Fewer Home Games In Tampa?
September 30th, 2015
The Bucs could be playing fewer home games in Tampa if a proposed deal to renovate the Den of Depression goes through.
If the Bucs get their way in negotiations to renovate the Den of Depression, then beginning with the 2018 season, the Bucs could only be playing six regular season home games in Tampa.
That’s the news from the fingertips of the “Custodian of Canton,” eye-RAH! Kaufman of the Tampa Tribune. A deal to renovate the stadium is near between the Tampa Sports Authority and the Bucs, but part of the hang up is the Bucs want the option to play up to two regular season home games outside the Den of Depression annually.
Presumably, that would mean up to two regular season “home” games outside the Tampa Bay area.
The two sides also disagree on a club request to have an option to move an additional regular-season game to an international site or within the state of Florida, beginning in 2018.
Under the current agreement, the Bucs are allowed to play one regular-season home game each year outside of Raymond James Stadium. Tampa Bay twice played in the NFL’s International Series, against the New England Patriots in 2009 and the Chicago Bears in 2011 at Wembley Stadium in London.
In a response to the team on Sept. 22, the TSA said the right to play a second home game each season outside of the Bay area should be contingent upon Tampa being awarded a Super Bowl during the remaining term of the agreement or a written agreement by Premier League soccer club Manchester United to play a match at the stadium.
Before this London fetish began with the NFL, Green Bay played some regular seasons games in Milwaukee on a regular basis from 1933–1994. Recently, Buffalo played a game a year in Toronto from 2008-2012.
Though Joe understands that the trend is for fans to watch games at home as the experience is superior (does Joe need to go over the litany of reasons why?), tens of thousands of Bucs fans wait with baited breath annually to cheer on their Bucs not from foreign soil or two-bit minor league market (hello, Orlando!), but from the Den of Depression.
And, no, hosting a Super Bowl does not make up for it for those fans. Super Bowls are either for the corporate crowd or well-heeled fans. Your Joe Six-Pack fan can’t afford, or doesn’t get the chance to attend, a Super Bowl, short of hocking his car or mortgaging his house to pay for the ticket.
Then again, it is likely the common give-and-take that takes place in all contract negotiations.
September 30th, 2015 at 10:48 pm
Where are they gonna play in Florida other than Ray jay? This is all about international games, which makes little sense as the organization sucks, so they are just a homecoming opponent for a good team.
But let’s face it the teams with good fan bases don’t want to lose a home game. Teams with weak followings and a history of losing are ok playing in England.
The economic impact of hosting a super bowl would be a win for the community though
September 30th, 2015 at 10:50 pm
Buffalo/Toronto is another example. Maybe we want regular Orlando games.
September 30th, 2015 at 10:52 pm
Thanks Mark.
September 30th, 2015 at 10:52 pm
Bucs have offices in Orlando. Might as well play a game there if need be bc of renovations.
September 30th, 2015 at 10:54 pm
Playing a home game inorlando or cuba would be helpful economically.
September 30th, 2015 at 11:09 pm
lol
he said cuba…………lol
September 30th, 2015 at 11:10 pm
This is just another message to the fans that This organization doesn’t give a crap about us. I truly feel bad for Jameis that is career came here to die. Thus franchise flat sucks and per this news I week be canceling my season tickets tomorrow. Sorry Joe this also means one less reader as well. So as a reward for all our suffering with this crappy team and still buying tickets year over year their idea is to give us less? Totally idiots!
September 30th, 2015 at 11:19 pm
Orlando? What do they have the citrus bowl? Isn’t that place a dump and need renovations as well?
I could see Orlando, as a way to rebuild the fan base that has eroded with constant losing
September 30th, 2015 at 11:39 pm
The Citrus Bowl was just rebuilt. It used to be a dump. I was there for the actual Citrus Bowl this year between Mizzou and Minnesota. It’s really, really nice right now. They only thing they did not redo was the upper decks, but that as added in the 1990s and was already pretty modern. They torn down and rebuilt the entire lower bowl by having crews work night and day for 10 months.
It is now at the level of RayJay or better. Slightly lower seating capacity, but easily a high enough quality venue for a NFL team to play in.
September 30th, 2015 at 11:46 pm
But is this request for the 2nd off-site game going to be forever? Or just during the renovation? Sounds like it would be a permanent agreement.
The London games are the absolute worst! No thank you to those. One, if not both teams, always looks terrible. So how do you think our Bucs usually fare? Chalk that up as an automatic loss every year on our schedule.
September 30th, 2015 at 11:47 pm
@Tampa Tony, I used to live there and Citrus Bowl is a total pit. Ray Jay in it’s current state is much nicer.
September 30th, 2015 at 11:49 pm
Lame
September 30th, 2015 at 11:51 pm
Glazers only care about their precious soccer team. Bucs lyfe is worse because of this. Orlando is better than London. They make bad decisions and take it out on their fans.
October 1st, 2015 at 12:20 am
London and LA
October 1st, 2015 at 12:46 am
suddenly my interest in this club is dropping.
the product on the field is sub-par for so many seasons.
and now this crap. this is not orlando…these games are in London/Manchester, Mexico or Germany.
at the moment i pay for 2 worthless preseason games and get 8 regular games.
with the 2 home games overseas… i only get 6 home games and i have still to pay for these 2 preseason games.
THIS IS BAD TAMPA.
and what we get for it…. new Scoreboards and a better Soundsystem lol
i’m dropping my season tickets (all 6 of them) if the glazers are really starting this oversea BS again.
October 1st, 2015 at 12:47 am
and what’s at the end?
they have a better leverage point when they want to move the team.
October 1st, 2015 at 12:48 am
I for one will be pissed to lose any home games. I’m thankful to live in a city with an NFL team and think Ray J is just fine, as long as they stop making me go to customer service because my pass is showing as “refunded.”
October 1st, 2015 at 12:54 am
On top of all that guys- make sure to grab your pockets because I can see a raise in tickets with the same crappy product on the field – I personally don’t give a crap about a London soccer team coming here, maybe many would, specially not at the cost of a home game, unless it’s the two preseason games. Other than that, he’ll to the naaaaa naaaa
October 1st, 2015 at 1:31 am
smh…………The beginning of the end
October 1st, 2015 at 1:45 am
What about Tallahassee? How fast do you think they’d sell out a Jameis-led bucs team at Doak Campbell?
October 1st, 2015 at 1:49 am
This team has been really bad and for enduring this terrible team we will reward the fans with fewer games.. that’s pretty much what the blazers have decided I personally wish they sell the team.. from bad coaching decisions to ugly uniforms this team has been run to the ground..
October 1st, 2015 at 1:51 am
This team has been really bad and for enduring this terrible team we will reward the fans with fewer games.. that’s pretty much what the blazers have decided I personally wish they sell the team.. from bad coaching decisions to ugly uniforms this team has been run to the ground..
October 1st, 2015 at 2:45 am
I am sad that the franchise has dropped like a rock since the Super Bowl season.
October 1st, 2015 at 3:52 am
I’m very old school. I was happy with sitting in the end zone @ the Old Sombrero. A brat & Beer & football.
October 1st, 2015 at 4:12 am
It will be one game in London and one game somewhere else in FL if agreed to.
It’s basically the Glazers way of saying hey if you don’t wanna sellout the stadium we’ll make a profit elsewhere.
Lame indeed
October 1st, 2015 at 4:16 am
And Cuba? lololol
October 1st, 2015 at 4:38 am
Orlando is a pretty big market. If they could land two home games there and maybe play a preseason game there it would do a lot for the business side of things and make it that much less likely they for the Glazers to move the team. Also, it might be nice to go over to Orlando for a game and make weekend out of it once or twice a year…
October 1st, 2015 at 5:09 am
Losing breeds all this crap…no 50,000 waiting list for seats anymore or whatever the number was….are these culverhouse’s boys? All about money…get a damn home win this week! And move this ship forward!
October 1st, 2015 at 5:52 am
If the NFL tags youn to go to London… You go. All they are doing is adding a second game. Which can be Mexico City and at the same time saying 1 can be in Fl. I bet all teams have the same agreement or will have the same with their respective city’s. The NFL needs $$ and international games are here to stay. They’ve miles the middle class for every cent. Just like all other corps and now need to find other emerging markets.
October 1st, 2015 at 7:05 am
Remember what I said?? My rants aren’t so far off base now are they? It’s no longer about the game. It’s about power-greed and influence of local government and taxpayers.
October 1st, 2015 at 7:09 am
And so it begins…
October 1st, 2015 at 7:22 am
No big deal since the Bucs never win home games. No home field advantage at RJ for the Bucs.
October 1st, 2015 at 7:23 am
Crack on Orlando all you want, but I thank Allah everyday that I am a native Floridan and not a gd Yankee Carpetbagger. Take away the beaches and Tampa/St Pete is Orlando with one theme park.
October 1st, 2015 at 7:35 am
If the Glazer Kidz were smart they would start marketing Orlando again. 2 million plus metro population just an hour up I-4. Tons of Bucs fans here (or at least there were before Malcolm fell ill) and the new Citrus Bowl is on par w/ Ray Jay. Sitting right in the geographical center of the state, the only NFL owner smart enough to market Orlando is Kahn. Glazer Kidz and Stephen Ross could care less about their teams’ respective fanbase.
October 1st, 2015 at 7:44 am
Sounds like the Glazer’s are ok with losing what remaining loyal fans they have that actually spend their hard earned money on season tickets. I got rid of my tickets after Raheem’s last year as coach cause the team gave up on him and I didn’t see the ship being righted anytime soon and still do not. But if for some crazy reason I still had season tickets, this would be a reason to drop them.
October 1st, 2015 at 8:00 am
I went to the last London game in 2011. Had a great weekend except for the game but I think these games hurt teams that are trying to rebuild.
October 1st, 2015 at 8:39 am
The Citrus Bowl was recently rebuilt. Orlando fans deserve one game a year. We have always been shafted. Live too fair from the stadium (I live near Daytona, almost 3 hours one way). Slammed by blackouts. Didn’t get the Tennessee game this year (although I’m really not b!tchin). I still try to make it to a game but it is extremely difficult. Build the fan base by bringing that game here. I still remember as a kid they used to have preseason games here, but unfortunately not the bucs. Was a HUGE thing.
October 1st, 2015 at 10:29 am
Maybe times have changed, but preseason games with the Bucs or any other teams in Orlando have never drawn well, not in the late 60s, as Tampa gained momentum to land a team, or even after it got a team and chose to play there. When the Bucs were rolling c. 2000, yes, Orlando would have packed em in, but all other times, Orlando fans as a whole are lukewarm to either the Bucs or the Jags. Networks don’t even consider the Bucs or the Jags to be Orlando’s home teams anymore. So sure, Glazers, hold a game year in Orlando with this team. It’ll be half full and a PR fiasco.
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2015/09/12/orlando-nfl-fans-rejoice-youre-not-stuck-with-the-bucs-and-jags/
October 1st, 2015 at 12:00 pm
Gladly give up one preseason game from a season package !
October 1st, 2015 at 3:55 pm
screw that…. the Glazers are trying to line up more games in England. It’s real simple. Put a winning team on the field and you will sell tickets!!!!!!!!!