CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie is meeting with Eric Lapointe in Montreal Friday, according to Montreal Gazette reporter Herb Zurkowsky.
The Canadian Football Hall of Fame running back has been outspoken about his desire to own the Alouettes. And with the Lenkov brothers no longer in the running to purchase the Als, Lapointe could be the focal point for the league. Lapointe played the last six seasons of his CFL career for the Alouettes and believes the franchise can thrive in La Belle Province.
“It’s a smaller business obviously than the Montreal Canadiens, it’s even a smaller business than what we have right now for most of the people that are in the group. Yes, there’s different aspects to it. There’s obviously football ops, there’s administration and then the coaching and the actual game, which is three different things,” Lapointe said on TSN radio in Montreal in March.
“I know exactly where to start. It’s an interesting business, but don’t get me wrong it’s not a passion investment for me: I believe there’s potential. I’ve seen numbers in the past and I’ve talked to many teams in the league also. It’s probably not a team that you could make 10 millions of profit every year… but as a group if we bring different type of people, different type of expertise, we can do great things for a small organization.”
The CFL and Wetenhall family had been working for several months to identify and assess potential new owners and that process is ongoing. To facilitate the process, the CFL has been involved in the club’s day-to-day operations in recent months. The Alouettes were officially sold to the league on Friday, May 31.
Meanwhile, the Alouettes fired head coach Mike Sherman, general manager Kavis Reed, but on the field are flying high with a three-game win streak. Striking a deal with Lapointe’s ownership group could keep the momentum going in Montreal.
