The amount raised by Saturday night’s 50/50 drawing at the Bell Center during the game against the Canadiens and Blackhawks is impressive: $337,315. We don’t see that every day.
So there is a group of seven winners who share half of the prize pool, which is $168,657.50.
We are far from the usual amounts, but there is an explanation and it is Geneviève Paquette, director of the Canadiens Children’s Foundation, who provides it to us.
“In order to start the season strong, we have created a combined jackpot of preparation games with the opening game, which is permitted by the Régie des alcohols, des courses et des jeux du Québec (RACJ).
“We wanted to try something different and wanted the opening game to have a big jackpot to boost sales.”
More interesting
If it is the director of the team foundation who is telling us about this, it is because the money raised through these raffles goes directly to this non-profit organization.
Another explanation is that Quebec residents can now purchase tickets for these draws online, whereas previously one had to be present at the Bell Center to participate.
“[Les] Changes in the RACJ rules open up opportunities and all non-profit organizations benefit from them, explains Geneviève Paquette. This will allow us to generate more revenue and create more winners elsewhere in the province.”
Since last year it has been possible to purchase tickets for these draws online. Additionally, the QMJHL’s Quebec Remparts had a draw worth more than $640,000 during the playoffs last spring.
Rising
Not surprisingly, this new opportunity allows the foundation to increase its revenue.
“Just before the pandemic, we were averaging about $60,000 per game. Last year it rose to almost $74,000 and we hope it will continue to rise,” admits Ms. Paquette.
Last year, these raffles generated just over $3 million in revenue, a little less than half of which went to the foundation, which must cover certain administrative costs, such as fees associated with paying by credit card.
These funds will go directly to the Bleu Blanc Rouge program, which aims to provide Quebec with refrigerated outdoor ice rinks. The foundation will also build a 14th ice rink in Saint-Jérôme this year.
Construction costs have exploded over the years. The first ice skating rink was inaugurated in the Saint-Michel district in 2009 and cost between $1.2 and $1.4 million. Saint-Jérôme’s has a budget of $2.4 million, especially because we are now opting for a more environmentally friendly cooling system that costs more.
Incomprehensible
Geneviève Paquette dreams of sales like we can see in Alberta. The City of Edmonton is also the champion of the 50/50 draw. The Oilers’ home opener on Saturday had a total prize pool of $729,255 and featured numerous additional prizes, including a Ford Bronco.
The Oilers hold the record for a North American professional team with $14.3 million per game in 2020. The draw’s popularity caused computer problems and forced the draw’s postponement.
During the 2021 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, we raised more than $34 million through 50/50 ticket sales for the entire event, including nearly $17.5 million during the finals.
“The Oilers and Alberta are in a league of their own. All foundations dream of this, says Geneviève Paquette. In Alberta they have an older tradition of 50/50 pricing.”
For comparison, the Los Angeles Rams set an NFL record in 2022 with revenue of $342,975, surpassing the record set at Super Bowl LIV by $10,000.
The Toronto Blue Jays, for their part, set a major baseball record in September with a special raffle prize worth $5,915,060.