Flames reportedly take majority share in Stampeders, which could boost the CFL

Some of the biggest news of the 2012 CFL offseason came out Thursday, and it had nothing to do with coaching hires or player movement. Sportsnet is reporting that the NHL's Calgary Flames have taken a majority ownership stake in the Calgary Stampeders, with an official announcement to be made at 5 p.m. Eastern. The Flames already held five per cent of the Stampeders' franchise, but if these details are accurate (for example, TSN's report only has the Flames increasing their stake, but doesn't specify they'd be taking control), this is a substantial move that could significantly affect both the team and the CFL. Fortunately for fans of Canadian football, the effects on both the Stampeders and the league would seem potentially quite positive.

First, it says something about where the CFL is at right now that taking over a franchise looks like a worthwhile investment for a NHL team. There have been plenty of times in the last couple of decades alone where that wouldn't have been the case, but most of the league's teams are doing well financially at the moment and the CFL's nationwide popularity is strong. The Stampeders seem to be in a pretty good spot, too; they've got a solid on-field product, led by an exciting young quarterback in Drew Tate, and they have a strong and committed fan base. These aren't the Michael Feterik days; the current Stampeders ownership group did an impressive job moving on from those. At the moment, this doesn't look like a struggling team or (from all early indications, at least) one that was desperate for a buyer; this seems more about one well-financed franchise looking to expand their holdings in what looks like a solid investment.

There are benefits for the CFL from having a massively profitable NHL franchise like the Flames (and one controlled by a lot of very wealthy people) as an owner, too. The current group (group members John Forzani and Doug Mitchell and former group member Ted Hellard (centre) are seen at top) obviously had plenty of financial strength of its own (much of the money came from Forzani's Forzani Group, which was sold to Canadian Tire for $771 million last year, demonstrating its value), so that won't necessarily change all that much. However, CHQR's Jock Wilson tweeted that the shares changing hands aren't the ones held by Forzani, but rather the ones held by the sport council and Mitchell, a former CFL commissioner. If that's accurate and if Forzani decides to stay involved as a minority partner, that would give the Stampeders a huge amount of financial resources to draw upon, which could help with the discussions about upgrading or replacing McMahon Stadium.

The most valuable element of the Flames taking over might be from a synergy perspective, though. With the two largest sports franchises in the city under the same ownership, that could lead to substantial benefits for the Stampeders from a cross-promotional perspective. The Flames could potentially offer discounts on Stampeders' tickets, suites or advertising to their existing customers and partners, and that could help expand the Stampeders' fan base and corporate opportunities. Some may see the Flames and Stampeders as competitors, but when you consider the limited overlap of their seasons and the wide variety of areas where they could successfully work together, this would seem to make a lot of sense.

Of course, just because there are potential positives doesn't mean things will go that way. If the Flames were really ruthless and viewed the Stampeders as a serious competitor, they could run the franchise into the ground. That seems unlikely, though, as it would be destroying a massive investment for an extremely limited gain. It's more plausible that they could see the Stampeders as a lower priority than hockey, but even that isn't necessarily all that likely; as investors, the Flames would obviously have incentive for the Stampeders to do well. There are some ways this could go wrong, but from this corner, it looks like a pretty good deal for the Flames, the Stampeders and the CFL.