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In just under three weeks, the Grey Cup Festival will begin in Regina.
The Grey Cup Festival Committee confirmed its schedule Thursday, explaining what fans can expect when the big show comes to town.
The festival will actually begin Nov. 15 in Saskatoon, where 1,500 Grade 7 and 8 students from the area will gather for a rally to welcome the Grey Cup trophy to the province. The rally will take place from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m., and will feature Indigenous entertainment and motivational speakers.
After that, the Grey Cup will rest for the day before heading to a free pancake breakfast at Prairieland Park on Nov. 16.
That same day, Regina’s Colin James will kick off the Festival in the Queen City with a free concert in the International Trade Centre at the REAL District.
The full spectrum of the festival then gets underway on Nov. 17.
There will be plenty for fans to do from Nov. 17 to Nov. 20. The festival will feature events such as Mosaic Village, the Digital Zone, the NextGen Energy Street Festival and a Super Smash Bros Esports tournament at the Brandt Centre, with a prize pool of $50,000 available to some of the world’s top players.
On Nov. 18, CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie will hold his State of the League address at 10 a.m.
The Cheer Extravaganza will be held Nov. 19 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and will feature all of the CFL’s cheer teams and some local groups as well.
Saskatchewan Roughriders president-CEO Craig Reynolds says this time around, the organizing committee wanted to put more of an emphasis on holding events for everyone to enjoy.
“Our theme around youth and technology is a really big difference (from 2013, the last time the game was in Regina). You see the number of free family-friendly events that are designed to attract youth to the festival,” he explained.
“(There are) a lot of innovative events with technology. Our Digital Zone is a good example of that and obviously the Esports tournament is something that’s never been done at the Grey Cup.”
While organizers have implemented more family-friendly events this time, Reynolds added that having everything on the REAL District grounds is a big advantage.
This will be the first time in the history of the Grey Cup that the festival and game are being held all on the same site.
“I think the one footprint is a huge difference,” Reynolds said. “We’re hosting every event at REAL District and we have some new venues here. The International Trade Centre didn’t exist in 2013 and that’s where Riderville will be, so I think that’s a big difference.”
The Grey Cup team parties except for Edmonton’s will be held at the Co-operators Centre.
With so much activity taking place throughout the REAL District and the city, Reynolds says it should bring a nice economic boom to the Queen City.
“It has a really big economic impact. Just for reference, the last Grey Cup (in Regina) was well north of $80 million in economic impact to the province of Saskatchewan,” he said.
“It’s a large-scale event, you get tons of people coming to the city, eating in the restaurants, drinking in the bars and staying in our hotel rooms. It’s really positive for the economy of Saskatchewan.”
On Grey Cup Sunday, a free outdoor tailgate will be held for fans with tickets to Sunday’s big game.
Besides the Grey Cup Festival, there is still no announcement about a halftime show.
But Reynolds did confirm the league has been able to secure an act for the big game on Nov. 20 and an announcement will be made sometime next week.
Fans are encouraged to download the Grey Cup Festival app for when they’re in Regina for the game.