List of Grey Cup champions
The Grey Cup is the championship of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the trophy awarded to the victorious team. The trophy is named after Albert Grey, the Governor General of Canada from 1904 until 1911. He donated the trophy to the Canadian Rugby Union in 1909 to recognize the top amateur rugby football team in Canada. By this time Canadian football had become markedly different from the rugby football from which it developed. Although it was originally intended to be awarded only to amateur teams (like the Stanley Cup), over time, the Grey Cup became the property of the Canadian Football League as it evolved into a professional football league. Amateur teams ceased competing for the Cup by 1954; since 1965, the top amateur teams, playing in U Sports, have competed for the Vanier Cup.[1]
The Grey Cup game is Canada's largest annual sports and television event, regularly drawing a Canadian viewing audience of about 4 million.[2][3] Two awards are given for play in the game, Most Valuable Player and the Dick Suderman Trophy as most valuable Canadian player.[4] As a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Andrew Harris was the first player to win both the Dick Suderman Trophy and the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player the same year, which he did in 2019.
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers have made the most appearances (29), while the Toronto Argonauts have won the most championships (19) and have the best record in the Grey Cup composite standings (19–6). Despite the CFL's brief U.S. expansion era in the mid-1990s, the Grey Cup has never been played outside of Canada. The Baltimore Stallions were the only American team to appear in the Grey Cup (twice, losing in 1994 and winning the following year).
Although the first Grey Cup game was in 1909, none were played from 1916 to 1919 or in 2020, thus the most recent final was the 112th Grey Cup game which was played on November 16, 2025, at Princess Auto Stadium in Winnipeg. The Saskatchewan Roughriders won their fifth championship in franchise history, defeating the Montreal Alouettes.
Results
[edit]- Numbers in parentheses indicate the cumulative number of times that a team has won the Grey Cup.
- ^ Played as a two-game series; Ottawa won the first game 8–2, and the second game 12–5, winning by an aggregate score of 20–7
- ^ Game was suspended with 9:29 remaining in the fourth quarter due to extremely dense fog, and completed the next day
Team records
[edit]Although the official website of the Hamilton Tiger-Cats considers them as the same team,[5] the Tiger-Cats, Hamilton Alerts, Hamilton Tigers and Hamilton Flying Wildcats are all listed separately because, when the latter three were active, the teams competed as separate franchises. The Tigers and Flying Wildcats merged in 1950 to create the Tiger-Cats.[6]
As defined in the 2025 CFL Guide & Record Book, for historical record purposes and by the current Ottawa Redblacks' request, the Ottawa Football Clubs are considered to be a single entity since 1876 with two periods of inactivity (1997–2001 and 2006–2013).[7] Consequently, figures from the Ottawa Football Club (1876–1898), Ottawa Rough Riders (1899–1919, 1931–1996), Ottawa Senators (1920–1930), Ottawa Renegades (2002–2005), and Ottawa Redblacks (2014–present) are included as one.[7]
Toronto is the city with the most wins, 26, followed by Hamilton (15), Edmonton (14), Winnipeg (12), Ottawa (10), Montreal (10), Calgary (8), Vancouver (6), Regina (5), Kingston (3), Sarnia (2) and Baltimore (1).
Active teams
[edit]| Appearances | Team | Wins | Losses | Win % | Last win |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | Winnipeg Blue Bombers[a] | 12 | 17 | .414 | 2021 |
| 25 | Toronto Argonauts | 19 | 6 | .760 | 2024 |
| 23 | Edmonton Elks[b] | 14 | 9 | .609 | 2015 |
| 22 | Hamilton Tiger-Cats | 8 | 14 | .364 | 1999 |
| 20 | Montreal Alouettes | 8 | 12 | .400 | 2023 |
| 20 | Saskatchewan Roughriders[c] | 5 | 15 | .250 | 2025 |
| 18 | Ottawa Redblacks[d] | 10 | 8 | .556 | 2016 |
| 17 | Calgary Stampeders | 8 | 9 | .471 | 2018 |
| 10 | BC Lions | 6 | 4 | .600 | 2011 |
Defunct and amateur teams
[edit]| Appearances | Team | Wins | Losses | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Hamilton Tigers | 5 | 3 | .625 |
| 6 | University of Toronto Varsity Blues | 4 | 2 | .667 |
| 4 | Toronto Balmy Beach Beachers | 2 | 2 | .500 |
| 3 | Queen's University | 3 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 3 | Sarnia Imperials | 2 | 1 | .667 |
| 2 | Baltimore Stallions | 1 | 1 | .500 |
| 2 | Hamilton Flying Wildcats | 1 | 1 | .500 |
| 2 | Edmonton Eskimos/Elks | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| 2 | Toronto Parkdale Canoe Club | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| 2 | Winnipeg RCAF Bombers | 0 | 2 | .000 |
| 1 | Hamilton Alerts | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 1 | Montreal AAA Winged Wheelers | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 1 | St. Hyacinthe–Donnacona Navy | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 1 | Toronto RCAF Hurricanes | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 1 | Toronto Rowing and Athletic Association | 0 | 1 | .000 |
| 1 | Winnipeg Tammany Tigers | 0 | 1 | .000 |
See also
[edit]- Canadian Dominion Football Championship
- Grey Cup Most Valuable Player
- Dick Suderman Trophy (Most Valuable Canadian)
- List of Canadian Football League seasons
- List of Grey Cup-winning head coaches
References
[edit]- General
- "Grey Cup Recaps". Canadian Football League. Archived from the original on June 7, 2012. Retrieved February 27, 2009.
- "Grey Cup history". The Sports Network. Archived from the original on December 29, 2007. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
- "Canadian Football League -- Grey Cup Champions". Canadian Online Explorer.
- "Grey Cup Almanac – Past Winners". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on January 29, 2008. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
- Ichniowski, Scott. "CFL Grey Cup History". Archived from the original on December 5, 2007. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
- Specific
- ^ "Grey Cup history". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on February 24, 2008. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
- ^ Houston, William (December 20, 2006). "Grey Cup moves to TSN in new deal". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved June 7, 2007.
- ^ William Houston (November 20, 2006). "Minor rise in Grey Cup ratings good for CBC". The Globe and Mail. Archived from the original on February 20, 2008. Retrieved December 3, 2006.
- ^ "MVP and Top Canadians". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on January 29, 2008. Retrieved January 20, 2008.
- ^ "History – Grey Cup". Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Archived from the original on September 24, 2007. Retrieved January 15, 2008.
- ^ "Tiger-Cats History". Hamilton Tiger-Cats. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved January 15, 2008.
- ^ a b "CFL Guide & Record Book – 2025 Edition" (PDF). Canadian Football League. p. 14. Retrieved November 13, 2025.
Ottawa FCs historical records considered continuous from 1907 (with two breaks).
External links
[edit]
- Canadian Football League – Official website
- Grey Cup – Official website
- CBC Digital Archives – Grey Cup: The Fans and the Fanfare Archived 2006-06-14 at the Wayback Machine
- 96th Grey Cup Game 2008 in Montreal
- Canadian Football Resources, includes images of souvenir programmes
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