Tag: Varsity Stadium

  • Varsity Wins the Almost Forgotten Grey Cup

    In 1909, Governor General Earl Grey donated a trophy to be awarded to the amateur rugby football champions of Canada. The University of Toronto won the inaugural championship with a 26-6 win over Toronto Parkdale. Various teams in Toronto and Hamilton competed in the early Grey Cup contests before the game was put on hold after 1915 due to the First World War.

    1920 Varsity Team
    1920 University of Toronto Varsity Team (photo courtesy of the Canadian Football Research Society)

    The Grey Cup was then virtually forgotten. The trophy itself was locked away hidden in a storage vault. War has a way of resetting priorities, you see. After football resumed in Canada in 1919, there were growing organizational issues amongst some teams and disagreements amongst the rugby unions, climaxing in a decision by McGill University and Montreal to refuse to contest the Canadian Rugby Union playoffs. Alas, there was no Grey Cup in 1919, either.

    Coverage of the 1920 Grey Cup in the Toronto Star on December 6, 1920.
    Coverage of the 1920 Grey Cup in the Toronto Star on December 6, 1920.

    But in 1920, the Grey Cup made its triumphant return. And a couple of familiar teams were back in the mix to win the big game. On Saturday, December 4, 1920, the University of Toronto played the Toronto Argonauts in the 8th edition of the Grey Cup. Played in less-than-ideal conditions (rain and mud!) at Toronto’s Varsity Stadium, Varsity’s Joe Breen was the star of the day, according to the Toronto Star, leading his team to a 16-3 victory over the Argonauts.

    Coverage of the 1920 Grey Cup in the Globe and Mail on December 6, 1920.
    Coverage of the 1920 Grey Cup in the Globe and Mail on December 6, 1920.

    This would be the University of Toronto’s fourth and final Grey Cup championship. At the time, Varsity was considered by many to be the best football team in the country. Their championship win cemented this sentiment.

    Despite being relegated to a dark memory hole just a few years prior, the Grey Cup was back. And perhaps that’s what mattered most.

    Sources:

    https://web.archive.org/web/20130820024400/http://cfl.ca/page/his_greycup_recap1920

    The Toronto Star, 6 December 1920

    The Globe and Mail, 6 December 1920

  • Getting Ready for the Grey Cup’s TV Debut

    It’s September 1952 and a new technology – black and white television – is taking the country and much of the world by storm. The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) entered the TV business with two flagship stations: CBFT in Montreal and CBLT in Toronto.

    Grey Cup Ad in the Toronto Star (1952)
    Grey Cup Advertisement for Sweet Caps cigarettes in the Toronto Star (27 November 1952)

    The decision was soon made to broadcast the upcoming Grey Cup game on CBLT. The Canadian Rugby Union championship was scheduled for Saturday November 29th at Varsity Stadium in Toronto.

    Grey Cup Ad in the Toronto Star (1952)
    Grey Cup Advertisement by Northern Electric in the Toronto Star (27 November 1952)

    The novelty factor of the new technology coupled with the popularity of the hometown Toronto Argonauts, who were playing in the championship, helped drive sales for television sets in Toronto. Several ads selling TVs appeared in local newspapers. These didn’t come cheap, but vendors were more than happy to set up affordable payment plans for excited football fans.

    TV sale ad in the Toronto Star (1952)
    Ads promoting TV sales
    TV sale ad in the Toronto Star (1952)

    While the Grey Cup game itself was the first Canadian football game ever televised, broadcast crews did a practice run a few days before in the playoff game between the Argonauts and the Sarnia Imperials of the Ontario Rugby Football Union. In those days, the ORFU still challenged for the Grey Cup. The Toronto-Sarnia Grey Cup semi-final game at Varsity Stadium was used as the dress rehearsal for the big game. The 1952 Grey Cup commentators Norm Marshall and Larry O’Brien were actually chosen after an audition for the roles was held during the Sarnia game.

    Notes about the TV practice run done during the Grey Cup semi-final between Toronto and Sarnia (Toronto Star, 27 November 1952)

    Pubs in and around Toronto with television sets were packed on the day of the game. Meanwhile, in nearby Hamilton, Westinghouse set up several TVs so that employees and friends could watch the game. The broadcast even included a short pre-game show hosted by Annis Stukus.

    In the end, the Argonauts defeated Edmonton by a score of 21-11 in front not only record crowd at Varsity Stadium but also tens of thousands of television viewers in the Toronto area. A new era for the Grey Cup and for Canadian television was here.

    Sources:

    Patskou, Paul. “The First Televised Grey Cup Game.” Canadian Football Research Society. Accessed October 28, 2025. https://www.canadianfootballresearch.ca/the-first-televised-grey-cup-game/.

    The Toronto Star, 27 November 1952

  • Advertisement for 1951 Toronto Argonaut Season Tickets

    Toronto Argonauts season ticket advertisement in the Toronto Star

    It’s the summer of 1951 in southern Ontario, and the Toronto Argonauts are in the final push to sell season tickets for the upcoming season. Here is an ad that appeared in the Toronto Star on June 14 soliciting fans to purchase (or “subscribe for”) tickets for the Argos’ home games at Varsity Stadium.

    Check out the pricing for these tickets. $17.10 for the best seats in the house. That’s still less than $200 in today’s dollars. Good value for six games.

    The Argos went 7-5 in 1951, third place in the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union but good enough to qualify for the postseason. One of their star players that season was a running back named Ulysses “Crazy Legs” Curtis. He was one of the first black players to don the Double Blue.