Quote Adam_Harrison9="Adam_Harrison9"They're not bringing anything anything new to "the game". They are actually receiving something new to the city of Toronto. They have yet to provide the game with a financial benefit, homegrown canadian players, canadian coahces, canadian grassroots clubs e.t.c. What they have provided is huge salaries for other super league players to have a nice little holiday and earn some coin whilst playing uncompetitive games against teams with far less financial might.
Toronto bring nothing to the game in the UK or Super League that any other Super League club could not bring if they had some rich sugar daddy running them. This isn't "expansion". This is a Super League clubs becoming rich men's play things until they get bored. The Canadian Koukash one might say.'"
I will challenge that as they are clearly bringing something new.
8 - 10 new fans from a virgin market place.
Broadcast of rl in an entirely new market place.
I'm not sure what your expectations are in terms of new players and coaches, but it's not like rugby league players are just loitering around the world ready to play when a super league team turns up. It takes at least a generation to generate your own talent. There are ways of short cutting this by taking talent from other sports and retraining them. But if you are expecting 8-10 year old who may have first picked up a rugby ball in Canada 2 seasons ago to now be the core of the Canadian team then you will be disappointed.
Saints and Wigan and Leeds produce loads of youth each and every year and maybe 1 or 2 make then grade every couple of years. So if in 10 years time the wolf pack has 2 or 3 homegrown players in their squad they will be doing as well as top SL teams and better than some others.
As for providing huge salarys for SL players, you have by your own words indicated that they have by defacto boosted SL from a 12 team league to show iit can maintain 13 full time professional teams of similar standing.
I do question the longer term structure and strategy, for example how will they grow their youth set up if they are the only rl team, their youth need a local competition. But this may already being addressed.
But have they expanded the game, yes they have. Whether it is something that can be maintained over 10-20 years is another matter.