Toronto FC is pretty clear in where it wants to stand on the player development model in Canada – at the top.
They talk about expanding its reach all the way down to u-6 players. The goal is to be the No 1 developer of players not just in the GTA, but in the country as a whole.
Whether they will reach those lofty aspirations remains to be seen, but one thing is certain: The goals don’t extend to the female side of the game. I’ve asked TFC officials before whether they have considered obtaining a WPS team and playing it under the TFC banner. The response has always been measured, but firm – “Not likely something we’d be doing anytime soon.”
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
You don’t have to think very hard to come up with the reason why they aren’t all that keen on the women’s game - it bleeds money. WPS has an average attendance of less than 4,000 and it barely scraped together enough teams to play its third season this year. The smart money is on there not being a fourth.
Yet there are some people that believe that this shouldn’t matter. As the biggest club in the country (with apologies to the Whitecaps – TFC has had a four year head start) Toronto FC has an obligation to support the women’s game. As anyone that goes to Reds games know there is a significant amount of women amongst the TFC fanbase as well. Should the club not try and represent them?
This argument was brought forth by a regular reader of CSN in the comments of an article published here Friday. Since then he has taken the conversation to the women’s forum on the Voyageurs board. You can read that thread here.
To me, the bottom line here is the bottom line. If women’s soccer was a viable product in Toronto, I’m sure that MLSE would have gotten involved. Since they haven’t, and judging on the very small crowd the Canadian women got out to BMO Field against China last year, I see no evidence of a hidden market yet to be tapped. So, I can’t understand why a private business like MLSE should feel compelled to invest.
That opinion is not based on my perception of the value in women’s soccer, or in women’s sport in general. I support the women. I support women’s sport. For what it’s worth, on a personal level, I consider Clara Hughes to be my favourite athlete of all time.
What it’s based on is my belief that forcing people to care about women’s sport, or to invest in it, is condescending to the female athletes and ultimately counterproductive. It simply won’t work and will ultimately create resentment.
Where the argument for investment might have some merit is at the grassroots level. Since TFC did receive a lot of public money for the start up, then maybe there is some obligation to try and serve the whole community by providing youth programs for young girls. There is some good coaching in the TFC system, why not expose some young girls to it – produce a few Olympians while you are producing male footballers. It would be a win-win for the club (through goodwill and PR) and the girls.
But, a WPS team? No, I don’t think there should be any guilt whatsoever that the Reds aren’t in that game.