It appears unlikely that Canada will be getting any new Major League sports franchises in the near future.
Canada will be celebrating its 157th birthday on July 1st and it appears very unlikely that the country will be getting new teams anytime soon whether it is a Major League Baseball franchise or a National Hockey League team or a National Basketball Association club. There is some concern that the National Hockey League’s Winnipeg Jets franchise is in trouble because of declining ticket sales. Winnipeg is the NHL’s smallest market and the Jets’ business depends on ticket sales to ordinary people as there is a small corporate base in the Manitoban capital. The NHL reestablished the Winnipeg Jets franchise in 20 11 after the sale of the Atlanta Thrashers franchise to True North Sports and Entertainment. The Executive Chairman of the Jets franchise Mark Chipman said the business has turned a profit on its combined hockey, arena and merchandising operations every year since 20 11.
In Montréal, Stephen Bronfman is looking to land a Major League Baseball team but MLB expansion is at least five years down the road and Montréal does not have a suitable baseball stadium available. But the National Basketball Association Commissioner Adam Silver has indicated that Montréal and Vancouver might be on a list of potential expansion markets. But people in Montréal and Vancouver should not get their hopes up too high as the NBA is not yet in an expansion mode and when the league does get around to adding teams, it is likely that Las Vegas and Seattle will get franchises. In Québec City, there is an arena that can be considered state-of-the-art but there is no interest in placing an NHL team in the market. Québec City is a small market with limited corporate support and is a limited TV market. Québec City was passed over when the NHL expanded in 2016. Happy birthday Canada!
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