Percival Molson Stadium

The Montreal Alouettes have played their home games at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium since 1998. The facility, now in its 89th year of operation, is named in memory of Captain Percival Molson, a McGill University football, hockey and track star and member of the well-known Molson family, who died in World War I and bequeathed $75,000 towards the construction of a stadium.

McGill, which has a long football tradition dating back to 1872, played Harvard University in 1874 in what was the first intercollegiate game of “North American style” football. It took another five decades for the team to have its own stadium on campus.

Overlooking the Montreal skyline from atop Mount Royal, Percival Molson Stadium' remains one of the most scenic places in Canada to watch a spectator event. Construction on the stadium began in July 1914 on an area known as Macdonald Park, named after William Macdonald, a benefactor who almost single-handedly financed parts of the university. Macdonald Park was to be known as “a playground for McGill students.”

Originally known as “McGill Graduates’ Stadium,” the venue was officially opened on Oct. 22, 1915. The outbreak of World War I prevented the commencement of football play for four years. In fact, the stadium sat empty during the war, until it was re-dedicated as Percival Molson Memorial Stadium on Oct. 19, 1919.

Molson Stadium became the home of the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association (M.A.A.A.) football team, the predecessor of the Montreal Alouettes. By the 1930s, the stadium’s seating capacity had become inadequate and a gradual expansion began. The seating arrangements were entirely restructured; the first outdoor stadium lighting system in Canada was installed; as was a public address system. The innovations were not only technological; Major D. Stuart Forbes, the director of athletics at the time, even brought in a flock of sheep once in an attempt to improve the grass. A south grandstand was constructed and the north side was heightened, so that by the early 1960s capacity had increased to approximately 19,500.

McGill football games attracted large crowds during those years, and a record attendance of 19,386 recorded for a game in 1950. The Alouettes, formed in 1946, were a force within the CFL, and enjoyed capacity crowds at the stadium from 1947-1967. The all-time attendance record at Molson Stadium is 26,191 – for a 27-21 Montreal victory over Hamilton on Sept. 12, 1959.

With the advent of television and improved roads in the 1960s, the Alouettes moved to the newly constructed AutoStade in 1968. Intercollegiate crowds at McGill began to drop significantly during the same period, and Molson Stadium slowly fell into disrepair. In the 1970s, the stadium received a facelift with a government-sponsored upgrade to the facilities, including the installation of artificial turf in 1975. That allowed the stadium be used as a venue for field hockey during the 1976 Summer Olympics. It marked the first time artificial turf was used in the Olympic Games. Stadium capacity for Olympic crowds temporarily increased to more than 20,000.

Molson Stadium continues to serve the university as a varsity game and practice field, an intramural pitch and multi-purpose area.

In the spring of 1998, with the stadium once again showing its age and its North stands in complete disrepair, the Alouettes undertook renovations that reconfigured stadium capacity to 17,317 fans. Temporary endzone bleachers were installed in the spring of 1999, increasing the seating capacity of Percival Molson Stadium to 19,461 and then to 19,601 in the 2001 season. That figure was increased to 20,002 for the 2002 campaign and another 200 seats were added the following year.

After years of interim and partial repair, the Alouettes, working with McGill, undertook a comprehensive, multi-year renovation of the stadium, which will ultimately yield an upper-deck of approximately 4,000 seats to the stadium’s South stands, as well as luxury boxes and premium seating. Phase One of the plan, funded by $13.3 million in federal, provincial and city contributions, was completed in 2003 and included the replacement of the stadium’s 13-year-old artificial surface with a next-generation, multi-sport “infill” turf. Areas under both the north and south grandstands were completely renovated, including dressing rooms, showers, officials’ rooms. There were major additions to the number and quality of concession stands and washrooms. Finally, the renovated stadium features new outdoor lighting and improved stadium access roads.

As part of the arrangement, the city of Montreal also acquires rights to use McGill's athletic facilities, including the stadium. A new stair-and-pathway, leading from the stadium to the summit of Mount Royal, will be built for residents of the city.

Heading into the 2004 season, the Alouettes have sold out 46 consecutive games at Molson Stadium.