WJC Sets Financial, Attendance and Ratings Records

As well as being a record setting performance on the ice by Team Canada, the WJC tournament in BC set records itself that will be hard to top.

It brought the world tournament to British Columbia after a campaign headed by Delta businessman Ron Toigo that included a promise from the provincial government to guarantee Hockey Canada a minimum profit of $5.2 million.

Tournament attendance was a record 403,000, and revenue and television ratings went through the stratosphere.

"I don't think we'll get to $10 million, but we'll be north of nine -- three times [the profit] more than anywhere else," Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson said. "When you look at the bar that's been set here, it's been unbelievable."

Hockey Canada keeps half the windfall, and about $3 million will go to the Canadian Hockey League, which produces most of the players for Team Canada. Minor hockey organizations in B.C. will share about $1.5 million.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=8e8e680f-07f8-47c9-9e94-a3d310e26b4a&k=78090&p=2

Kudos to Ron Toigo and his group who put the tournament together along with Hockey Canada. A great job and a great tournament.

nice work.

Only in Canada could junior hockey hit these kinda numbers :handclap:

Anyone know what the ratings were on TSN for the gold medal game?

Well, The GM Place fans certainly didn't set any records in the class department!!

Hopefully it is a loooonnnngggg time before they have any Junior Tourney there again!!!

Anyone know what the ratings were on TSN for the gold medal game?

I don't know about the gold medal game, but they said on the local radio that Saturdays game, Canada/USA, doubled hockey night in Canada's rating.

Well, The GM Place fans certainly didn't set any records in the class department!!

Hopefully it is a loooonnnngggg time before they have any Junior Tourney there again!!!

No, they will not get the World Juniors for awhile because as a host nation Canada likes to cycle between cities (i.e., Red Deer, Winnipeg, Halifax, Vancouver, etc...). I guess they will have to settle for the Olympics in 2010.

Fans in GM Place were nothing. I've seen worse. Much worse. Try going to Flin Flon, MB, during the SJHL playoffs. (Well, if the Bombers ever made the playoffs. Haven't been there since hosting the Royal Bank Cup in 2001). Or even the regular season. The fans up there are loud, course, obnoxious and will throw things at you without even thinking about it. It's like the return of Eric Lindros to Quebec every night. Or The Pas, Manitoba. They can be even worse than Flon fan.

But when you talk to players in the SJHL or the MJHL, they often say the Flon and The Pas are their favourite places to play on the road, because the fans are so into the action that you can't help but be into the game.

Vancouver fans? Timid by comparison. You make it sound like they're hard-line Liverpool soccer fans.

Anyways, great job by Vancouver. Attendance and revenue records can't be wrong. The fans turned out in droves to watch the games. Where else could Norway vs. Switzerland attract over 10,000 fans?

Well, The GM Place fans certainly didn't set any records in the class department!!

Hopefully it is a loooonnnngggg time before they have any Junior Tourney there again!!!

Pot, meet kettle.

I was at a couple of the games, including a US one, and although fans cheered louder for the US opposition than they did for the US team itself, there was very little actual booing except by a small group of fans in most cases. Sure there were some worse moments during the US/Russia game or the US/Finland bronze medal game, but it's not very classy to hold it against the entire province (let's be honest, Kelowna and Kamloops did a great job) because of a few fans.

You guys just wait till Montreal gets the wjc's. That will be ugly. In the booing department.

BTW, did the fans boo the American anthem also?

You guys just wait till Montreal gets the wjc's. That will be ugly. In the booing department.

BTW, did the fans boo the American anthem also?
No, there was no anthem boing.

no word on ratings?

no word on ratings?
I think it was reported a few days ago that 3 million took in the gold medal game on TSN.

Well, The GM Place fans certainly didn't set any records in the class department!!

Hopefully it is a loooonnnngggg time before they have any Junior Tourney there again!!!

Time to get over it.... a little childish don't you think... Vancouver will get another tourney in the near future...BOOK IT, the numbers don't lie

Well, The GM Place fans certainly didn't set any records in the class department!!
Hopefully it is a loooonnnngggg time before they have any Junior Tourney there again!!!
Naive.
I can think of over nine million reasons why Hockey Canada will be dying to come back to Vancouver for the WJC.
When you triple the previous record profits for an event like this, that tends to get more consideration than a minority of fans who boo the American team.

I should also point out, Devo, that an icy reception for American teams is hardly unique to Vancouver.
If you think fans in Turin are going to greet Team USA with cheers and wild jubilation...well, that is about as believable as the promise that Iraqi's were going to greet the American army with chocolates and flowers.

Where are all the posters who said Vancouver didn't support the tournament and it should've been hosted somewhere else?

You guys just wait till Montreal gets the wjc's. That will be ugly. In the booing department.

BTW, did the fans boo the American anthem also?

I attended every game except 1 (the 5th place Sweden vs Czech Republic game) - I can tell you that no one booed any anthem.

Here is an article stating that some lucky fan went home with $71,734 from the 50/50 during the final, that is just plain ridiculous! It is the second last line of the article.

http://www.tsn.ca/world_jrs/news_story/?ID=149576&hubname=world_jrs