Best Canadian Football League Experience

Article By Larry Henry

Last Updated: 2023 Jun 13

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Best Canadian Football League Experience

The Canadian Football League betting remains a relative bargain for fans wanting to take in a game and enjoy a beer and a bite to eat.

A Gambling.com survey of the lowest price for a ticket, a beer, a food item (hot dog, pizza slice, etc.) and parking shows that a fan can take in a CFL game for about $39 to $81 per person.

Edmonton Offers Lowest Game Day Cost

Fans of the Edmonton Elks (No. 1) enjoy the league-wide best bargain for attending a CFL game, at just over $38 a person.

Tickets can be had online for as little as $21, plus a $4.25 processing fee. Once fans (of legal drinking age) are in Commonwealth Stadium, they can enjoy a Molson beer on tap for $7 each. Fans of all ages won't go hungry. A foot-long hot dog is $5.50.

Parking also is affordable at Elks games. The team website notes that there is no on-site public parking at the stadium during games, but area lots are available for a reasonable fee. Parking can be had for $5 and more in nearby lots, with transit available.

The B.C. Lions (No. 2), Ottawa Redblacks (No. 3) Calgary Stampeders (No. 4) and Montreal Alouettes (No. 5) are teams with overall game-day experiences of under $50.

At Montreal, for instance, the $48.78 cost per person includes a domestic beer for $10.44, a regular hot-dog for $4.35 and a slice of pizza for $7.18. These prices do not include tax.

Higher Priced Teams Still Under $100

The Saskatchewan Roughriders (No. 9) present the highest-priced CFL experience, followed by the Hamilton Tiger-Cats (No. 8), Toronto Argonauts (No. 7) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (No. 6).

Saskatchewan's ranking comes from higher ticket and parking prices than the league's other teams.

Roughriders fans who don't have a permit to park on site can find spaces near the stadium for up to $30 per game, though spaces in some lots might be less than that. The good news is that every concession stand in the stadium has a food item available for $5, and beer is still just $9.

CFL A Better Bargain Than NFL

Even the most costly CFL game day experience is not over the top. When the game day cost for all nine CFL teams is averaged out, tickets are $28.73, beer is $7.58, food is $6.73, and parking is $12.22.

The average total for one person at a CFL game is $55.26.

By comparison, these prices are a lot lower than the cost of attending an NFL game in the U.S.

According to a recent story on The Athletic website, the average price for a single ticket to a 2023 NFL game is $331. The New England Patriots are charging a league-high average of $560 per ticket. As these prices indicate, NFL games remain highly popular and usually are the most heavily bet sporting events in the U.S. every week.

Those NFL ticket prices are just for one person. The cost for beer, food and parking are separate — and also expensive. As Bookies.com reported last year, a lowest cost for a beer at NFL stadiums can be about $15.

At some CFL stadiums, fans this year can still get a $5 beer.

Methodology

Before the start of the 2023 CFL regular season in June, Gambling.com examined four factors to determine which teams offer the most affordable game day fan experience.

Tickets: The lowest single ticket prices for early season games came from team websites and online ticket sellers such as Ticketmaster. Prices can fluctuate daily. The lowest-priced tickets often are sold first.
Beer: Information about the lowest game-day beer price came from team websites and emails for team public relations and concessions personnel. Ottawa and Hamilton public relations officials declined to provide the lowest available price for beer and food but did not object to Gambling.com using a league average.
Food: Food prices came from team websites and from the web pages of vendors providing food at CFL stadiums.
Parking: Parking rates came from team websites and from public and private parking lots surrounding CFL stadiums.

All four game day costs were measured for each team and were ranked most affordable to least affordable.

All data was collected and corrected by May 29, 2023.

CFL Games Broadcast On Both Sides Of The Border

The NFL regular season doesn’t get underway until Sept. 7, but U.S. residents eager to watch live football in person can cross into Canada throughout the summer and early fall to take in a game. The CFL features a wide-open style of play on a larger football field than in the U.S.

The CFL’s 2023 regular season opened June 8 and concludes with the 110th Grey Cup on Nov. 19.

This year, the CFL has nine teams, five in the West Division (B.C., Calgary, Edmonton, Saskatchewan, Winnipeg) and four in the East Division (Hamilton, Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal).

Bettors and viewers have a couple of options for watching live CFL action from home or on mobile devices during the 2023 season. The CBS Sports Network (CBSSN), the 24-hour cable home of CBS Sports, is broadcasting 34 CFL games this year.

Below are a few CFL games being aired this year on CBSSN:

July 1, 7 p.m. ET, Winnipeg Blue Bombers at Montreal Alouettes
Sept. 4, 3:30 p.m. ET, Toronto Argonauts at Hamilton Tiger-Cats
Oct. 9, 1 p.m. ET, Ottawa Redblacks at Montreal Alouettes

A full slate of games will be broadcast throughout the season on CFL+, the league’s streaming service.

Betting Odds to Win Grey Cup

Canadian Football League betting odds are posted on the major online sports betting sites. The following odds to win the 2023 Grey Cup are provided by DraftKings Sportsbook: