Molson Stadium
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Image:Mtlmcgill.gifThe Percival Molson Memorial Stadium is a stadium owned by McGill University and is the home of the Montreal Alouettes and the McGill Redmen.
Prior to World War I, McGill University authorised construction of a new stadium on the slope of Mount Royal, at the corner of Rue University and Avenue des Pins. On July 5, 1917, Captain Percival Molson, a McGill University alumnus and sports star who had been instrumental in getting the stadium plan approved, was killed in action in France. His will left $75,000 to the university to help pay most of the total costs for the construction of the stadium. Other individual donors whose generosity built and renovated the stadium were William C. Macdonald, John W. McConnell. When it was officially opened on October 25, 1919, the Board of Governors of the university named it in honour of this fallen hero.
Today the stadium is the home of the McGill Redmen football team and was the home of the CFL Montreal Alouettes from 1947–1967 and again since 1997. The only Grey Cup game to have been played at Molson Stadium was in 1931. It also served as a venue for field hockey during the 1976 Summer Olympics. It seats 20,202, and is always sold out for Alouettes games.
The stadium was built during a time when title sponsorship of sporting venues was not the norm. Nonetheless, the Alouettes' decision to return to the venue was problematic because the team was being sponsored by Molson Breweries competitor Labatt's. Eventually, the team was forced to change sponsors, and is now sponsored by Molson.
The Molson Stadium will be renovated with its Phase II of the reconstruction. Phase II will add 5,000 extra seats on the south side and permanent seats on the corners. This is the first step in the Molson Stadium reconstruction, in which permanent seats will be added in the end zone.
Phase III of the renovations are yet to come, in which constructors think another deck will be added over the North seats, which will accommodate 10,000 seats.
The overall capacity will be 35,000 seats.