This year’s Grey Cup Festival in Regina has received a financial boost from the Government of Canada for events focused on youth, technology and promotions. Two million dollars in funding will come through the federal government’s Major Festivals and Events Support Initiative (MFESI).
The announcement was made Thursday in Regina from Daniel Vandal, Minister Responsible for Prairies Economic Development Canada along with 2022 Grey Cup Festival Co-Chairs Barry Clarke and Craig Reynolds.
“Major events like the Grey Cup bring people together, attract thousands of visitors, create lasting memories and put money into the hands of local businesses, tourism and hospitality operators and many more. It’s a huge boost to the economy,” said Vandal in a media release.
“Our government is making this significant investment to help organizers of this year’s Grey Cup Festival recover from the impacts of the pandemic and enhance their offerings to drive growth and long-term sustainability. I look forward to seeing Regina and the entire Roughriders organization pull off a great festival this year, for Saskatchewan, the entire CFL community, and all the fans.”
Festival Co-Chair and Roughriders President and CEO Reynolds said the planning committee wanted the Grey Cup Festival to attract and inspire the next generation of CFL fans, and with this funding, that is now possible.
“With this funding from the Government of Canada, we are going to be able to run fun and innovative events and programs for families and for CFL fans of all ages,” Reynolds said.
The funding announcement was accompanied by the launch of three new festival events, supported by MFESI. The Path to Glory is a $50,000 Smash Ultimate Tournament where top Smash players from around the world compete for their chance at a piece of the prize pool. The Grey Cup Festival will host a Super Smash Bros Ultimate eSports tournament with the main event happening Nov. 18-19 at the Brandt Centre.
There will also be youth football programming which will be in partnership with Football Saskatchewan. This programming will help youth to develop their skills with an interactive leaderboard, and youth of all experience levels will have a chance to learn the game and elevate their play.
The last new festival event is the Digital Zone which is expected to be the ultimate experience for families, sports fans and tech gurus alike. This area will include video games, sports experiences and technology through the ages including virtual and augmented reality exhibits.
According to a release, the preliminary Festival schedule and Festival footprint have also been released so CFL fans and visitors will be able to begin their planning. Festival tickets are expected to go on sale in the early fall. An extremely limited number of tickets for the 109th Grey Cup are still available. Visit the Grey Cup Festival website for more information.