While reading the news on CHML Thursday afternoon, I got an almost extra-strong espresso-like jolt.
No, I didn’t put a couple of packets of sugar in my tea.
The jolt was provided by technical producer Luke Vermeer who told me about an article on sportingnews.com that ranks the top fan bases of Canada’s professional sports teams.
The list was apparently compiled based on a team’s “loudest, most loyal and craziest” fans and I give credit to the author for tackling a topic that can be debated until the end of time.
But when I read that Maple Leafs fans are ranked eighth on the list, I had to investigate further.
The list of 21 teams includes all nine CFL franchises, the NHL’s seven Canadian-based teams, as well as the Blue Jays, Raptors and MLS entries in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal.
Only two CFL teams are listed in the top 10, the Saskatchewan Roughriders at No. 2 and the Ottawa Redblacks at No. 7, just ahead of the Leafs and behind the sixth-ranked Winnipeg Jets.
Where are the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and their wild fans? No. 11.
The Argonauts are 21st, and last, on the list. No one can argue that given the Double Blue barely have enough fans to qualify for this list.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers, who have the loudest fans in the CFL according to recent decibel level readings, are ranked 17th, which I think is too low. The Bombers haven’t won the Grey Cup since 1990 and their fans still come out each and every week and bruise their vocal chords.
Toronto FC is #1 on the list, and while I agree their fans are loyal and loud, I’m not sure I’d put them at the top.
Montreal Canadiens fans, who I will remind you rioted in the streets when Maurice “Rocket” Richard was suspended by the NHL in 1956, are ranked fourth behind Blue Jays fans.
Jays fans, while some have been known to throw a beer can on the field, don’t deserve to be No. 3. Where were they when the team stunk for nearly two decades?
Raptors fans are fifth on this list, and while I think that’s a little high, I acknowledge the power of “Jurassic Park.”
I might be biased, but Leafs fans — and let’s not count the suits in the platinums that only watch half of each period — are certainly the most loyal, and probably craziest fans in Canada.
Who else would support a franchise that was a laughingstock for so many years, one that still forces you to take out a second mortgage to bring your family to a game, and are now being teased with visions of Stanley Cup splendour?
I rest my case.
The Sporting News List:
21. Toronto Argonauts
20. BC Lions
19. Ottawa Senators
18. Montreal Alouettes
17. Winnipeg Blue Bombers
16. Edmonton Eskimos
15. Vancouver Canucks
14. Calgary Stampeders
13. Vancouver Whitecaps
12. Edmonton Oilers
11. Hamilton Tiger-Cats
10. Calgary Flames
9. Montreal Impact
8. Toronto Maple Leafs
7. Ottawa Redblacks
6. Winnipeg Jets
5. Toronto Raptors
4. Montreal Canadiens
3. Toronto Blue Jays
2. Saskatchewan Roughriders
1. Toronto FC