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This morning it was just an empty parking lot, but by noon today, the area south of the Brandt Centre is expected to be packed with barbecues, lawn chairs and hundreds of Saskatchewan Roughriders fans taking part in the province’s first legal tailgate party.
“I just hope Rider Nation makes it their own,” Roughriders president and chief executive officer Craig Reynolds said.
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“I’ve talked to some fans already, they’ve got their trucks all decked out and they’re ready to go. I just hope that Rider fans sort of make some traditions and create an outstanding atmosphere in advance of the game.”
The tailgate is one part of what is shaping up to be one of the biggest regular-season game days in recent team history.
At 5 p.m. the Roughriders host the B.C. Lions at Mosaic Stadium in their home opener. Before kickoff, the team will unveil its Grey Cup championship banner, a Snowbirds flyover is planned, and fans will be able to take part in legal tailgating for the first time since legislation allowing the practice was passed in Saskatchewan.
“It really started with having that conversation with the provincial government, and they’ve been great supporters of this, and then working through regulations with SLGA,” Reynolds said.
The team has designated 200 tailgating sites in a section of parking lots south of the Brandt Centre. Each purchaser receives one parking stall for a vehicle and a second stall for a tailgate area.
“So each tailgater will get a spot to park their vehicle, then there’s a spot to set up their tailgate setup, whether that’s barbecues, picnic tables, tables and chairs, whatever that looks like,” Reynolds said.
“They can bring their own alcohol, cook their own food, and then that whole area is pedestrianized.”
All 200 tailgate spots have already sold out.
However, Reynolds said fans don’t need a reserved spot to experience the atmosphere.
“Two hundred people have tailgate spots, but anybody can walk through there,” he said.
“As well, there’s a beer garden that’s kind of adjacent to it, so if you don’t know anybody or you want to just grab a beer, you can head on to the beer garden, which is really, really close.”
Reynolds said he expects the new attraction to encourage fans to arrive at the stadium much earlier than usual.
“Saturday looks like a beautiful day, and hopefully people come down early and take in the tailgate area,” he said.
“We also have Riderland Park as well. It’s always family-friendly, but we’ve sort of doubled down on that this year.”
The organization is also preparing for a milestone moment just before kickoff when the 2025 Grey Cup championship banner is raised inside Mosaic Stadium.
“It’ll certainly be the biggest crowd we’ve ever had for a banner unveiling in our history,” Reynolds said.
“It’s going to be exciting. I can hardly wait for it. It’ll be electric when we do that.”
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