BC Lions emerge as contender to buy BC Place: report
The Vancouver Whitecaps might not be the only interested sports club that wants to buy BC Place.
On Friday, TSN’s Farhan Lalji reported that BC Lions owner Amar Doman is interested in purchasing BC Place from the provincial government.
The idea of selling BC Place has been in the news this week, as B.C. MLA Ravi Kahlon admitted to Postmedia that the government has discussed the possibility of selling the stadium to the franchise.
A landmark of downtown Vancouver, BC Place hasn’t been commonly discussed as being available for purchase since the 2013 provincial election, when NDP leader Adrian Dix said he would consider putting the stadium up for sale if he was elected.
Although discussions about PavCo selling BC Place have picked up steam this week, it doesn’t appear to make a lot of financial sense for the Whitecaps.
The Whitecaps’ financial troubles, coupled with the fact that they’re looking for a new owner, make a potential BC Place purchase seem like a pipe dream.
But could Amar Doman have a more solid case for purchasing the stadium?
Doman, who took over as Lions owner in 2021, is the founder and CEO of Doman Building Materials. His company generated over $3 billion in revenue last year. According to the financial data platform GuruFocus, he also holds over $750 million in publicly disclosed equities.
While the Lions themselves might not be as prolific in North America compared to the Whitecaps, they seemingly have an owner who at least has a shot of pulling a purchase of this magnitude off.
And clearly, Doman believes he can enter the mix if BC Place truly is for sale, as he reportedly submitted an official letter of interest to the provincial government.
“The idea of purchasing or managing BC Place has been something that has been of keen interest to Doman for more than two years, but he wasn’t convinced the province would consider the possibility,” Lalji reported on Friday.
Lalji also noted that Doman’s interest isn’t tied to the Whitecaps’ reported interest in the stadium.
The Lions finally return to BC Place on Saturday against the Toronto Argonauts. They’ll play the game as tenants of the stadium, as they’ve always been.
But perhaps that will change with an owner like Doman at the helm.