| Varsity Centre | |
|---|---|
 photo by Ron Stamant |
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| Location | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Opened | 1898, 2007 |
| Renovated | 1924, 1950, 2006 |
| Demolished | 2002 (original structure) |
| Owner | University of Toronto |
| Operator | University of Toronto |
| Surface | Polytan Ligaturf |
| Construction cost | $61. Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page This article is about the University of Toronto's St George Campus This article is about the University of Toronto's St George Campus 7 million |
| Architect | Diamond + Schmitt Architects Inc. |
| Former names | Varsity Stadium, Varsity Field |
| Tenants | Varsity Blues Toronto Falcons (NPSL/NASL) (1967–1968) Vanier Cup (CIS) (1965–1972, 1976–1988) Toronto Metros-Croatia (NASL) (1975–1978) Toronto Blizzard (NASL/APSL) (1979–1984, 1993) Toronto Lynx (USL) (1997–2001) Toronto Argonauts (CFL) (1898–1907, 1916–1924, 1925–1958) |
| Capacity | 500 (1898-1910) 10,500 (1911-1923) 16,000 (1924-1949, permanent seating) 21,739 (1950-2001, permanent seating) 1,500 (2003-2005) 5,000 (2007-date) |
Varsity Stadium was a collegiate stadium, primarily used for Canadian football, but occasionally playing host to soccer and other events, that was situated on the grounds of the University of Toronto on Bloor Street West, at its intersection with Devonshire, opposite St. George Station, in Toronto, Ontario. The Varsity Blues is the name for the intercollegiate sports program at the University of Toronto. This article is about the soccer team from the 1960s for the professional hockey team from the 1920s see Toronto Ravinas. The National Professional Soccer League (NPSL was a former professional soccer league featuring teams from the United States and Canada. North American Soccer League (NASL was a professional soccer League with teams in the United States of America (U The Vanier Cup (in Coupe Vanier is the name of the championship of Canadian Interuniversity Sport football and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS is the national Governing body of University sport in Canada, comprised of the majority of degree granting universities North American Soccer League (NASL was a professional soccer League with teams in the United States of America (U North American Soccer League (NASL was a professional soccer League with teams in the United States of America (U The original A-League (formerly the American Professional Soccer League) was a professional men's Soccer league in North America. Year 1993 ( MCMXCIII) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display full 1993 Gregorian calendar) Toronto Lynx is a Canadian Soccer team founded in 1997. The team is a member of the United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League The United Soccer Leagues ( USL) is the parent organization for the men's lower division leagues of US and Canadian soccer USL First Division (second division The Toronto Argonauts are a Canadian Football League team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Canadian Football League (CFL ( Ligue canadienne de football (LCF in In accordance with the Manual of Style (see) Canadian English is used throughout this article (see Canadian_English#Spelling) Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a Team sport played between two teams of eleven players and is widely considered This article is about the University of Toronto's St George Campus Bloor Street is a major east-west commercial thoroughfare in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. St George is a station on the Yonge-University-Spadina and Bloor-Danforth lines of the subway system in Toronto, Ontario Toronto (təˈrɒntoʊ colloquially pronounced or) is the largest city in Canada and is the provincial capital of Ontario Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec The structure primarily known by that name in this location was built in 1924 with u-shaped seating and a brick wall against the north side. The structure was demolished in 2002. However, a previous stadium by that name was on the same site as early as 1898. The site that the former Varsity Stadium stood is now known as Varsity Field until further changes lead to the building of Varsity Stadium. The name Varsity Field was re-used from 2002 to 2006 during the period when the old stadium was demolished and the new stadium was being built.
Varsity Centre is the current collegiate stadium for the University of Toronto teams and students. This article is about the University of Toronto's St George Campus It was built on the former site of Varsity Stadium and Varsity Field.
Contents |
Sports
Varsity Stadium has for its entire history been host to the University of Toronto's collegiate Canadian football team, the Varsity Blues. The Varsity Blues is the name for the intercollegiate sports program at the University of Toronto. However it was, until the opening of Exhibition Stadium in 1959, the home of the Canadian professional football team the Toronto Argonauts. Canadian National Exhibition Stadium (commonly known as Exhibition Stadium, CNE Stadium or The Ex) was a Multi-purpose stadium that formerly The Toronto Argonauts are a Canadian Football League team based in Toronto, Ontario. It still holds the record for the number of times any stadium has hosted the Canadian professional football championship game, the Grey Cup. The Grey Cup (in Coupe Grey is both the name of the championship of the Canadian Football League (CFL and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team
Capacity of the stadium has varied with time, but peaked at about 22,000 in the 1950s although, with the use of temporary bleachers, a record crowd of 27,425 watched the Edmonton Eskimos defeat the Montreal Alouettes 50-27 in the 1956 Grey Cup final. The 44nd Grey Cup game was played on November 24 1956 before 27425 fans at Varsity Stadium in Toronto.
After professional football moved to larger quarters in the 1960s, the stadium became less viable as it often failed to fill to its even modest capacity although it maintained a strong profile in the soccer community with the NASL's Toronto Blizzard making the stadium its home for the 1984 season.
In the summer of 1986, Varsity Stadium played host to the World Lacrosse Championships, a tournament featuring the United States, Canada, England, and Australia. The World Lacrosse Championship ( WLC) began as a four-team invitational tournament which coincided with Canada's centennial Lacrosse celebration in 1967 The US defeated Canada in the final, 18-9.
The Varsity Blues generally played fewer than five dates a year, and towards the end of the stadium's life often failed to draw more than a few hundred fans.
The Toronto Blizzard returned to Varsity in 1987 as part of the Canadian Soccer League but would move to the smaller Centennial Park Stadium as a cost cutting move. The Centennial Park Stadium is a 3500 seat capacity Stadium in Etobicoke Ontario, that is primarily used for Soccer and occasionally for Kabbadi They returned in 1993 as a member of the American Professional Soccer League but again were forced to move, this time to Lamport Stadium, again due to financial difficulties. The original A-League (formerly the American Professional Soccer League) was a professional men's Soccer league in North America.
Varsity Stadium continued to host the Canadian intercollegiate championship, the Vanier Cup, but that too moved to larger quarters such as Skydome (now known as Rogers Centre) as the popularity of the collegiate championship grew. The Vanier Cup (in Coupe Vanier is the name of the championship of Canadian Interuniversity Sport football and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team SkyDome redirects here for other uses see SkyDome (disambiguation SkyDome redirects here for other uses see SkyDome (disambiguation
The facility continued to host international soccer matches; although the crowds were large, they were too rare an event to make the stadium viable. This problem was compounded by the university's decision to not maintain the combined south and east stand of the stadium essentially which turned the former twenty-two thousand seat facility into a nine-thousand-seat venue.
Minor league professional soccer team Toronto Lynx moved into the stadium in 1997, but was forced to move to Centennial Park Stadium due to the impending demolition of the historic facility. Toronto Lynx is a Canadian Soccer team founded in 1997. The team is a member of the United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League The Centennial Park Stadium is a 3500 seat capacity Stadium in Etobicoke Ontario, that is primarily used for Soccer and occasionally for Kabbadi
During the 1976 Summer Olympics, Varsity Stadium hosted soccer games, and was the site of the semi-final game between Brazil and Poland. The 1976 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad, were an International Multi-sport event held in Montreal, Quebec |utc_offset = -2 to -4 |time_zone_DST = BRST |utc_offset_DST = -2 to -5 |cctld Poland (Polska officially the Republic of Poland Perhaps the most famous Canadian football game played in the Stadium was the 1950 Mud Bowl for the Grey Cup championship.
Other events
The stadium has also been host to several concerts most notably the 1969 Rock 'n Roll Revival Concert, which Rolling Stone once called the second most important event in rock & roll history and resulted in a documentary movie, Sweet Toronto, and John Lennon's Live Peace In Toronto album. Rock and Roll Revival was a back-to-basics musical trend of the late 1960s and early 1970s in a sort-of backlash against the heavier and psychedelic rock sounds then in vogue Rolling Stone is a United States -based Magazine devoted to Music, Politics, and Popular culture that is published Sweet Toronto (sometimes referred as Sweet Toronto Peace Festival) is a documentary by D John Winston Ono Lennon, MBE (born Live Peace in Toronto 1969 is a live album recorded by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969 in Toronto, Ontario, at a Rock and The performers were The Doors, Plastic Ono Band (Lennon, Yoko Ono, and Eric Clapton, with Klaus Voormann and Alan White), Bo Diddley, Chicago Transit Authority (later renamed "Chicago"), Tony Joe White, Alice Cooper, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, Cat Mother & the All Night Newsboys, Gene Vincent, Junior Walker & the All Stars, Little Richard, Doug Kershaw, Screaming Lord Sutch, Nucleus, Milkwood, and Whiskey Howl. This article is about the band For their self-titled debut album see The Doors (album; for the Oliver Stone film see The Doors (film; for Doors in computing The Plastic Ono Band was a conceptual supergroup formed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969 before the dissolution of The Beatles. born in Tokyo on February 18 1933 is a Japanese Artist and Musician. Eric Patrick Clapton, CBE (born 30 March 1945 is an English Blues-rock Guitarist, singer Songwriter and Composer Klaus Voormann (born 29 April 1938) is a German Artist, Musician, and Record producer known for his long association with Alan White (born 14 June 1949 is an English Rock and roll Drummer best known for his 34 years of work with the Progressive rock band Bo Diddley ( December 30 1928 &ndash June 2 2008, born Ellas Otha Bates) was an original and influential American Chicago is a Rock band formed in 1967 in Chicago Illinois. The band began as a politically charged sometimes experimental rock band and later moved to a predominately Tony Joe White (born July 23 1943, Oak Grove, Louisiana) is an American Singer-songwriter and Guitarist best Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier; February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer songwriter and musician whose career spans five Jerry Lee Lewis (born September 29, 1935) is an American Rock and roll and Country music Singer, Songwriter Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry (born October 18 1926 in St Cat Mother and the All Night Newsboys was an American musical group from New York City. Gene Vincent, real name Vincent Eugene Craddock, ( February 11, 1935 - October 12, 1971) was an American Rock'n'roll pioneer Rev Richard Wayne Penniman (born December 5 1932 better known by the Stage name Little Richard, is an American Singer, Songwriter Doug Kershaw, born January 24, 1936, is an American fiddle player from Louisiana known as "The Ragin Cajun" 1 Screaming Lord Sutch 3rd Earl of Harrow, known as Screaming Lord Sutch, born David Edward Sutch ( 10 November 1940 &ndash Ian Carr (born 21 April 1933) is a Scottish Jazz Musician, Composer, writer and educator Milkwood was an Anglo-Canadian rock band formed in Toronto in March 1969 by former The Influence guitarist Louis McKelvey with future Celine Dion backing singer Mary Kiss played here as well in 1976. Kiss (also typeset as KISS) is an American rock band formed in New York City in December 1972
Varsity Centre
The stadium was demolished over the summer of 2002 after the cost of maintaining the large facility was far more than it generated in revenue. At that time, several structural sections of the stadium were being held up by temporary repairs, and the future integrity of the structure was in question. The field and track were retained after the demolition. From 2003 through 2005, temporary seating of about 1,500 was installed to permit the use of the field for intercollegiate games.
A plan to build a new 25,000 seat multi-purpose stadium on the site in 2005 was voted down by management of the University of Toronto due to concerns over its cost. The facility was then planned to be built on the grounds of York University but that too failed. York University (Université York is a public Research university located in Toronto, Ontario. At the time of its demolition, Varsity Stadium was the second largest capacity stadium in Canada with a grass field, after Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton, Alberta. For the stadium of the same name in Kentucky, see Commonwealth Stadium (Kentucky. Edmonton (ˈɛdmɨntɨn is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta. As FIFA rules require international matches to be played on natural surfaces, the loss of Varsity as a venue has resulted in financial difficulties to Canada's national soccer team in Canada's largest market as there are no large grass field stadiums remaining in Toronto. The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (French for International Federation of Association Football)
New Facilities
Construction is ongoing on the new facility, to be completed in three phases. Called Varsity Centre, phase 1 was completed in December 2006, and now contains a permanent grandstand with a capacity of 5,000 seats on the eastern side, a 400m eight-lane track, artificial field turf, and a winter bubble enabling use during inclement weather. It is used by University of Toronto teams, by students and faculty, and also hosts outside events. This multi-use capability was one of the main reasons that the plan was passed by the governing council, as opposed to the 25,000 seat stadium. Compared to the old Varsity Stadium, the seating is closer to Varsity Arena, almost making the two structures one conjoined complex. Part of the red brick wall along Bloor Street was maintained for historic purposes, but the new facility is much more open and visible from the streets overall.
References
- John Whelan. Live Peace In Toronto 1969. Retrieved July 15, 2005. Events 1099 - First Crusade: Christian soldiers take the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem after the final Year 2005 ( MMV) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
External links
- Varsity Centre
- St. George Campus Map - University of Toronto, Office of Space Management
- Polytan Ligaturf
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