Stadiums & Arenas of Canada, Part 3

[ericmacm]

Originally Posted by Nicko999

With all the respect to the CFL, an NFL franchise is a completely different beast.
In MTL, it is by far the second most popular league after the NHL and I suspect it is the same in Toronto despite basketball's popularity.

An hypothetical Montreal NFL team would easily sell out the big O every game.

In more realistic news. Looks like they also want to build a hotel and conference centre.
Negotiations underway for CF Montreal move into potentially ‘world class’ Olympic Stadium: report


https://canadiansoccerdaily.com/2026/08/...ally-world-class-olympic-stadium-report/

More intensification/activation of the area surrounding Stade Olympique is going to be good for it. I have walked around the area before (went to a CF Montreal game at Stade Saputo) and something needs to be done with the windswept concrete plaza on the south side of the complex. I think a complete reconfiguration of that area with a hotel/conference centre would be fantastic.

Big question will be what happens with Stade Saputo if CF Montreal moves into Stade Olympique. I would like to see it remain in use by the CPL/NSL as suggested in the article.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy

The hotel was sold as a separate entity around 1999 and remains independently owned and controlled from the stadium, there is no revenue source there for Rogers.

Well that's not great. If I owned a sports stadium, I'd want full control of the entire building. Maybe that's just me. That's a year after the Province sold the stadium to a private entity. Probably sold just the hotel for more than the Province sold the entire Skydome.

Originally Posted by Nicko999

With all the respect to the CFL, an NFL franchise is a completely different beast.
In MTL, it is by far the second most popular league after the NHL and I suspect it is the same in Toronto despite basketball's popularity.

An hypothetical Montreal NFL team would easily sell out the big O every game.

In more realistic news. Looks like they also want to build a hotel and conference centre.
Negotiations underway for CF Montreal move into potentially ‘world class’ Olympic Stadium: report


https://canadiansoccerdaily.com/2026/08/...ally-world-class-olympic-stadium-report/

Originally Posted by ericmacm

More intensification/activation of the area surrounding Stade Olympique is going to be good for it. I have walked around the area before (went to a CF Montreal game at Stade Saputo) and something needs to be done with the windswept concrete plaza on the south side of the complex. I think a complete reconfiguration of that area with a hotel/conference centre would be fantastic.

Big question will be what happens with Stade Saputo if CF Montreal moves into Stade Olympique. I would like to see it remain in use by the CPL/NSL as suggested in the article.

That's great news. Happy to hear of some potential development in the area and a tenant for the Olympic Stadium. I agree, Saputo could be great for those smaller leagues.

[many]

Originally Posted by J.OT13

Well that's not great. If I owned a sports stadium, I'd want full control of the entire building. Maybe that's just me. That's a year after the Province sold the stadium to a private entity. Probably sold just the hotel for more than the Province sold the entire Skydome.





That's great news. Happy to hear of some potential development in the area and a tenant for the Olympic Stadium. I agree, Saputo could be great for those smaller leagues.

I think of the reasons why Mark Shapiro said that the Rogers Centre renovation was a temporary solution is because they don’t control 100% of the stadium and not to mention they don’t control the land Rogers Centre sits on

[MalcolmTucker]

Originally Posted by many

I think of the reasons why Mark Shapiro said that the Rogers Centre renovation was a temporary solution is because they don’t control 100% of the stadium and not to mention they don’t control the land Rogers Centre sits on

From the federal government:
Canada Lands Company (CLC) is the landlord under a long-term ground lease for the Rogers Centre, which expires in 2088.
The land on which the Rogers Centre (a baseball stadium, including a hotel) sits is under a long-term ground lease from CLC to a Province of Ontario corporation.
The province subleases [most of] the land on which the sports facility sits to the Blue Jays (Rogers) and the land on which the hotel sits to another party.

From Lexpert:

[holders of associated and intermeshing agreements surrounding Skydome include]:

• Stadium Corporation of Ontario Ltd. (Stadco)
• The Province of Ontario
• Canada Lands Company CLC Ltd.
• Canadian National Railway Co.
• City of Toronto
• Toronto Terminals Railway Company Ltd.
• GO Transit
• Oxford Properties and Renaissance Hotels which has a hotel inside the SkyDome

Over 150 intermeshing contracts are involved in stadium operations and 200 encumbrances exist on title.

The City of Toronto is the landlord of some of the land.

[Coldrsx]

GnR at Commonwealth last night. Still the best large stadium for a nice summer's night concert.

[2009]

The Apple Bowl in Kelowna is getting a 3000 seat expansion so Kelowna can get a CPL franchise in 2028.

[Dalreg]

Originally Posted by 2009

The Apple Bowl in Kelowna is getting a 3000 seat expansion so Kelowna can get a CPL franchise in 2028.

Add an extra 10,000 seats and go for a CFL team. BC needs a second team either in Kelowna or on the island.

[craner]

^I agree - now is the time Kelowna.
^^Nice shot of Commonwealth in concert mode.

Meanwhile 300kms south the ole gal’s days may be numbered
City of Calgary seeks bids to study feasibility of a major stadium project
http://https://globalnews.ca/news/12036011/city-of-calgary-seeks-bids-study-stadium-project/

[Wpg_Guy]

Quintin Soloviev

[Wpg_Guy]

Capacity is about 7,461 seats for baseball games.


anthony_urso


Winnipeg Architecture Foundation


reddit

[Coldrsx]

One of the best of that size out there.

[BlackDog204]

Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy

Capacity is about 7,461 seats for baseball games.


anthony_urso


Winnipeg Architecture Foundation


reddit

Nice shots.

Shaw Park is one of the best minor league baseball parks in baseball. I love the backdrop of the skylines, and it's close proximity to the Forks.

[ScreamingViking]

Originally Posted by Wpg_Guy

Quintin Soloviev

A thing of beauty.

[Coldrsx]

That and Mosiac are amazing in look, feel and size/scale.

Both remind me of a 60k US stadium, but Canadian-sized.

[J.OT13]

Originally Posted by Coldrsx

That and Mosiac are amazing in look, feel and size/scale.

Both remind me of a 60k US stadium, but Canadian-sized.

I agree, Winnipeg and Regina CFL stadiums look most like NFL stadiums. Very impressive buildings.

Edmonton and Winnipeg baseball stadiums seem very similar to me, especially because of their locations by their respective rivers.

[J.OT13]

This was posted on the Skyline thread, but here's uOttawa's GeeGee Field from Emanulix on YouTube.



From Wikipedia, Taag Park, home of the Carleton Ravens.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TAAG_Park

And the 10k seat Ottawa baseball stadium, home of the Frontier League Titans. Not a spectacular location like Winnipeg and Edmonton. It's by the highway in a 1950s suburban area (stadium built in 1993 for the Ottawa Lynx), it is within walking distance from Tremblay O-Train and VIA station across the Queensway, over the Max Keeping pedestrian bridge.


https://www.ottawatitans.com/ottawa-stadium


https://capitalcurrent.ca/ottawa-titans-...-make-baseball-park-a-more-social-space/


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ottawa_Stadium

[Base]

Originally Posted by Coldrsx

That and Mosiac are amazing in look, feel and size/scale.

Both remind me of a 60k US stadium, but Canadian-sized.

They are both awesome for sure, I feel for them a bit with the field dimensions changing they won't look as nicely suited to the length of the field but will wait and see how it looks.

[Wpg_Guy]

City of Calgary looking into potential McMahon Stadium replacement
Colton Pankiw | Aug 27 2026



The City of Calgary is exploring the possibility of building a new outdoor facility to serve as the replacement for McMahon Stadium, Global News reported on Wednesday.

There have been rumblings about a new stadium coming to Calgary, as McMahon, which was built in 1960, has become quite outdated compared to many CFL stadiums.

Steve Allan of McMahon Stadium told Adam MacVicar that the cost of maintaining McMahon, which is set to host the 113th Grey Cup this November, is getting out of hand. Allan revealed that it has cost nearly $1 million just to fix the sewage and water issues that otherwise would’ve put the building “at risk of failure.”

“We have a desperate need for facilities, and McMahon Stadium is way beyond its best before date,” Allan said.

The City is now looking to bring in a third party to assess the feasibility of a new facility in Calgary. It is currently in the midst of seeking bids on a pair of contracts for a firm to examine the costs and planning of a proposed major sports and event facility project.

According to MacVicar, the contract will be awarded in October, with the estimated cost of the new stadium study being roughly $875,000.

This past March, Calgary Stampede CEO Joel Crowley suggested a plan that would see the City build a new stadium at Stampede Park. That could still be on the table for this soon-to-be-announced third-party option.

Several members of the Calgary Stampeders organization have been vocal about needing a new home, and it sounds as though the City agrees. That said, these deals are never easy to put together.

“As we see the need for supporting local arts, culture, but also sports like the CFL, would strongly support a replacement for that facility,” Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas said.

“But as I say, the devil is always in the details, and I want to make sure that if taxpayers are asked to contribute that it’s in a fair way.”

Should a new stadium be agreed upon, it would mark another much-needed replacement in Calgary.

The other, of course, was the Scotiabank Saddledome, which has also become quite outdated since being built in 1983. An agreement for a new facility was agreed upon in late 2023, with construction beginning in the summer of 2024. The new building, Scotia Place, is expected to be ready to rock for the 2027-28 NHL season.

While there is still a ways to go before a potential replacement for McMahon Stadium gets underway, there appears to be a real chance that Calgary could have two new professional sports venues in the coming years.

Daily Hive

[jonny24]

If they do something at the Stampede grounds, maybe it could be a double sided building like Headingly rugby/cricket ground. Onside facing the horse track and one side facing the football field.

[Glow Fun City]

(“Rogers Field at”) Nat Bailey Stadium, Vancouver BC — 1951, 6500 capacity, Vancouver Canadians single A ⚾️




Photos by me July 31