June 22, 2017
Percival Molson Memorial Stadium (Capacity: 23,420)
Montreal, QU
Montreal Alouettes vs Saskatchewan Roughriders
Final Score: 17 – 16
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While in town for a three-day work symposium, I had the good luck of having a free evening coincide with a CFL home game. At a population of 1.6 million, Montreal is Canada’s second-largest city and it is truly awesome. There is a great deal of culture and entertainment in this bilingual city, which is in the southwest corner of Quebec, along the St. Lawrence River. The predominant language of French and the cobblestoned section of Old Montreal gives the city a distict European feel. Football has had a presence in Montreal since 1946, when the Alouettes were born, however they were twice disbanded in the 1980s. This current version came about as a relocation from the league’s American experiment as the team moved from Baltimore in 1995. They were quickly successful on the field and the Al’s won three of their seven Grey Cups in the 2000s. A fortunate set of circumstances led to Montreal moving into Percival Molson Memorial Stadium in 1997 and the now 102-year-old stadium makes for a remarkable home that combines a gorgeous setting with a mix of old and new architectural features.
Prestige Ranking: 5 out of 5
Location
Molson Stadium is actually on the campus of McGill University, arguably Canada’s top university. The heart of McGill is a bit southeast of the stadium and the main section features plenty of historical buildings. It is right downtown, which has a terrific nightlife and plenty of great restaurants. The stadium’s location on the slopes of Mount Royal means that the top of the mountain is close-by and a hike up it means a breathtaking view of the city at the famed Chalet. Another nearby neighborhood that is only a 10-minute walk away is the trendy “Plateau”, where a stroll down St Laurent or Prince Arthur provides a true Montreal experience with lots of places to stop and eat (including Schwartz’s Deli). Finally, the closest neighborhood to the athletic campus is Milton Park (better known as the McGill Ghetto) and this mixture of rowhouses and apartments mostly for students is less desirable to roam around in.
Location Ranking: 9.5 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
An interesting, urban location typically goes hand-in-hand with difficult accessibility and this stadium is no different. Montreal is a very challenging place to drive as commuters have to deal with tight streets, frequent construction, lots of traffic, plenty of pedestrians and for some, a foreign language. That and limited parking in the area makes driving to the game nearly impossible. It is advised to find a Metro Station with free parking and take either the Green Line to the McGill stop or the Orange Line to Victoria Square. From there, either make the long walk up the hill, or take the free shuttle bus to the stadium. The bus works well, but I did have some issues. Going to, the first bus was nearly 15 minutes late and leaving the stadium, the bus skipped the first two scheduled stops (according to the website) and just went to Victoria Square.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 2 out of 8
Exterior
Plenty of buildings can be found near Molson Stadium as a mix of residence halls and athletic facilities make up the surroundings and the general academic feel. In fact, some of them are actually attached to the stadium as Currie Gym completes a good portion of the south side, while the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital frames the west end. This makes for a unique appearance along Pins Ave. In between the gym and rowhouses is a tall, brick structure where only the red stadium letterings at the bottom and the lights at the top give any indication that inside is a stadium. Fans can enter from down here, or they can enter through one of two iron gates accessed going uphill around a pathway on the outskirts.
Exterior Ranking: 3 out of 10
Concourse
The north sideline concourse is the tightest in terms of space and it is not a fun place to be during typically crowded periods. The area is completely covered and somewhat dark as the mix of concrete and brick walls have a few spots on them with Alouette posters. Multiple spots include stairs for access to the upper deck and the additional space helps alleviate traffic. It’s also both outdoors and covered by a seating overhang. The other sideline has a little bit more area for its concourse, but it serves many more seats. Each end has a detached, outdoor walkway and while the east end has the room it also involves a steep uphill/downhill pitch. The other congested end is the Fan Zone, a party section with several pop-up tents.
Concourse Ranking: 2 out of 5
Food
The tents in the Fan Zone have a nice variety of beer, including locally produced Archibald. Food looked similar at most stands as hot dogs seemed to be available everywhere. It wouldn’t be Montreal without Smoked Meat or Poutine and while limited, both were findable and delicious. Food trucks outside the stadium provide a much better variety.
Food Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Interior
The hillside setting is what defines this stadium and it leads to spectacular sights both inside and out. Most of the seating is confined to the sidelines and the north side is made up of a singular concrete structure with metal bleachers for each row. Certainly not the most comfortable (especially with most stadiums in the league now made up of chairbacks), as the set-up is typical of with long rows and sections. The hike to the top is aided by concourse openings in the middle of each section and it is certainly worth climbing up as the reward is a view that includes the Montreal skyline and the Plateau neighborhood. At the top of these north-side seats is the press-box and a set of 19 luxury suites that were added as part of a renovation in 2010. That renovation also led to the addition of seats with the partial connection of two more sections, which wrap into a small set of end-zone bleachers topped by corporate hospitality tents. The corner is left open due to the presence of Tomlinson Fieldhouse, then south stands are equally steep with great sightlines despite that it does not have a hillside as a natural development feature. The double-decker arrangement includes a new-ish upper level section that has handrails in front of each row. Look to the left and the busy end zone includes the aforementioned party-deck, hospital and campus buildings, while looming deeper in the foreground is Mount Royal. There is a track around the field, but it does little to affect how far away seats are in this old-school, unique stadium that I loved.
Interior Ranking: 11 out of 14
Scoreboard
The awkwardly positioned scoreboard could use some work. Made up mostly of video in the east end corner, the screen looked to be in SD quality and only close-ups helped with seeing tight plays. Occasionally a game stat can be found on the board. A small digital display with game information is found on the building behind the other zone. One notable omission: Timeouts Remaining.
Scoreboard Ranking: 2 out of 4
Displays
Historical elements of the building make it difficult to splash blue and red paint or Alouette logos everywhere, however the team does have a couple of great sections for this category. Near the main entrance in the corner, a semicircle outlined in stone displays eight panels that give a timeline on the stadium. One of those sections is on Percival Molson, a successful and generous Canadian athlete who died in World War I. His will included funds to complete the stadium and McGill re-named it after him. A bit further in from this area is a stone wall that honors season-ticket holders and marks a couple important moments. Alouette displays are found inside the field area, where the façade on one side of seating features each retired number and name by the team. Two of those players: Anthony Calvillo and Ben Cahoon are all-time leaders in several passing and receiving categories, respectively. Grey Cup Banners stand above the west end seats.
Displays Ranking: 4 out of 6
Cost
The pricing structure and numbers are comparable to the rest of the teams in the East division, maybe a smidge lower on average. CFL is expensive and ticket prices are broken down into many colors and tiers as nearly each section has its own price. The range goes from $133 near the center line to $29 in the bottom end zone corner. The affordable options are not all that accessible as only 20% of the available seats have a ticket for less than $60. Parking isn’t the way to go, but if you want to try, a precious spot will cost $20 – $45. Concessions are expensive: $4.50 for a Hot Dog, $6.00 for Pizza, $4.50 for water and $10 (at least) for a beer.
Cost Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Montreal announced an attendance of 20,129 and I would concur with that number. Though the Als play in the league’s smallest stadium, their percent to capacity number has been around 80-90% the last several years and the team often ranks in the bottom half for total attendance. Western teams and smaller cities may have a bigger and more passionate following, but that does not mean Montreal lacks a decent fan base.
Fan Support Ranking: 5.5 out of 8
Atmosphere
This was the home opener and the team does well to set a great atmosphere and it begins outside on the open grassy area where fans can pre-game with a concert, kid activities and food trucks. Inside, there was a CF-18 flyover and a halftime performance by Cirque Eloize. The in-game atmosphere was fun and festive as fans were often singing and dancing to the music. The wave also made an appearance. Several moments brought many to their feet and late defensive downs produced a low hum of sound makers. One disappointment however was the surprising number of fans leaving late in a 1-point game. Even when the visitors were lining up for a game-deciding field goal, I counted 20 people heading down the stairs and continuing on out into the concourse, missing the conclusion. That aside, it was a decent atmosphere.
Atmosphere Ranking: 10 out of 14
Other Stuff
CFL rules are a bit different than American Football as the Canadian version features a larger field, only three downs, 12 players to each side and 1 point (Rogue) if a ball is kicked through the end zone or not returned out of it……An Alouette is not a lark, but actually a French-Canadian song about plucking the feathers of a lark…. When Montreal got football back in the 1990s, they returned to Olympic Stadium. Attendance struggled and it was U2 that got credited with inadvertently saving the team. A concert by the Irish rock band was scheduled for the Big O and that moved the Als to McGill and Molson Stadium for their playoff game. It was a packed house with a great atmosphere and the team won, prompting a permanent move the next season. A U2 song can now be heard before kickoff of each game.
Game
This was not just the Als home opener, but it was also the first CFL game of the new season and it provided intrigue with 11-year former Saskatchewan QB Darian Durant now lining up on the opposite side. The game was slow and dull until BJ Cunningham caught a 65-yard bomb from Durant and that finally opened the scoring with five minutes left in the 2nd quarter. Montreal entered the 4th quarter with a 14-13 lead and the teams traded field goals midway through, leading to an exciting finish. The Riders converted 3 Third Downs on their final drive and got into field goal territory with :28 left. They then proceeded to set off my pet peeve as instead of running another 2-3 plays, they sat on the ball to settle for a mid-long range field goal. And they were punished for it as the 45-yard attempt missed and the Alouettes won 17-16. Durant finished 20/31 for 233 yds and 2 TDs.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
