Vanier Cup

Current season, competition or edition: 58th Vanier Cup
Sport	Canadian football
Founded	1965; 59 years ago (1965)
First season	1965
Organising body	U Sports
Country	Canada
Most recent champion(s)	Montreal Carabins (2nd title)
Most titles	Laval Rouge et Or (11)
Official website	usports.ca/en/championships/vanier-cup/m

The Vanier Cup (French: Coupe Vanier) is a post season college football championship game, used to determine the national champion in U Sports football. The game is the final for the winners of the Uteck Bowl and the Mitchell Bowl. In turn, the participating teams are determined by the winners of 4 bowl games: the Loney Bowl (AUS), Hardy Cup (Canada West), Dunsmore Cup (RSEQ), and Yates Cup (OUA).^[1][2]

The Laval Rouge et Or have won the most Vanier Cups (11), while the Western Mustangs have the most appearances (15). Eighteen teams have won the Vanier Cup, while three others have played for the championship but never won. There are six active teams that have never appeared in the championship game. The most recent game, the 58th Vanier Cup, was played on November 25, 2023, at Kingston, Ontario. In this game, the Montreal Carabins defeated the UBC Thunderbirds 16–9 to win their second championship.

History

The Vanier Cup was created in 1965 as the championship trophy of the Canadian College Bowl. For the first two years of competition, the Canadian College Bowl was an invitational event, with a national panel selecting two teams to play, similar to other U.S. collegiate bowl games. In 1967, the Canadian College Bowl was declared the national football championship of the Canadian Intercollegiate Athletic Union, later Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) and now U Sports, with a playoff system determining the two participants.^[3]

The Vanier Cup was played in Toronto, Ontario, from its inception in 1965 through 2003. However, after the CIS opened the game to host conference bids in 2001, the possibility arose to have games held outside Toronto. As of 2023, 41 of the 61 Vanier Cups have been played in Toronto, eight in Quebec City, five in Hamilton, one in Regina, one in Saskatoon, one in Vancouver, one in London, Ontario, one in Montreal, and one in Kingston. No games have been staged in the Atlantic region. Four times, the game has been played in the same city and during the same weekend as the Grey Cup: 1973, 2007 and 2012 in Toronto and in 2011 in Vancouver at BC Place Stadium.^[4]

The winners trophy is named after Georges Vanier, the former governor general of Canada and was first awarded in 1965 to the winner of an invitational event contested between two teams that were selected by a panel. In 1967, the trophy was declared the official "CIAU National Football Championship" and a playoff system was instituted. From its creation until 1982, it was known as the Canadian College Bowl. The game typically occurs in late November, although it is occasionally played in December.

On June 8, 2020, U Sports announced that all fall athletics championships for the 2020–21 season had been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[5]

Results

• 
  The Vanier Cup raised in 1990 by the Saskatchewan Huskies following their win over Saint Mary's.
• 
  The Laurier Golden Hawks won the 2005 Vanier Cup, defeating Saskatchewan 24–23.
• 
  The Laval Rouge et Or vs. the McMaster Marauders in the 47th Vanier Cup.
• 
  The Laval Rouge et Or vs. the Calgary Dinos in the 52nd Vanier Cup.
• 
  The Calgary Dinos hoist the Vanier Cup trophy following their win over the Montreal Carabins in 2019.

Key

• (#) Number of times that team has won the Vanier Cup.

Note: All Ted Morris Trophy and Bruce Coulter Award winners played for the winning team, unless otherwise noted.