Don't ask how, but Jon Bon Jovi aka Kevin Bacon's musically-gifted doppleganger remains one of the highest-earning performers in the world. The 51-year-old rock star already owns the Arena Football League's Philadelphia Soul and reportedly is interested in buying an NFL organization. If things could according to plan, the Buffalo Bills will be that franchise and not surprisingly, Toronto would be their new headquarters. The move would leave the Buffalo Sabres as the only show in town, while the Bills would immediately become the fifth-most popular source of entertainment for Canada's hub city behind the Maple Leafs, Raptors, Blue Jays and Rob Ford watch.
Bon Jovi's been doing his due diligence. Reportedly, Bon Jovi has been meeting with NFL general managers, hobnobbing with powerbrokers in Buffalo and Toronto. He even fired guitarist Richie Sambora to save costs. Here's where it gets awkward. Bon Jovi must check the obituaries on a daily basis until 95-year-old owner Ralph Wilson passes away to purchase the organization.
Via CBS Sports:
The NFL has a vested interest in keeping the Bills a regional team, for Western New York and Southern Ontario, and in most any scenario the team will continue sharing games to some degree with Toronto. And if Rogers Communications were to get the team and get a Super Bowl-quality stadium built in Canada, then undoubtedly the number of games played in Toronto would increase over time.
Furthermore, Tim Leiweke, a former honcho at AEG (whose plans to bring a team to Los Angeles have hit several snags) is now president and CEO of Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs and a massive player in the sports and entertainment landscape of the region. And sources said Bon Jovi has major ties to Leiweke and his daughter and that perhaps they could eventually align in pursuit of the Bills, with Bon Jovi the public face of the franchise (a la rapper Jay Z, and the sports agency he in essence fronts). It's worth noting that Bon Jovi, a Jersey native, got a banner at MLSE's Air Canada Centre.
