OTTAWA — The Ottawa Redblacks say tickets for the 2017 Grey Cup are moving at a brisk pace, which is welcome news for the CFL after organizers of the 2016 league championship in Toronto struggled to fill the stands.
The Redblacks said in a release Wednesday that fewer than 6,000 tickets remain for the 105th Grey Cup, which will be held Nov. 26 at TD Place and will coincide with Canada’s 150th birthday celebrations.
The Redblacks’ home stadium will be expanded from 24,000 seats to approximately 35,000 to accommodate the game.
Tickets are currently only available to season-ticket holders and fans that purchase a five-game “Home Opener Ticket Pack.” The remaining Grey Cup tickets will be released on a first-come, first-serve basis on June 8.
The CFL is hoping to avoid a repeat of last year, when the Toronto Argonauts had trouble filling BMO Field.
The Argonauts slashed ticket prices in an effort to fill the 35,000-seat facility, while TSN, the CFL’s television partner, offered its employees up to five free tickets for the marquee game between the Redblacks and Calgary Stampeders.
The CFL was also forced to stop a Pizza Pizza promotion offering Grey Cup tickets as part of a $29.99 package that also included a large three-topping pizza, 10 chicken wings, four cans of pop and two dipping sauces.