Ranking Canada’s Stadiums for the Best Fan Experience
The fan experience has been reinvented over the last year and a half. Although digital and virtual events can deliver a “real feel” experience, there’s nothing like the fan experience… in person.
That’s why the Canadian sportsbooks team at Gambling.com took it upon themselves to find the best stadiums in Canada for the fans, taking into consideration all of the factors of an event experience.
This study examines and ranks the top 50 stadiums in Canada for the best fan experience based on seven weighted factors, providing stadiums with an overall index score up to a maximum of 350 points. The weighted factors include:
- Stadium capacity
- Average price of car parking nearby
- Number of parking options available
- Google review rating of the stadium
- Number of reviews total
- Average rating of local restaurant options
- Number of food and drinking options per 1,000 residents
Fortunately, fans will be back in the stands for the 2021 sports seasons. These are the top ranked stadiums for them to return to.
Edmonton is home to Canada’s best sporting venue: Commonwealth Stadium
Commonwealth Stadium is the top-rated stadium for fan experiences in Canada
Edmonton’s Commonwealth Stadium is not only the largest open-air stadium in Canada, it’s also the top-ranked stadium in the country. Boasting a capacity of 56,302, “The Brick Field” at Commonwealth Stadium is a massive haven for fans of Canadian football, soccer, rugby union, and concerts of all kinds.
On the index, Commonwealth Stadium racked up 235 points in total, scoring the highest for the facility’s abundance of parking options, highly rated local food options, and the number of local bars nearby for the aftergame party.
BC Place took second
Downtown Vancouver’s BC Place stadium comes in second place. This stadium is home to several teams, including the BC Lions, Whitecaps FC, and the Sevens. From Soccer to Rugby, BC Place has it all - even the Olympics have been hosted here. In 2010, BC Place was the main stage for the winter games.
With cheap parking, an enormous seating capacity of 54,500, and seemingly limitless food and drink options nearby, it’s easy to see why fans love this Vancouver stadium. BC Place scored a total of 223 points on the index scale.
Royal Athletic Park ranks in third place
The Royal Athletic Park, home of the Victoria HarbourCats, takes third place on the Stadium Index. But the stadium isn’t used just for baseball; soccer, football, softball and even rugby games have been held there. Even if sports aren’t your thing, the Royal Athletic Park hosts the Great Canadian Beer Festival each year and a variety of different concerts.
While this stadium is only a 10-minute walk away from downtown Victoria, there’s super cheap parking right nearby. On top of that, local restaurants, pubs, and bars have an average review rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars - clearly, the area has a lot to offer fans who visit the park. Royal Athletic Park scored a total of 218 points - just two above IGA Stadium!
The top 10 best stadiums across the country
Depending on where you live, you may have more highly rated sports venues nearby. If you’re in Ontario, you lucked out as 19 of the top 50 stadiums are located in this province. Quebec and Alberta are in second and third place, home to 10 and 8 of the top ranked stadiums respectively.
It’s clear Canada’s east coast stadiums are amongst the best for fan experiences overall! What’s more is that Toronto happens to be one of the best cities for sports fans based on a study performed earlier in the year.
Ontario is a stronghold for the top-ranked stadiums as two of the highest ranking stadiums are within the Toronto city limits. Tied with Montreal, these two cities are the only ones that have more than 5 stadiums locally.
The top ranking stadiums in Canada
As you can see, there are many factors that feed into the overall experience for fans. Below is the full list of the top 50 stadiums in Canada, their location, capacity, average price of parking, number of parking options, Google Reviews, number of reviews given, the average rating on Yelp for local food options, and the number of food and drink places per 1,000 residents of the stadium’s city.
| Rank | Stadium | Location | Capacity | Average price of parking | Number of parking options | Google Review Rating | Number of Reviews | Average rating of local food options | Number of food and drinking places per 1000 | Total Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Commonwealth Stadium | Edmonton | 56,302 | $7.94 | 59 | 4.4 | 2,199 | 4.35 | 8,549 | 235 |
| 2 | BC Place | Vancouver | 54,500 | $6.60 | 111 | 4.4 | 7,567 | 4.05 | 11,048 | 223 |
| 3 | Royal Athletic Park | Victoria | 2,867 | $4.46 | 83 | 4.3 | 367 | 4.55 | 11,048 | 218 |
| 4 | IGA Stadium | Montreal | 11,815 | $4.34 | 4 | 4.5 | 1,396 | 4.40 | 15,580 | 216 |
| 5 | Rogers Centre | Toronto | 49,282 | $14.94 | 52 | 4.5 | 19,945 | 4.30 | 26,906 | 206 |
| 6 | Nat Bailey Stadium | Vancouver | 6,500 | $6.62 | 102 | 4.5 | 1,375 | 4.10 | 11,048 | 204 |
| 7 | Olympic Stadium | Montreal | 56,040 | $5.12 | 3 | 4.4 | 3,533 | 4.30 | 15,580 | 202 |
| 8 | Percival Molson Memorial Stadium | Montreal | 23,420 | $4.34 | 4 | 4.4 | 1,170 | 4.30 | 15,580 | 196 |
| 9 | McMahon Stadium | Calgary | 35,400 | $5.14 | 22 | 4.1 | 1,642 | 4.15 | 8,549 | 191 |
| 10 | BMO Field | Toronto | 30,000 | $16.78 | 50 | 4.5 | 5,036 | 425 | 26,906 | 189 |
| 11 | Stade Saputo | Montreal | 19,619 | $5.12 | 3 | 4.5 | 1,786 | 4.25 | 15,580 | 189 |
| 12 | Stade Canac | Quebec City | 4,300 | $4.67 | 3 | 4.6 | 836 | 4.25 | 15,580 | 189 |
| 13 | Brockton Oval | Vancouver | 3,000 | $7.28 | 89 | 4.5 | 16 | 4.35 | 11,048 | 189 |
| 14 | Elks Stadium | Kelowna | 1,250 | $0.00 | 9 | 4.5 | 63 | 4.30 | 11,048 | 185 |
| 15 | Mosaic Stadium | Regina | 33,350 | - | 0 | 4.6 | 2,098 | 4.20 | 1,916 | 183 |
| 16 | Stade Telus-Université Laval | Quebec City | 12,817 | $4.67 | 3 | 4.7 | 597 | 4.00 | 15,580 | 183 |
| 17 | Tim Hortons Field | Hamilton | 23,218 | $1.25 | 4 | 4.4 | 2,643 | 4.20 | 26,906 | 179 |
| 18 | Labatt Park | London | 5,200 | $4.02 | 43 | 4.6 | 298 | 4.10 | 26,906 | 196 |
| 19 | Welland Stadium | Welland | 2,500 | $0.00 | 2 | 4.7 | 60 | 4.55 | 26,906 | 179 |
| 20 | RE/MAX Field | Edmonton | 9,200 | $7.89 | 61 | 4.2 | 339 | 4.20 | 8,549 | 178 |
| 21 | Foothills Stadium | Calgary | 6,000 | $5.14 | 22 | 4.3 | 240 | 4.10 | 8,549 | 160 |
| 22 | Raymond Chabot Grant Thornton Park | Ottawa | 10,332 | $8.00 | 7 | 4.5 | 245 | 4.30 | 26,906 | 159 |
| 23 | IG Field | Winnipeg | 33,134 | $5.00 | 5 | 4.4 | 1,585 | 4.15 | 1,982 | 157 |
| 24 | Shaw Park | Winnipeg | 7,481 | $5.00 | 5 | 4.5 | 1,174 | 4.20 | 1982 | 157 |
| 25 | NorBrock Stadium | Kamloops | 1,500 | - | 0 | 4.7 | 40 | 4.45 | 11,048 | 157 |
| 26 | TD Place Stadium | Ottawa | 24,000 | $8.14 | 7 | 4.5 | 3,224 | 3.95 | 26,906 | 155 |
| 27 | Legacy Dodge Field | Fort McMurray | 2,300 | $2.00 | 4 | 4.1 | 598 | 4.15 | 8,549 | 154 |
| 28 | Spitz Stadium | Lethbridge | 3,000 | $16.71 | 17 | 4.6 | 92 | 4.00 | 8,549 | 153 |
| 29 | Aviva Centre | Toronto | 12,500 | $7.31 | 26 | 4.4 | 963 | 4.10 | 26,906 | 149 |
| 30 | Seaman Stadium | Okotoks | 2,500 | - | 0 | 4.7 | 277 | 4.25 | 8,549 | 148 |
| 31 | Athletic Park | Medicine Hat | 3,000 | - | 0 | 4.6 | 30 | 4.35 | 8,549 | 146 |
| 32 | Port Arthur Stadium | Thunder Bay | 3,031 | $3.95 | 19 | 4.1 | 63 | 4.30 | 26,906 | 143 |
| 33 | Stade Quillorama | Trois-Rivières | 4,000 | - | 0 | 4.5 | 221 | 4.40 | 15,580 | 143 |
| 34 | Toronto Cricket, Skating and Curling Club Ground | Toronto | 4,875 | $6.61 | 18 | 4.5 | 253 | 4.00 | 26,906 | 134 |
| 35 | Kiwanis Park | Moncton | 3,500 | - | 0 | 4.5 | 38 | 4.30 | 1,438 | 127 |
| 36 | St. Patrick’s Park | St. Johns | 5,000 | - | 0 | 4.5 | 33 | 4.20 | 944 | 120 |
| 37 | Amedée Roy Stadium | Sherbrooke | 1,098 | - | 0 | 4.4 | 79 | 4.60 | 15,580 | 114 |
| 38 | Cairns Field | Saskatoon | 2,000 | $3.63 | 27 | 3.6 | 10 | 4.25 | 1,916 | 111 |
| 39 | Maple Leaf Northwest Ground | King City | 7,000 | - | 0 | 4.2 | 130 | 4.10 | 26,906 | 111 |
| 40 | Bernie Arbour Memorial Stadium | Hamilton | 3,000 | $0.00 | 3 | 4.1 | 100 | 4.10 | 26,906 | 108 |
| 41 | Community Park | St. Catharines | 2,000 | $0.00 | 1 | - | - | 4.30 | 26,906 | 102 |
| 42 | Hastings Stadium | Guelph | 500 | $2.67 | 3 | 4.4 | 63 | 4.20 | 26,906 | 102 |
| 43 | Dominico Field | Toronto | 1,000 | $14.45 | 64 | 4.4 | 18 | 4.15 | 26,906 | 98 |
| 44 | Kinsmen Stadium | Oshawa | 500 | $2.20 | 10 | 4.1 | 17 | 4.05 | 26,906 | 88 |
| 45 | Arnold Anderson Stadium at Cockshutt Park | Brantford | 2,000 | - | 0 | 4.5 | 40 | 4.25 | 26,906 | 79 |
| 46 | Andrews Field | Brandon | 3,326 | - | 0 | 4.5 | 16 | 4.25 | 1,982 | 76 |
| 47 | Stonewall Quarry Park | Stonewall | 950 | - | 0 | 4.5 | 375 | 2.79 | 1,982 | 58 |
| 48 | Barrie Metals Stadium | Barrie | 1,500 | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.30 | 26,906 | 53 |
| 49 | Jack Couch Stadium | Kitchener | 1,400 | - | 0 | - | - | 4.25 | 26,906 | 44 |
| 50 | Currie Field | Regina | 2,000 | - | 0 | 4.2 | 16 | 3.95 | 1,916 | 29 |
Reinventing the Fan Experience in 2021
The event and service industry were hit very hard with COVID-19 restrictions which kept fans out of the stands for concerts and sporting events, and would-be customers out of restaurants or grabbing a drink at the bar after the game.
Regardless of what you’re a fan of — whether it’s ice hockey or soccer, country music or rock — the fan experience has been missed.
Stadiums and sporting events have changed over time, but one thing hasn’t: The fans. They are there for an experience. Any stadium can offer a fan a ticket to a sporting event, but it takes a special stadium to offer a top-tier experience fans won’t forget.
Until then, you can take advantage of the digital fan experience by checking out some of Gambling.com’s resources for checking the odds of your favourite teams online.
Methodology
The Index is made up of 7 metrics:
- Capacity
- Price of car park
- No. Car Parks
- Google Reviews
- No. Reviews
- Ave. reviews of food places
- Food services and drinking places per 1000 people
Each index metric is scored out of a maximum of 50 points, these scores were then added together to give a maximum score of 350.
Each of the individual index scores that make up the total index score are ranked from 1-50, with 50 being the best score. If there are several stadiums with the same metric score within a particular section i.e the same Google review score, then they will receive the same index score for that section.
References
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