12/21/24
March 28, 2007
CFL Announces Commissioner: Today, Mark Cohon was announced as the 12th commissioner of the Canadian Football League.
posted by Spitztengle to football at 03:15 PM - 5 comments
Maybe he'll be able to whip them into some sort of cooperative shape, but I'm not going to hold my breath. The CFL owners don't look for a commissioner to shape them. They look for a commissioner that acts as a mouthpiece and will kowtow to their every (maniacal) whim. It's a great league, a great game, with great fans and a great history, but it's only two steps away from falling completely apart. It needs a strong commissioner with the willpower (and authority) to override the two or three owners who dominate the league. The previous commissioner oversaw the rebirth of the league (TV money up, TV viewership up, attendance up, positive reviews up) but two owners (B.C. and Montreal, I believe) hated him, so they tossed him out.
posted by grum@work at 04:43 PM on March 28, 2007
Well, Mark Cohon was just on the last hour of Prime Time Sports (you can grab the podcast here), and he seems fairly sensible and coherent enough. (Of course, so did Tom Wright.) Apparently he has a five-year contract (instead of the usual contract-renewal-after-every-two-years-dealie), which might make him more effective than his predecessors. Of course, "in doing what?" is the question. The CFL's current media agreement goes for five years, no teams are bankrupt, no teams are without owners, and they fixed the kick-return rule. Without any major issues requiring immediate attention, he seems free to concentrate on strengthening the league's (and the game's) foundation and build from here. Which is a good thing. And grum—I completely agree.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 06:15 PM on March 28, 2007
I'm lookin' forward to what this guy can do over the next five years! It's in my dreams that I see a 10-team CFL. But, if that is not gonna happen, there are still ways the league can grow. I guess I'll just have to sit back and see what happens (err, I guess I'll just have to wave my CFL flag higher and prouder and hope that the masses will come on over). That reminds me, DJE, I hope you're gettin' that pick 'em pool ready to go! There's NO WAY I'm gonna take home the Costanza this year (hopefully, I'll be able to pick the Eskimos because they're favorites, not just my favorite ;)
posted by Spitztengle at 10:15 PM on March 28, 2007
The CFL would eat up Pete Rozelle and spit him out, same with Tagliabue, or even David Stern. Each league has crazy owners but in a small league like the CFL, they tend to dominate the league at any given time. If they can fire Tom Wright, they will fire Mark Cohon as well. I just wish the community owned teams who seem to see longer term had more clout. DrJohnEvans - thanks for the link to the podcast! They never mention it when I watch them on Sportsnet.
posted by jc at 04:09 PM on March 30, 2007
I wish I could say that this news held any significance, but I don't think it does. The conflicts between CFL owners and the me-first attitudes across the board tend to render any CFL commissioner mostly irrelevant. Maybe he'll be able to whip them into some sort of cooperative shape, but I'm not going to hold my breath.