Prof. Norman O’Reilly, School of Hospitality, Food and Tourism Management, spoke to CBC Winnipeg about the declining demand for Winnipeg Jets tickets and what it means for the franchise.

O’Reilly said True North Sports and Entertainment is likely only breaking even on the team. But he added that he thinks True North majority owner David Thomson did not buy the team to make a profit.

“He did this because he wants to support hockey. He loves Winnipeg. If he wanted to make a lot of money, he would have put that few hundred million dollars somewhere else,” O’Reilly said.

O’Reilly is the assistant dean of executive programs in U of G’s Gordon S. Lang School of Business and Economics and is considered a leading scholar in the business of sport. He studies marketing, sponsorship, sport finance, social marketing and tourism management.