Do you get tickets to this game if you buy season tickets? If not, does that mean season ticket will be cheaper?

You will only have to pay for 7 games if you get season tickets. So in essence it will be cheaper but its one less game. The tickets aren't guaranteed to the Bills season ticket holder but they have first dibs.

[hammerbillsfan]

I just spent $2000 for seats for those games.
A La-Z-Boy couch in front of my TV at home! :tube:

[Jan Reimers]

BTW Jan, would you care to take his side of the argument, or is this yet merley another instance of a cheap shot trying to snuff out views that don't equal your own?

I mean hey, why think, conduct any research, debate the actual merits of any points one way or the other when we can stick our heads into the commode, flush, give ourselves a swirly, and call it a bath, eh.
Wys, I'm only going to say this one more time. I'm simply a positive, optimistic fan, who enjoys the Bills and posts here as a way of lightly interacting with other fans.

I don't dwell on the negatives of this team, of which there are many, and I don't engage in long, torturous arguments and debates about all of the issues surrounding the Bills.

I'm a fan, and I ENJOY it. You can have any opinion you want, and you can be as critical and negative as want. The only thing that bothers me is being called stupid, dishonest and other perjorative terms, simply because I look on the bright side of things, and I have FUN being a fan.

[Night Train]

The NFL future is corporate america with mostly club seats & suites the $$$ priority. Working slugs that supported this league since it's inception are being cast aside by the big market clubs with mega rich owners who could care less about the original plan of the good of all teams.

Feel free to wake up to this at your earliest convenience.

This is why I see a new AFL type league within 10 years. They're will be plenty of unemployed players & coaches. Lots of big,empty stadiums. A network needing football... It's going to happen and Buffalo will probably be one of the teams in a more financially realistic league.

[don137]

tell it to the sabres fans that had no problem shelling out a grand or two for tickets. or a couple hundred for the ice bowl. or bills fans dumping three-four times above face for the dallas game. bs excuse that doesn't hold water. people here will spend money on a winner. the problem is the bills don't win.

i don't buy the weather excuse either. this team was solid in the 90's and fans CRAVED late december games. why? because they were winning. now it's a cop out for people to use the bad weather excuse simply because they aren't winning.

Look at the Sabres. The Sabres are not doing as well this year and they have not sold out like last year. The ice bowl and the Dallas game are once in a life time experiences. Fans like to be part of history and will pay for it. Look at the greatest comeback game in NFL history- Houston-Bills playoff game. It wasn't even a sellout because the Bills were not playing as well as their other Super Bowl years.

I don't like having games in other cities either but I realize if the Bills are going to compete and be successful they need another revenue stream.

[Bill Brasky]

Working slugs that supported this league since it's inception are being cast aside by the big market clubs with mega rich owners who could care less about the original plan of the good of all teams.

Feel free to wake up to this at your earliest convenience.

:bf1: :bf1:

[Michael82]

What I'm pissed about if anything is the ****ing cost. $250 per game is ridiculous and it says $2000 for the package, that is including a few meaningless preseason games too. I'm starting to think if I want to go, I'd be better just buying them on ebay or something. :ill:

[Michael82]

The NFL future is corporate america with mostly club seats & suites the $$$ priority. Working slugs that supported this league since it's inception are being cast aside by the big market clubs with mega rich owners who could care less about the original plan of the good of all teams.

Feel free to wake up to this at your earliest convenience.

This is why I see a new AFL type league within 10 years. They're will be plenty of unemployed players & coaches. Lots of big,empty stadiums. A network needing football... It's going to happen and Buffalo will probably be one of the teams in a more financially realistic league.
I've been saying this for a while and I blame the Jerry Jones, Bob Krafts, and the Dan Synders. Those are the guys that will ruin what everyone else helped build in the league and those are the guys that will kill the NFL!

[ParanoidAndroid]

I just spent $2000 for seats for those games.
A La-Z-Boy couch in front of my TV at home! :tube:

Unless they don't sell out and are then blacked out.

This is a market test just as well as a way to expand the fan base.

[L.A. Playa]

I've been saying this for a while and I blame the Jerry Jones, Bob Krafts, and the Dan Synders. Those are the guys that will ruin what everyone else helped build in the league and those are the guys that will kill the NFL!

you can say that all ya want but Ralphy boy has made more on his investment than any of those and still cries he doesnt make enough money

at least those guys appear to pay the price to try to win championships

[Bill Brasky]

you can say that all ya want but Ralphy boy has made more on his investment than any of those and still cries he doesnt make enough money

at least those guys appear to pay the price to try to win championships

touche...

[MikeInRoch]

Well, sure, if you consider that it's going on a 50 year investment...

[raphael120]

Thing is...this isn't a fan sport anymore, it's all about attracting businesses to buy out your box seats. We sold out every game, and it doesn't matter. So much so that we need to go to Toronto to get more revenue.

The NFL is just a huge corporation. It's a business. Sometimes fans lose sight of that, and it's unfortunate, but it's reality. Since free agency, it's how it's been, and it sucks.

[YardRat]

Welcome to the 21st century NFL, Bills fans, Jones and Kraft-style.

Ralph and OBD should be given a ton of credit for finding a way to attempt to compete and play by the bull**** rules that the league now follows. I hope they sell out in record time, all to Canadians, and it leads to big-time suite sales to corporations for the other seven games in Buffalo.

Sometimes you just have to fight fire with fire while simultaneously trying to right a wrong.

[tormike]

I am a hunge NFL fan in Toronto and I would never pay $2000 for tickets to 5 games (+3 preseason) up front.

i would much rather head take the 2 hour driveto Buffalo with the real fans and the tailgating experience over the corporate stiffs at the Rogers Center

[BrunnyJ]

international exposure - it might be a great thing for the NFL, but will it really get people from london, africa, or australia to come into buffalo to watch bills games? i don't see how media hype is gonna help this team. whenever we're on a national platform the NFL sets us up to play NE or some other powerhouse that ultimately blows us out of the water making us more of a laughing stock than we already are.

I'm from Australia, I'm coming to Watch the Bills in 08! The Toronto game is of intrest to me, I would love the chance to go to another city and watch the Bills but of course priority 1 is going to the Ralph.

[Tiburon1724]

I'm tired of hearing how people in WNY can't afford this or that. There's plenty of money in this area, even if there aren't the number of millionaires/billionaires as in many cities. There certainly is enough (though mostly in the Amherst side of town) to afford tickets to a football game, $20 or $250.

[don137]

I think the target audience is the corporate Canadiens and not the common fan which is exactly where most NFL cities are geared towards. Heck, here in Carolina you are not aloud to have your shirt off during a game. This will provide some nice revenue for the Bills that will only help them in the long run.

[Bill Brasky]

I'm tired of hearing how people in WNY can't afford this or that. There's plenty of money in this area, even if there aren't the number of millionaires/billionaires as in many cities.

i agree

[MikeInRoch]

You can agree all you want, but how do you explain not selling all the luxury boxes last season? For far less money than other luxury boxes go for in towns with better economic situations?

[Bill Brasky]

You can agree all you want, but how do you explain not selling all the luxury boxes last season? For far less money than other luxury boxes go for in towns with better economic situations?

if you owned a business would you fork over thousands to watch a team that never accomplishes anything other than futility?

i wouldn't.

ralph *****es about not having enough revenue... he should start by taking his name off the stadium and going back to a sponsorship. he'd make more in one season doing that than he would putting a game in TOR.