Travel for January 30 Canada match

[Free kick]

I dont think the grass is the problem.  They have undersoil heating and it held up in those early season CCL matches and Nov-dev playoff runs.  Personally, i just dont think we should be playing soccer outdoors in January in Southern Ontario.

it sound to me like the CSA has a real issue on their hands with this January match.  If the work to install the new turf at BC place has a planned completion date of Jan 21. It also has to be FIFA inspected (as per article).  Thats very risky to go ahead and plan for  a Jan 30th game in Vancouver given that tight deadline and no margin for error.   Other option, do you want to play outdoors in Ontario smack in the middle of winter?   Hmmm 

i am starting to believe that maybe this skydome story has legs.  

Edited November 13, 2021 by Free kick

[chalms04]

I thought the movable seats were locked in to place after the most recent round of baseball-specific upgrades?

[Free kick]

9 minutes ago, chalms04 said:

I thought the movable seats were locked in to place after the most recent round of baseball-specific upgrades?

True.   But then again,  maybe they are thinking of going with that crappy configuation that you see with soccer games at Yankee stadium.

Edited November 13, 2021 by Free kick

[VinceA]

Well it would suck if it does move but I'm still going to Van lol I've always wanted to visit the west coast.

[ted]

4 hours ago, Free kick said:

There wasnt a single G#d damned game played in TO for WCQ 2018

Was anyone complaining then?

 

Yes. Many people including people like me who have lived out on the West Coast for 40+ years who said Toronto should get games at the time.

It's not one or the other. It's about spreading them all around the country.

[Shway]

3 hours ago, ted said:

It's not one or the other. It's about spreading them all around the country.

Where suitable….

I think the logistics of location doesn’t matter if it’s a friendly or a one off game, or like we have right now two games in one location.

But I totally understand why the players would want to save as much travelling through time zones if they can.

Sheit I’ve been tired at 7pm here, waking up at 5am….and that’s from a 2(3)hr difference so understand.

[gigi riva]

I wish it was in Toronto But we need to grow the game here in Canada and playing games in different regions is a must . Italy Germany and Spain there National teams  play there games in different cities and those countries are pretty Soccer mad. In the case of Spain they dont play in Barcelona for obvious reasons , Its a shame to be honest  but what can you do.

  As a Ontario boy , I  want to see these games in Van City , they deserve it plus I just want to go to Vancouver in all honesty, 

[Unnamed Trialist]

14 hours ago, gigi riva said:

I wish it was in Toronto But we need to grow the game here in Canada and playing games in different regions is a must . Italy Germany and Spain there National teams  play there games in different cities and those countries are pretty Soccer mad. In the case of Spain they dont play in Barcelona for obvious reasons , Its a shame to be honest  but what can you do.

  As a Ontario boy , I  want to see these games in Van City , they deserve it plus I just want to go to Vancouver in all honesty, 

The best philosophy is to share the national teams, including u-20, women, all around, growing fan bases and the NT experience.

Spain are chicken shit and won't play the national team in Catalonia or the Basque Country. I only saw Spain once, at the Olympic Stadium, vs. Portugal, in 2002. It was a friendly though.

You need the regional federation to be with you , and they are not, and you need a stadium. If the club members of Barça would opt against it (I would be in a minority), you'd only have the Olympic Stadium. In the Basque Country, there are no large public stadiums that a club could not veto. 

So we don't get official international matches in Barcelona, except back when Andorra would programme in Barcelona to get more gate (that is how I saw Andorra-England twice), which they are no longer allowed to do.

[SoccMan]

The only way this game may not be in Vancouver would be the new turf being installed I think what the day before am I right about this in terms of the date of installation? Moreover, someone mentioning the FIFA inspection problem where they need to approve the turf before the game ? Therefore , it looks like a time problem more than anything. However, it can’t be that hard to try and get the turf installed earlier which would solve the problem I would imagine. In terms of the Rogers Center rumour I’m sure they could find a good solution and play the game there if they really had too . We are also forgetting that Montreal’s Olympic stadium can still be an option and yes I know about the roof and the snow thing and the really bad turf but who knows. Getting back to the Rogers Center I still think it might be in play for the 2026 World Cup , anyways interesting times ahead .

 

[EJsens1]

6 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

The only way this game may not be in Vancouver would be the new turf being installed I think what the day before am I right about this in terms of the date of installation? Moreover, someone mentioning the FIFA inspection problem where they need to approve the turf before the game ? Therefore , it looks like a time problem more than anything. However, it can’t be that hard to try and get the turf installed earlier which would solve the problem I would imagine. In terms of the Rogers Center rumour I’m sure they could find a good solution and play the game there if they really had too . We are also forgetting that Montreal’s Olympic stadium can still be an option and yes I know about the roof and the snow thing and the really bad turf but who knows. Getting back to the Rogers Center I still think it might be in play for the 2026 World Cup , anyways interesting times ahead .

 

Assuming the Blue Jays are still in Rogers Centre in 2026, there’s no chance they will agree to going on the road for 4 weeks between prepping/converting the field, the commencement of the tournament and converting it back.  And it would be a 4 week minimum too 

[SoccMan]

38 minutes ago, EJsens1 said:

Assuming the Blue Jays are still in Rogers Centre in 2026, there’s no chance they will agree to going on the road for 4 weeks between prepping/converting the field, the commencement of the tournament and converting it back.  And it would be a 4 week minimum too 

Well they fixed up that Buffalo stadium to bring it up to MLB standards maybe play some games there for a month , you never know .

[EJsens1]

4 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

Well they fixed up that Buffalo stadium to bring it up to MLB standards maybe play some games there for a month , you never know .

I don’t see it.  They didn’t play in Buffalo because they wanted to.  As you know it was pandemic related and the players hated it.  They said it felt like a road game.  Not to mention the lost revenue.   Is it 100% impossible? No but I’d be stunned it happens when we keep hearing the intent is to expand BMO to upwards of 45-50000 people and Rogers Centre, a non soccer venue, which seats just over 50000 itself anyway 

[SoccMan]

1 minute ago, EJsens1 said:

I don’t see it.  They didn’t play in Buffalo because they wanted to.  As you know it was pandemic related and the players hated it.  They said it felt like a road game.  Not to mention the lost revenue.   Is it 100% impossible? No but I’d be stunned it happens when we keep hearing the intent is to expand BMO to upwards of 45-50000 people and Rogers Centre, a non soccer venue, which seats just over 50000 itself anyway 

Look I would rather they played the World Cup at BMO but these idiots are just going to put temporary stands instead of making BMO a proper soccer stadium and  filling out all the open spaces with stands and enclosing that stadium once and for all . 

[narduch]

4 minutes ago, SoccMan said:

Look I would rather they played the World Cup at BMO but these idiots are just going to put temporary stands instead of making BMO a proper soccer stadium and  filling out all the open spaces with stands and enclosing that stadium once and for all . 

BMO Field will never be a proper soccer stadium as long as the Argos are co-tennants.

[JBD]

17 hours ago, gigi riva said:

I wish it was in Toronto But we need to grow the game here in Canada and playing games in different regions is a must . Italy Germany and Spain there National teams  play there games in different cities and those countries are pretty Soccer mad. In the case of Spain they dont play in Barcelona for obvious reasons , Its a shame to be honest  but what can you do.

  As a Ontario boy , I  want to see these games in Van City , they deserve it plus I just want to go to Vancouver in all honesty, 

Why doesn’t spain play in barcelona?

[SthMelbRed]

5 minutes ago, JBD said:

Why doesn’t spain play in barcelona?

Because Barcelona doesn't want to be part of Spain, perhaps?

[JBD]

9 minutes ago, SthMelbRed said:

Because Barcelona doesn't want to be part of Spain, perhaps?

Wild. They should straighten that out. 

[Bison44]

Yeah they should straighten that out, and once they are done we have some problems in canada they could straighten out for us as well.  

[BrennanFan]

The players want to play in Toronto. That is the main reason Herdman is pushing for the Skydome at this late stage. Thats the rumour I heard in Edmonton, take it or leave it. In the past, the next game was announced at the previous home game. So if we don't get a Vancouver announcement Tuesday, I will be more inclined to believe they're looking at the logistics of making the Dome work. 

[Canadamnt]

1 hour ago, BrennanFan said:

The players want to play in Toronto. That is the main reason Herdman is pushing for the Skydome at this late stage. Thats the rumour I heard in Edmonton, take it or leave it. In the past, the next game was announced at the previous home game. So if we don't get a Vancouver announcement Tuesday, I will be more inclined to believe they're looking at the logistics of making the Dome work. 

Who were the rumors coming from?

[EJsens1]

10 minutes ago, Canadamnt said:

Who were the rumors coming from?

Haha I know.  All I’ve heard is that he views BMO as our fortress.  The logistics to pull it off for Skydome would be a plenty.  What suggestion was there with FIFA looking at that venue for ‘26?  None 

[Canadamnt]

7 minutes ago, EJsens1 said:

Haha I know.  All I’ve heard is that he views BMO as our fortress.  The logistics to pull it off for Skydome would be a plenty.  What suggestion was there with FIFA looking at that venue for ‘26?  None 

I'm pretty sure the Rogers Centre can't change the seating configuration after the Argos moved out. It would take something magical to pull it off. The turf would also be horrible as well along with Olympic Stadium, something that isn't necessarily the best for Canada's style of play. World Cup will be played at BMO.

[CanadianTraveller]

1 hour ago, BrennanFan said:

The players want to play in Toronto.

And I want to live year-round on the north shore of Kauai and hike the Kalalau Trail every week. Some things are logistically not possible on short notice.

First, I'm glad the players feel comfortable making their preferences known, and that they have advocates whom the CSA respects and listens to. Don't hesitate to share - the players deserve and have earned their voice.

Second, someone from the CSA technical staff should know something (anything?) about their possible Canadian venues. I struggle to believe they know anything about Commonwealth Stadium in November, which is why we're here right now. If the staff know the current situation wrt SkyDome, this "rumour" never leaves the room.

Third, only amateur organizations figure this stuff out weeks before a match. Not announcing to the public is one thing. Not knowing where you're going is quite another. I'll give the CSA the benefit of the doubt that in fact they know where they're going, have known since summer (subject to turf changes @ BC Place), and this speculation is merely "reporting" what was heard from a player and spiraled to an illogical conclusion.

Finally - if any of this rumour is even accurate - someone from HQ should share a msg with the team stating that they appreciate the feedback, but that one Toronto venue suggested is likely not an option as the owner and primary tenant have worked very hard to make it one-sport specific and that our event is probably unwelcome. HQ will reach out on Monday to determine what is feasible, but please understand that your preference might mean an even colder, potentially worse surface than you're on now. What say you collectively w/ this info? (P.S. - we'll ask for input in advance for future fixtures, post WCQ '22.)

It's not even clear that "the players" (1? 3? 12? 25?) expressed "Wouldn't it be nice to play every home match in the same city?" vs. "I want to play the U.S. in Toronto in January, damn the cold." Never mind a leap to SkyDome....

[Free kick]

On 11/13/2021 at 10:17 PM, gigi riva said:

I wish it was in Toronto But we need to grow the game here in Canada and playing games in different regions is a must . Italy Germany and Spain there National teams  play there games in different cities and those countries are pretty Soccer mad. In the case of Spain they dont play in Barcelona for obvious reasons , Its a shame to be honest  but what can you do.

  As a Ontario boy , I  want to see these games in Van City , they deserve it plus I just want to go to Vancouver in all honesty, 

The “moving games around for growing the game” argument doesnt make any sence.  I dont know why  a few people keep repeating this..   Its at the club level where you grow the game.   Not with the national team(s).  

National teams coming into town 1-2 times a year are/is like show or circus. Once they gone, the event (the sport) is forgotten.  Besides,  does the game really need to grow?   In 2016 there were 100,000 people who paid to go watch a two leg playoff series involing two Cnd clubs.  Proving that this is how you grow the game, and its alive and well.

I said above, “ I dont know why a few people keep repeating this”.  But i lied,  I do actaully know why people keep repeating this because I have been reading this forum for 20 years.  But i am not going to go there. 

Edited November 15, 2021 by Free kick

[footballfreak]

Sorry if this has been mentioned already, but I didn’t read every post. Worth considering since these guys aren’t robots.

January window is Honduras —> Canada —> El Salvador

Flight times according to the janky flight calculator I used. 

4:31 San Pedro Sula —> Toronto

4:47 Toronto —> San Salvador

Total Flight time: 9:18

——-

6:36 San Pedro Sula —> Vancouver

6:44 Vancouver —> San Salvador

Total flight time: 13:20

——

I expected a little bit of a bump, but I was surprised by how much longer the trips got.

Costa Rica —> Canada —> Panama would be even longer (ex: 7:59 Vancouver —> Panama City).

Edited November 15, 2021 by footballfreak