Ticket sales for the WHL, OHL and QMJHL have been declining for the past decade. What’s the answer?
IT’S A WORRISOME TREND 10 years in the making: major junior hockey in Canada is struggling to maintain its game-day fan support.
The CHL, like the NHL, is highly dependent upon ticket-sales revenues and can ill afford to suffer a drop in attendance numbers. When CHL team financial information for franchises in the WHL and OHL became public in 2017, it was apparent that many organizations were not healthy financially. “Of the 42 teams in the two leagues, half of them were operating at a loss,” said University of Guelph professor Norm O’Reilly, who was commissioned to assess the financial information on behalf of the WHL and OHL team owners.
The fact that attendance in the WHL, OHL and QMJHL has been trending downward over the past 10 seasons should be of major concern to league officials and team owners. Average attendance dropped 9.1 percent in the OHL, 8.3 percent in the QMJHL and 6.5 percent in the WHL from 2008-09 to 2018-19. Dan MacKenzie, the newly appointed president of the CHL, wasn’t surprised by the numbers. “The entire sports industry is experiencing a decrease in attendance, given the number of entertainment options available to consumers,” he said.
OHL ATTENDANCE
Average attendance for the OHL dropped from 4,338 in 2008-09 to 3,944 in 2018-19, a decrease of 394 fans per game, or 9.1 percent. On a positive note, the league recorded an increase in attendance numbers during the 2010-11, ’12-13 and ’14-15 seasons. However, average attendance has fallen in seven of the past 10 seasons, with the downward trend persisting over the past four years.
Despite success on the ice, some OHL franchises, such as the Windsor Spitfires, have seen a significant drop in fan support. The team has suffered a 21.6-percent decrease in average attendance, which translates to 1,141 fewer fans per game last season compared to their 10-season average. This is especially surprising considering the Spitfires have won the Memorial Cup three times since 2009.
QMJHL ATTENDANCE
Attendance results for the ‘Q’ have been volatile over the past 10 seasons. The league has experienced an increase in attendance numbers five times over the past decade and dropped five times over the same period. Overall, the average attendance has fallen from 3,610 to 3,312 over the past 10 seasons, which is a reduction of 298 fans per game, or 8.3 percent. On a positive note, attendance increased from 3,169 in 2016-17 to 3,312 last season, an improvement of 4.5 percent.
A surprising result last season was posted by the Quebec Remparts, the No. 1 team in the CHL in attendance in 2018-19 with an average of 9,230 fans. Despite leading the league, the Remparts saw their attendance drop by a whopping 1,654 fans per game, or 15.2 percent, versus their 10-season average. The franchise is posting lower attendance numbers in the new Videotron Centre than they were at the 66-year-old Colisee.
WHL ATTENDANCE
The WHL has experienced a decrease in attendance of 6.5 percent, or 303 fans per game, over the past 10 seasons. The league saw a significant drop of 5.4 percent during the 2009-10 season but bounced back with a sharp increase of 9.1 percent over the next three seasons. Since 2013-14, the attendance numbers have been trending downward, dropping 9.2 percent from 4,815 to 4,361, or 454 fans per game.
A startling result last season was the decrease in fan support for the Calgary Hitmen. Their average attendance fell by 1,035 fans per game, or 12.3 percent, compared to their 10-season average. That adds up to 35,190 fewer fans buying Hitmen tickets last season compared to their historical average.
PUTTING FANS IN SEATS
When QMJHL commissioner Gilles Courteau weighed in on the attendance numbers for the ‘Q,’ he was quick to note that it’s an important issue. “First off, we’re always concerned about attendance, regardless of what year it is,” he said. “We’re constantly looking for ways to make the game and the experience more entertaining for our fans. If we weren’t concerned about it, we wouldn’t be in the right place. Second, like other sports, we’re looking at fan behavior and attention span. We know it’s shrinking since that is what the data and the eye test is telling us as we look at society today.”
According to MacKenzie, the task of reversing the attendance trend will be difficult, but he welcomes the challenge. “There are many things we can do as an organization to improve attendance numbers,” the CHL boss said. “Sharing best practices, improving the fan experience, creative ticket-sales strategies and improved technology will be key to driving attendance numbers.”
At the CHL level, the league has launched a new app to promote increased fan engagement, and it’s looking to leverage the growth it has witnessed over the past three seasons in its league-wide webcast with higher-quality highlight packages and improved social-media exposure. “We’ll have a new broadcast partner for next season,” MacKenzie said. “We want to improve the quality of our live-streaming game, offering more focus on the consistency of the broadcast product in all 60 arenas.”
The CHL has also acquired a software program from the AHL to improve overall business operations and allow franchises to share best practices, operations data and success stories. According to MacKenzie, staff training will be crucial to leveraging this program. “It will take a lot of hard work, smart people, dedicated people,” he said. “We’re looking forward to seeing (successful) markets, like Halifax and London, for example, sharing ideas about business operations.”
If the other 58 CHL franchises can mirror the Mooseheads and Knights’ best business practices, it will surely help the CHL collectively drive its attendance numbers and fan engagement.