Greater Calgary Amateur Football Association - Shouldice Facility
Today there are over 6000 Calgary youth (ages 7 to 18) who participate in Calgary amateur football.
The City of Calgary has fallen behind other comparable cities with regard to the availability of adequate football fields.
Edmonton currently has five (5) “artificial turf surface” fields with plans for more. Vancouver currently has over twenty (20) fields with plans for more. Even Lethbridge, a city 1/10th the size of Calgary has more “artifi cial turf surface” fields than Calgary, being two (2).
Calgary currently has only one (1) “artificial turf surface”, that being McMahon stadium and there is an “over demand” of bookings at McMahon. Considering that McMahon Stadium is booked in excess of 250 days each year, averaging approximately eight (8) hours of booking daily, there is minimal booking blocks available for the Calgary and rural amateur football programs.
McMahon Stadium is mandated to give other entities (i.e. the Calgary Stampeders, and the Calgary Dinosaurs) priority in use over minor football organizations and consequently, McMahon Stadium’s “artificial turf surface” is not readily available for Calgary’s amateur football programs, especially during the critically needed times (i.e. during the playoff and championship periods of October and November, typically the bad weather months).
Calgary’s amateur football programs frequently have to forego staging provincial championship games, showcase games and other high profile football games or events because of the lack of first class venues.
Every year, the climate of Calgary causes the cancellation of many games, to the bitter disappointment of our youth; such cancellations would not be occurring with the availability of “artificial turf surface” fields.
Current studies have proven that the modern “infill surface,” an all-weather playing surface, intended to be the choice of the Association for installation at Shouldice, is the safest surface to play football, even safer than grass. Current studies have proven that the modern “infill surfaces” reduce the chances of injury.
