A special celebration was held Saturday at Fonda Park, showcasing an empty and underused recreation space that will soon become three brand new flag football fields. “It’s a partnership between the Calgary Stampeders Foundation and the City of Calgary. This will be open for bookings and use as of April 2027, and these three dedicated flag football fields will create more opportunities for young athletes, families and communities from across the entire city to get active, come together, and connect through sports,” said Tourism Calgary’s senior vice-president of sales Carson Ackroyd. “Fonda Park was selected because it already has the infrastructure, the transit access, and parking needs to support increased recreational use. The enhancements and the repurposing of underused play fields, including the underused and underutilized baseball diamond, while keeping valuable amenities such as this skate park and the playground,” added deputy mayor and councillor Dan McLean. The initial budget is $1.65 million, with $500,000 coming from the Grey Cup Legacy Fund. “Its legacy in our community will continue through these fields for years to come. Kids will run onto these fields for the first time. Teams will be formed. Coaches will give their first pep talk, and families will cheer from the sidelines, and friendships will begin right here,” said the 2026 Grey Cup’s executive director Karen Dommett. Fills a need Logan Ruzycki , a coach with the YYC Flag Football League, says this field and its location will have a huge impact on the flag football community. “If you were a kid in this part of the city and wanted to play flag football, it usually meant a long drive. This area hasn’t had the kind of field space some other neighborhoods take for granted. And when there’s no field nearby, a lot of kids simply never get the chance to try,” Ruzycki said. “Most kids don’t stop playing sports because they lose interest. They stop, or never start, because it’s too expensive, too far away, or too hard to fit into family life,” he continued. Ruzycki says flag football has a low barrier of entry, so he hopes the addition of these fields allows more children to get into sports in general. “It doesn’t need expensive equipment, it’s low contact, boys and girls can play together, and kids of all sizes and skill levels can jump in on day one. But sport is only as accessible as the place you play it. A field close to home, near transit, with a playground next door for younger siblings, is what turns ‘I’d like to try it,’ into ‘I play it every week,’” he said. These fields also hope to prove their value not just by being a new piece of sporting infrastructure, but teaching lessons that can last a lifetime. “The thing I love most about the game of football is what it teaches athletes about being successful in life. Football teaches the value of hard work, perseverance, teamwork, leadership, passion and resilience,” said Calgary Stampeders’ president Jay McNeil. “You don’t have to play professional football to learn these things. You just need an opportunity to play the game,” McNeil added. Stampeders in attendance To celebrate the announcement of the new fields, Calgary Stampeders Jaylon Hutchings and Folarin Orimolade played flag football with some young athletes, participating as coaches and throwing the ball around too. Orimolade says it’s great to see new opportunities to engage with the sport. “It’s cool, especially using flag to get them in early. Like for me, my mom didn’t let me play football until the tenth grade — well, she didn’t let me, I just played in the tenth grade — because of the contact right? So being able to get in earlier teaches them how to play and hopefully makes that transition smoother as they get older. And it democratizes it for boys and girls,” Orimolade said. As for the children playing with the Stamps, they loved every minute of it. “I think it’s really good, I think it’s a cool experience to have. It’ll be a memory I remember for sure,” said 13-year-old flag football player Ronin Stastook.
