The Labour Day Classic (, branded as OK Tire Labour Day Weekend for sponsorship reasons) is a week of the Canadian Football League (CFL) schedule played over the Labour Day weekend (which includes the first Monday in September). Labour Day weekend, roughly 12 or 13 weeks into the CFL season, is known for its matchups that do not change from year to year, unlike other "rivalry" weeks of the CFL schedule. Labour Day weekend is also one of typically two weeks (the Thanksgiving Day Classic being the other) in the CFL schedule that the league plays on a Monday. Multinational Balkrishna Industries' OK Tire brand is the presenting sponsor of the event as of 2022.
The usual weekend matchups involves the Montreal Alouettes playing against the Ottawa Redblacks on the Friday before Labour Day, with host duties alternating between the two teams. The Winnipeg Blue Bombers then visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders on Sunday and on Labour Day itself, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats play at home against the Toronto Argonauts, while the Edmonton Elks visit the Calgary Stampeders. The BC Lions have no geographic rival and typically have a bye, having played just four times on Labour Day Weekend (2015, 2023, 2024 and 2026) since the return to nine teams in 2014. The Lions most recently played in 2026 against the Alouettes, in Montreal, Quebec.
History
The Labour Day Classic began in 1949 and pre-dates the founding of the CFL by nine years. The matchups have remained mostly the same throughout history, except during Montreal and Ottawa's periods of hiatus or due to scheduling conflicts.
During the early 1980s, the Montreal Concordes played the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and the remaining three teams (Toronto, Ottawa and BC) rotated each year. Ottawa and BC faced each other during the late 1980s and early 1990s while the league had no team in Montreal.
Because Ottawa had no active team from 1997 to 2001 and 2006–2013, the Alouettes usually played the Lions during those seasons, creating a "coast-to-coast" rivalry.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, the entire 2020 CFL season was cancelled and therefore no Labour Day weekend games were played for the first time in CFL history.
Hamilton Due to scheduling conflicts, the Tiger-Cats temporarily revived its rivalry with the current incarnation of the Alouettes in the Labour Day game for the 2011 season; the change in opponents led Hamilton to dub the game the Labour Day Classique in reference to Montreal's francophone community.Gameday: The Labour Day Classique .From a purely football angle, this Labour Day Classique should be a good one . Hamilton Spectator. Retrieved September 5, 2011. Therefore, in 2011, this automatically resulted in Toronto and BC facing each other.
In 2013, the Tiger-Cats' did not host a game on Labour Day for only the second time in franchise history (the first being 1995). It was also the first time that they did not host a game on that weekend. Because Ivor Wynne Stadium was demolished to make way for the new Tim Hortons Field, the team played out of Alumni Stadium in Guelph. The University of Guelph Gryphons (along with most Ontario University Athletics teams) were playing that same day, so the Tiger-Cats could not host the game. To make up for it, the Toronto at Hamilton matchup was played in the Thanksgiving Day Classic.
For the 2016 contest, to avoid any further conflicts with OUA games, the CFL moved the Toronto/Hamilton matchup to prime time Labour Day evening.Bucholtz, Andrew. Five takeaways from the CFL's 2016 schedule. 55 Yard Line (Yahoo! Sports). Retrieved February 18, 2016. That year, the OUA's McMaster Marauders football team moved its Labour Day matchup with the Toronto Varsity Blues football squad to Tim Hortons Field, creating a doubleheader with a series of concerts in-between games. This was moved back to a 1:00 pm Eastern start in 2019.
Related events Although not directly associated with the Labour Day Classic, the week after Labour Day often has a repeat match-up of the Bombers vs Roughriders (see Banjo Bowl), Stampeders vs Elks (see Battle of Alberta), and Tiger-Cats vs Argonauts (a rivalry which began in 1873), with home field advantage now to the team that did not have it during the Labour Day weekend.
As the league has been increasing in popularity in recent years, print ads for the Labour Day Classic try to evoke the tradition of watching Canadian football on the last weekend of summer. Slogans include "Long Live the Rivalries" and "Watch the Team You Love Play the Team You Love to Hate". Some of the teams wear special third jerseys or throwback uniforms if they play at home.
Current matchups Edmonton Eskimos/Elks vs Calgary Stampeders
Longest Winning Streak (Edmonton): 7 (1950–1961) Longest Winning Streak (Calgary): 8 (2012–2019)
Did not play in the following years: 1954–1958, 1964–1968, 1973, 1981, 2020
Television (since 1985): CTV (1985–1986); CFN (1987, 1990); CBC (1988, 1991–2007); TSN (1989, 2008–2019, 2021–2024)
Labour Day Rematch Starting in 1989, Calgary and Edmonton have played a Labour Day home-and-home series. The Labour Day Classic game has been held in Calgary on Labour Day Monday, and the Rematch has been held in Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium the following Friday or Saturday. In 1992, the game in Edmonton was held the week before the Labour Day Classic instead of the week after. YearDateWinning teamScoreLosing teamScoreOTAttendanceTV1989Friday, September 8Edmonton38Calgary2741,327CFN1990Friday, September 7Edmonton34Calgary1757,444**CFN1991Friday, September 6Edmonton51Calgary3757,843**TSN 1992*Friday, August 28Calgary45Edmonton38OT31,812TSN1993Friday, September 10Edmonton29Calgary1654,324**TSN1994Friday, September 9Edmonton38Calgary1251,180**TSN1995Friday, September 8Calgary33Edmonton1749,434TSN1996Friday, September 6Edmonton20Calgary1940,727**TSN1997Friday, September 5Edmonton24Calgary2043,913**TSN1998Friday, September 11Calgary30Edmonton2350,856**TSN1999Friday, September 10Calgary38Edmonton1352,458**TSN2000Friday, September 8Edmonton31Calgary1053,248**TSN2001Friday, September 7Calgary34Edmonton3348,279**TSN2002Friday, September 6Edmonton45Calgary1161,481**TSN2003Friday, September 5Edmonton38Calgary062,444**TSN2004Friday, September 10Edmonton44Calgary1250,366TSN2005Friday, September 9Calgary16Edmonton1142,654TSN2006Friday, September 8Edmonton35Calgary2647,965**TSN2007Friday, September 7Calgary20Edmonton1742,329TSN2008Friday, September 5Calgary38Edmonton3346,014TSN2009Friday, September 11Calgary35Edmonton3446,212TSN2010Friday, September 10Calgary36Edmonton2035,349TSN2011Friday, September 9Calgary30Edmonton2045,672TSN2012Friday, September 7Calgary20Edmonton1839,363TSN2013Friday, September 6Calgary22Edmonton1233,654TSN2014Saturday, September 6Calgary41Edmonton3440,852TSN2015Saturday, September 12Edmonton27Calgary1638,906**TSN2016Saturday, September 10Calgary34Edmonton28OT35,278TSN2017Saturday, September 9Calgary25Edmonton2234,312TSN2018Saturday, September 8Edmonton48Calgary4238,611**TSN2019Saturday, September 7Calgary33Edmonton1740,113**TSN2020Not played due to COVID-192021Saturday, September 11Calgary32Edmonton1633,493**TSN2022Saturday, September 10Calgary56Edmonton2826,946TSN2023Saturday, September 9Edmonton25Calgary2332,422TSN2024Saturday, September 7Edmonton37Calgary1632,144TSN2025Saturday, September 6Edmonton31Calgary1928,365TSN2026Saturday, September 12Edmonton 53Calgary 16 31,531 TSN *Game held the week before the Labour Day Classic
**CFL's Top Regular Season Attendance
Winnipeg Blue Bombers vs Saskatchewan Roughriders Starting in the 2004 CFL season, in the week following the Winnipeg vs Saskatchewan Labour Day Classic matchup, the two teams rematch annually in the Banjo Bowl.
Longest winning streak (Saskatchewan): 11 (2005–2015) Longest winning streak (Winnipeg): 4 (1978–1982)
Did not play the following years: +Saskatchewan opponentWinnipeg opponent1955vs BCat Calgary1956vs BCat Edmonton1957vs BCat Edmonton1958vs BCat Calgary1959vs BCat Edmonton1960vs BCat Edmonton1964vs Montrealat Calgary1965vs Edmontonat Calgary1966vs MontrealNone1967vs Edmontonat Calgary1968vs EdmontonNone1969vs BCat Montreal1971vs BCNone1973vs Edmontonat Calgary1976vs BCat Hamilton1981vs MontrealNone2020N/A - season cancelledN/A - season cancelled Television (since 1982): CTV (1983–1985); CBC (1982, 1986, 1989, 1993); CFN (1987–1988); TSN (1990–1991, 1994, 1997–2000, 2002–2019, 2021–2024); No TV (1992, 1995–1996, 2001)
Toronto Argonauts vs Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Toronto—Hamilton Classic is one of the components of the Harold Ballard Trophy, an award given to the winner of the season series between the Tiger-Cats and Argonauts. The trophy is named after Harold Ballard, who owned the Tiger-Cats for much of the 1980s and owned Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment for most of that time. A trophy has been awarded to the winner of the series since 1979.
The Toronto—Hamilton contest is officially known as Football Day in Hamilton and has its own presenting sponsor, WeatherTech Canada. For the first several years after Tim Hortons Field opened, Football Day in Hamilton consisted of a Tiger-Cats game as well as a concert and either a McMaster Marauders football or a Hamilton Hurricanes (CJFL) matinée (this tradition has since been abandoned as of the 2020s).
Longest Winning Streak (Hamilton): 7 (2014–2021) Longest Winning Streak (Toronto): 3 (1994–1997, 2006–2008)
Did not play the following years: 1962, 1965–1966, 1969–1970, 1972–1974, 1976–1977, 1979, 1981–1986, 1990, 1995, 2011, 2013, 2020
Ottawa Rough Riders/Renegades/Redblacks vs Montreal Alouettes
Longest Winning Streak (Ottawa): 7 (1961–2003) Longest Winning Streak (Montreal): 6 (1954–1959)
Did not play in following years: 1950–1952, 1962, 1964–1966, 1968–1970, 1972–1977, 1979–1986, 2002, 2015, 2019–2020, 2023–2026 Notes No Montreal team 1987–1995 No Ottawa team 1997–2001, 2006–2013
Other matchups BC Lions vs Montreal Alouettes
BC Lions vs Ottawa Rough Riders/Renegades/Redblacks
Montreal Alouettes vs Hamilton Tiger-Cats Hamilton has played and hosted the Labour Day Classic against Montreal (aka Labour Day Classique) nine times in CFL history, including all four years in which the team was known as the Concordes. According to a Hamilton Spectator article, 2011 marked 25 years since Montreal had battled Hamilton in this Classic at home. In previous years, Montreal has played as either the Alouettes or Concordes. The Classique has been a notoriously one-sided rivalry; Hamilton is undefeated in the Labour Day series, and Montreal is winless, with their best result being a tie in the first Classique in 1962.
BC at Saskatchewan
Montreal at Saskatchewan (since 1949) +1964Monday, September 7Montreal0Saskatchewan321966Monday, September 5Montreal0Saskatchewan441981Sunday, September 6Montreal26Saskatchewan35
Edmonton at Saskatchewan (since 1949) +1965Monday, September 6Edmonton24Saskatchewan221967Monday, September 4Edmonton6Saskatchewan181968Monday, September 2Edmonton2Saskatchewan291973Monday, September 3Edmonton27Saskatchewan28
References