Laval Rouge et Or legend Glen Constantin not interested in coaching proposed Quebec City CFL expansion team

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Laval Rouge et Or head coach Glen Constantin is in favour of CFL expansion to Quebec City, but don’t expect him to vying for a job if a team arrives.

“Listen, that’s not something that interests me. I’m closer to the end of my career,” Constantin told TVA Sports on Thursday.

“I have projects in football. Coaching a team like that, it would take a good discussion to convince me, and it is not something that interests me right now.”

Constantin’s comments come after news broke on Wednesday that the CFL board of governors had unanimously voted in favour of a potential expansion franchise in Quebec City, which would be backed by local real estate mogul William Trudel. The team would be contingent on a $25 million expansion fee and approval for construction of an appropriately sized stadium.

Multiple reports have indicated that a proposed 25,000-seat venue could be completed on the site of the old Colisee as early as 2030, with a CFL team set to begin play soon after. However, others have suggested that the team could launch prior to that date and temporarily co-exist with the Rouge et Or at Stade Telus for a season or two.

Tapping a local legend like Constantin to coach the team would give it instant credibility in the market, but the 61-year-old insists it is not part of his professional ambitions.

“It’s not in my plans,” he stated in a separate interview with Le Journal de Montréal. “I’ve received offers in the past, but that’s not my mission. It’s still the same thing. However, if I can help, that would make me happy.”

Constantin has worked at Laval since the program was launched in 1996, spending the past 26 seasons as head coach. He is the winningest head coach in the history of U Sports football, boasting a 231-41 all-time record while winning 11 Vanier Cups. The Quebec City native has twice been named the U Sports Coach of the Year.

The Rouge et Or are an institution in Quebec, routinely selling out games and offering the best collegiate football atmosphere in the country. It has long been speculated that the program would oppose any CFL encroachment in the market, but Jacques Tanguay, the team’s powerful financial backer, has since dispelled those concerns, saying that Laval would be “the most ardent supporters” of a CFL expansion franchise.

It appears that Constantin shares those sentiments and has no concerns about the potential impact on the Rouge et Or.

“I don’t see the arrival of a team in Quebec City as a threat,” he told Le Journal. “Because a new stadium won’t be built overnight, I can easily envision cooperation between the two teams at PEPS. The Montreal Alouettes’ training camp last May had a positive impact on our coaches.”

“I think that both teams can find their place in the market. They are two different markets.”

Constantin believes that a CFL franchise could be successful in Quebec City, citing the regional support that the Saskatchewan Roughriders experience in Regina as a model for what might be possible.

“I think that Quebec is the best city for spectator sports in Canada,” he said. “Whatever there has been has quickly set records. People come out for what you offer them. That’s the bar; that’s what it takes.”

Quebec City’s existing football fanbase has long made it an intriguing destination for the CFL, though previous forays into the market have been met with mixed reviews. A 2015 exhibition game between Montreal and the Ottawa Redblacks drew just 4,778 fans at Laval. In 2003, a crowd of 10,358 attended a preseason clash between the Alouettes and the Ottawa Renegades.

Constantin’s stamp of approval could help ensure the proposed franchise finds its footing, even if he never puts on a headset or steps foot on the sidelines.