Five to seven million dollars. This is what the Quebec government will extend to host two National Hockey League preseason games at the Videotron Center in October 2024. Does that scandalize you? Wait. There is worse.
I learned there was another proposal on the table.
A project which would have cost the State absolutely nothing.
A Canadian preparatory match.
The information was confirmed to me by the president, sports and entertainment, of Groupe CH, France Margaret Bélanger. The Habs wanted to return to Quebec in the fall of 2024, after an absence of six years. The plan was simple: rent the Videotron Center and act as a promoter. No subsidy was going to be necessary. “We asked them for next year. They told us no. »
Who they ” ?
The bosses of Gestev, the Quebecor subsidiary which manages the Videotron Center, and which reached an agreement with the government to attract the Los Angeles Kings, the Boston Bruins and the Florida Panthers.
I summarize: Quebec could have presented a Canadian match free of charge. He preferred to spend between 5 and 7 million of our money to compensate three clubs elsewhere which belong to billionaires. All this, less than a week after warning us that the next few months will be difficult.
It’s not just awkward anymore.
It’s indecent.
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The Quebec government is obviously not the first state to spend millions to present sporting events. Everyone does it. Local examples abound, from the Salaberry-de-Valleyfield regattas to the Grand Prix cyclists in Quebec and Montreal. It doesn’t offend me, as long as it’s reasonable.
Exactly, is an aid of 5 to 7 million for two preseason matches reasonable? The Minister of Finance, Eric Girard, believes yes. “This is consistent with what we do for other major sporting events, such as the Memorial Cup, the Presidents Cup in golf or Formula 1.” I disagree. So much public money for non-issue NHL games is unusual.
I asked France Margaret Bélanger if the government had participated in the financial arrangement of the games played by the Canadian in Quebec in the past. In 2018, for example.
PHOTO MARCO CAMPANOZZI, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
France Margaret Bélanger
” No. It’s free, in the sense that we transport our part there. It’s our product, we sell our own tickets, we pay our taxes. » She told me that the government had not paid any subsidy for the Toronto Blue Jays preseason games at the Olympic Stadium, as well as for those of the NBA at the Bell Center, in which her group participated.
The comparison with F1 and the Presidents Cup is also difficult to justify. The Canadian Grand Prix is an exceptional tourist showcase. The hotel occupancy rate in Montreal then exceeds 96%, with an average price of $500 per night. The Presidents Cup is a popular event. The final day of the last edition was watched by 1.89 million Americans. That’s a better audience in the United States than the last two NHL winter classics. Two Kings preparatory games can only suffer from this comparison. The tourism and media benefits will be almost zero.
You do not believe me ?
So I offer you a little game. Name the cities in which the following preseason matches took place this fall:
- Ottawa Senators – Pittsburgh Penguins
- Dallas Stars – St. Louis Blues
- Los Angeles Kings – San Jose Sharks
- Arizona Coyotes – St. Louis Blues
Did these matches have a strong impact on you?
That is what I thought. You will find the answers at the end of this column.
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If at least these two games represented a test to evaluate the Quebec market for a franchise move or expansion, the Coalition Avenir Québec would have a stronger argument. But no. This is ruled out from the start.
“There is no signal for the NHL,” admitted Minister Eric Girard. [Ce sera] a week of hockey for the people of Quebec. I see it more as a celebration of hockey. Perhaps we will have the opportunity to do events around the presence of the Kings for minor hockey, university hockey or women’s hockey. […] The Kings are fun. They have Quebec players. Luc Robitaille [est leur président]. You have to be clear. If the president of the Kings is not a Quebecer, they probably don’t come here. »
About the Kings, a quick note about their shareholders, who will benefit from our generous financial contribution. Philip Anschutz is on the list of the 400 richest people according to Forbes since 1982. His nickname? “The Man Who Owns LA” The man who owns Los Angeles. His fortune is estimated at 11 billion US dollars. Its minority partner, Edward Roski, has assets of US$6.1 billion. The Boston Bruins and the Florida Panthers, also owned by billionaires, should also be compensated for their travel, if custom is respected.
Without wanting to indulge in demagoguery, I must point out that at the same time, dozens of municipalities here are waiting for financial assistance from Quebec to build or renovate a sports center. “The ministry received a very large number of requests, far exceeding the financial envelope available for the program,” we can read in a document obtained by The Press in summer 2022.
Sorry, the chests are empty.
Except for the NHL.
Answers, in order: Halifax, Independence (Missouri), Salt Lake City and Wichita.