The 108th Grey Cup takes place on Sunday Dec. 12 at Tim Horton’s Field in Hamilton, and there is no shortage of excitement in the city.
Grey Cup week festivities kicked off Tuesday, with the arrival of the coveted cup at Bayfront Park.
On Thursday, Industria Pizzeria & Bar on John Street was host to the first of two ‘Spirit of Edmonton’ parties.
“We love representing Elks football and the City of Edmonton, but we’re really about the spirit of the CFL”, says Spirit of Edmonton Chairman Gerry Harasci.
The organization has been around since 1973 and represents the City of Edmonton as well as the Edmonton Elks to the rest of Canada each year for the Grey Cup Festival.
Harasci says it’s great to be back celebrating with CFL fans, after the cancellation of the 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“You know, it hurt last year not having it”, Harasci says. “We did a virtual one just to keep the tradition alive.”
But he admits there’s nothing like hosting these parties in person. “When we opened these doors, it was such a great feeling to welcome all of our friends back,” he says.
The restaurant was packed wall to wall with Ticats fans and Winnipeg Blue Bombers fans alike, all celebrating together ahead of Sunday’s big game.
There was live entertainment and a lot of Ticats fans cheering “Oskee Wee Wee!”
There are a slew of Grey Cup Festival week events happening, including a party almost right up to kickoff on Sunday when the Ticats take on the Bombers.
At McMahon Stadium in Calgary back in 2019, Winnipeg and Hamilton battled it out for the trophy, which ended in a 33-12 win for the Blue Bombers.
The last time Hamilton hosted the Grey Cup was back in 1996.