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UP Express Guide to the Best Sporting Events in Toronto

UP Express Guide to the Best Sporting Events in Toronto

My boy's gonna play in the big league
My boy's gonna turn some heads
My boy's gonna play in the big league
My boy's gonna knock 'em dead
The big league

-Tom Cochrane “Big League”

A lot of us grow up imagining what it would be like to play a pro sport in our hometown. For anyone that has ever strapped on a pair of skates in Toronto, dreaming of one day patrolling the ice at Scotiabank Arena for the Toronto Maple Leafs was not uncommon. Big league dreams for most of us die hard, but the great thing about sports is that the fandom never has to.

Toronto is hands down the sporting events mecca of Canada. We have more professional sports leagues and events here than anywhere else in the country. If you’re a fanatical fan, we’ve got your game covered.
UP Express puts you right in the middle of Toronto’s sporting events with 25-minute train service from Pearson Airport to Union Station which is conveniently located next to Scotiabank Arena home of the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs and the 2019 NBA Champion Toronto Raptors.
While hockey is wildly popular in Canada and is the national winter sport, we also have another official sport. We recognize lacrosse as our official summertime sport. Scotiabank Arena happens to also be home to Toronto’s lacrosse team, the National Lacrosse League's Toronto Rock.
You’ll find more big league sporting events in Toronto just a 9-minute walk west of Union Station. That’s where you’ll find the Rogers Centre and Major League Baseball’s boys of summer; the Toronto Blue Jays. The Jays are Canada’s only MLB team and have a fan base that stretches coast to coast.
If you were to take a GO Train one stop along the Lakeshore West Line from Union Station, you’d find yourself at Exhibition GO Station and BMO Field. This venue is home to both the MLS’s Toronto FC and the CFL’s Toronto Argonauts. While technically both teams can claim to play “football”, in North American parlance, the Argos play football, and Toronto FC play soccer. They may play different sports, but the in-game fan experience for both teams is something special, especially come playoff time.
If it’s the right weekend in July, Exhibition GO Station is also where you’d find the Honda Indy Toronto. Once a year the Exhibition grounds are converted into a street racing circuit and the phrase “rush hour” takes on a whole new meaning as the drivers of IndyCar tear up the asphalt. Naturally, Canadian driver, James Hinchcliffe has a pretty dedicated fan base.
Take a stroll just north of Exhibition GO Station and you’ll find yourself at Lamport Stadium or as those who attend Toronto Wolfpack rugby games like to call it “The Den”. The Wolfpack are the world’s first transatlantic professional sports team. Since their inaugural season in 2017, The Wolfpack has been an ascendant franchise, earning titles and championships in astonishingly little time.
Speaking of things that are ascendant and championship-caliber, Canadian born US Open champ Bianca Andreescu can be spotted playing her heart out at the Rogers Cup. One of the biggest Toronto sporting events of the year, the Rogers Cup is split between Toronto and Montreal, with the men playing in one city and the women in the other. The Aviva Centre where the Rogers Cup is held can be reached from Union Station by taking the TTC subway to Pioneer Village station.
Other cool sporting events in Toronto that are worth checking out are the GT20 Cricket tournament or the rock ‘n’ roll women of ToRD: the Toronto Roller Derby League.
When it comes to being a Toronto sports fan, the dream can live on and on.

SPORTS