OT: What is the 2nd most popular team in the GTA?

Morbo

The Annihilator
Jan 14, 2003
27,100
5,734
Toronto
I like TFC, but I think it's pretty obvious that they don't have a massive following despite being one of the best teams in the league.

yeah but they only fit that description for one season -- last year. other than they've been a joke with a rotating cast of players GMs and coaches. all things considered I think the fanbase is pretty good there.
 

nuck

Schrodingers Cat
Aug 18, 2005
11,340
2,422
The leafs are #2 now. Canada wide it's not at all close. Leafs have taken a big step down. They've missed an entire generation of fans. I have heard stories of my friends kids being embarrassed to wear leaf stuff to school. It's hard to convince my son to watch and he'll watch any sport.

Sorry, I know your asking specifically in regards to the city only, but I thought I'd mention this. Not sure what the tempo for the leafs is like in Toronto but it's fallen off dramatically outside the city. It's annoying defending them.

The hatred for them in Edmonton is hilarious. I have no idea why Calgary isnt the same. No Leaf jokes here lately though
 

JT AM da real deal

Registered User
Oct 4, 2018
12,056
7,321
I have 2 sons who veered away about 5-10 years ago one to Habs due to girlfriend and another to Pens because of Crosby but both are now back as leaf fans again. I think that is what happened. They were never really anti-Leaf they were sick of on ice performance. So those fans are all back in the tent again. It was only a temporary issue.
 

BayStreetBully

Registered User
Oct 25, 2007
8,200
1,960
Toronto
I have 2 sons who veered away about 5-10 years ago one to Habs due to girlfriend and another to Pens because of Crosby but both are now back as leaf fans again. I think that is what happened. They were never really anti-Leaf they were sick of on ice performance. So those fans are all back in the tent again. It was only a temporary issue.

Kids do silly things when they’re young. They pick a different team because they think it makes them cool and unique in front of their friends at school. And yet they always end up a Leafs fan when they come to their senses.
 
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Judas Tavares

S2S (Sundin2Sandin)
Sponsor
Feb 9, 2007
10,163
3,557
I don't temember anything Jays pre-1995, so it was interesting to see how quickly the bandwagoners jumped on and off from 2015-2017.
 
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34

Registered User
Mar 26, 2010
21,132
8,959
All the T.O teams. Leafs, Raptors and Jays are my top though.

Leafs 1st of coarse.
 

smitty10

Registered User
Aug 6, 2009
9,805
2,643
Toronto
Leafs
Raptors
Blue Jays

All rotate depending on who's hot. The Leafs are pretty much always #1, however the Jays get pretty damn popular when they're winning.
 

nsleaf

Registered User
Oct 21, 2009
4,057
1,434
Good teams gain fans, bad teams lose fans. No such thing as a bandwagoner. It's a word made up by die hard fans of loser teams so they can justify their loyalty, IMO.
 

BodaciousBeefBazooka

Go Leafs Go
Apr 4, 2013
3,717
1,317
Toronto
I have 2 sons who veered away about 5-10 years ago one to Habs due to girlfriend and another to Pens because of Crosby but both are now back as leaf fans again. I think that is what happened. They were never really anti-Leaf they were sick of on ice performance. So those fans are all back in the tent again. It was only a temporary issue.
Aren't real fans suppose to stick it through thick and thin? Sound like bandwagoners if you ask me regardless how you phrase it. But whatever. Go leafs go!
 

Gallagbi

Formerly Eazy_B97
Jul 5, 2005
48,490
11,109
Eh, TV ratings might be a bit misleading with how many people have gotten rid of cable...I don't know anyone in my age range in this city that still bothers with cable. Raps are definitely still in third place but they're becoming increasingly popular with the younger generation (<30ish). Almost all my friends (25-30 range) watch Raps and Leafs pretty equally, and none of us really have cable. Leafs and Jays definitely have the >40 crowd on lock though, and that's the group that gets you TV ratings.
Raps also compete with the Leafs for rating, nothing is on in summer
 

Paradoc

John Tavares is a Leaf!
Mar 13, 2013
15,373
2,532
Toronto
You’re asking this in a hockey forum so most people’s choice is Maple Leafs by far, but Raptors are pretty close. They have been the most successful in the last decade out of all big 4 leagues and adding Kawhi makes them the close favourite out of the east. They could see a big boom in ratings if everything goes well this year.
 

Chris18820

Registered User
Nov 11, 2018
466
320
Yet they kill TFC in TV ratings. Most Argo fans can't be bothered to go to home games, while most TFC fans are actually at home games.
Still doesnt change the fact that they couldnt sell out if tickets were free.
Im still dumbfounded that they draw such a large TV audience. Maybe its because the older generation has nothing better to do on Sundays.
Im 35, live in the GTA and yet Ive never met anyone who watches the CFL or the Argos.
 

keonsbitterness

Registered User
Sep 14, 2010
34,525
17,634
south of Steeles
Still doesnt change the fact that they couldnt sell out if tickets were free.
Im still dumbfounded that they draw such a large TV audience. Maybe its because the older generation has nothing better to do on Sundays.
Im 35, live in the GTA and yet Ive never met anyone who watches the CFL or the Argos.
They'd sell out, but that pretty much defeats the purpose of a pro sports team. About a decade ago they averaged over 25K for a few years, so they can draw under the right conditions. But their big problem has been too many crappy owners. MLSE took the Marlies and TFC from nothing to something, so they could do the same for the Argos.

The Argos don't play on Sundays, so don't blame Uncle Ernie.
 

93LEAFS

Registered User
Nov 7, 2009
33,841
20,903
Toronto
From a nationwide perspective, the Jays are easily the most popular team across Canada. They're the most recent championship winning franchise in the city and have a strong fanbase all across Canada. I still feel like basketball doesn't have that big of a market in other areas of Canada, which as a result, limits the Raptors popularity to mostly Southern Ontario. Meanwhile, the Leafs are legit the most despised Canadian team in every other big city in Canada besides Toronto.

If we're talking purely the GTA, the Leafs will always have the largest following since Toronto is arguably the capital city of hockey. The jays are extremely popular when they're in contention, in fact the Jays fever in 2015-16 reached a higher hype peak than any Toronto sports moment in recent memory. TFC and the Raptors are catching up though since they've been more successful in recent times. Toronto's overall diversity also plays a large role since most first gen Canadians and/or non-Northwest European Canadians are more likely to be interested in sports like basketball and soccer compared to hockey and American football

I don't watch much NFL but the Buffalo Bills have quite a big following in Southern Ontario due its proximity to Buffalo and Toronto not having an actual NFL team
The Jays are the only team in Canada that I'm pretty sure gets every game broadcasted on entry-level cable packages. The Leafs still have a bunch of games that are regionally blocked. Raptors are pretty nationwide, but I do think they get quite a few games on local TSN and Rogers feed.

The Leafs are despised by fans of local teams in other markets. But, the number of transplants in places like Calgary and Vancouver means they have a very sizable fanbase there. I would bet the Leafs are likely the 2nd most popular NHL team in pretty much every market in Canada.
 

TheBeastCoast

Registered User
Mar 23, 2011
30,944
30,722
Dartmouth,NS
You’re asking this in a hockey forum so most people’s choice is Maple Leafs by far, but Raptors are pretty close. They have been the most successful in the last decade out of all big 4 leagues and adding Kawhi makes them the close favourite out of the east. They could see a big boom in ratings if everything goes well this year.
No...That isn't even remotely true. The Raptors are gaining in popularity but if you think they are getting even close to the Leafs yet you are mistaken. In no world are the Raptors "pretty close" to the Leafs. Kawhi or no Kawhi.
 
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The Best Leafs Ever

Registered User
Feb 28, 2017
2,147
781
It’s Jays for a simple reason, people love to go out during the summer time and Jays tickets are affordable. Both Raptors and Leafs tickets are too expensive to the point where students won’t even want to blow all those money on 1 game. Also Jays had a pretty good run recently which helped them lure some new fans.
 

Nineteen67

HFBoards Sponsor
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Dec 12, 2017
22,366
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I’ve been to several Jays and Leafs away games and a couple of Raptor road games in Memphis and the Leafs and Jays fans travel extremely well and have taken over buildings and surrounding restaurants while there were only two other ( I was cheering for Toronto although I can’t put a face to a player’s name) raptor fans that I saw in Memphis
 

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