People who grow up here tend to leave, and Phoenix is populated mostly by folks from away, who bring their allegiances with them.
Quick valley sports history lesson:
1. None of the teams are that old, especially the Coyotes
2. None of the teams have been that good, especially the Coyotes (until recently)
Here is the Coyotes' strategy: http://www.azcentral.com/community/...es-court-canadians-bolster-nhl-franchise.html
The Coyotes’ owners plan to expand the base by drawing in their countrymen.
LeBlanc frequently jokes that during the winter months, metro Phoenix becomes the third-largest city in the Canadian province of Alberta. “The reality is that it’s not a joke,” he said at the tourism meeting on Oct. 22 at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale.
“Over 500,000 Canadians from Alberta and British Columbia alone spend the winter here in Arizona. Put that into perspective. The city of Winnipeg has just over 600,000 people, and they have a full arena every night to watch their hometown Jets,” he said.
Figures provided by the Arizona Office of Tourism are somewhat more conservative.
The tourism office says 728,000 Canadians visited Arizona in 2012 overall. Of those, 243,600 were from Alberta and 164,500 were from British Columbia, combining for 408,100 from the western provinces.
Overall, Canadians comprise about 15 percent of the state’s international travelers, according to the Office of Tourism. Mexican tourists comprise approximately 68 percent, while overseas travelers make up 17 percent.
However, Canadians are the top spenders, accounting for 52 percent of all expenditures by international travelers in Arizona. Overseas tourists generate 28 percent, while Mexican tourists are responsible for 19 percent, according to the Office of Tourism.