The Stampede Corral was a multi-purpose venue (

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice ...

professional wrestling Professional wrestling is a form of theater that revolves around staged wrestling matches. The mock combat is performed in a ring similar to the kind used in boxing, and the dramatic aspects of pro wrestling may be performed both in the ring or ...

rodeo Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaq ...

tennis Tennis is a racket sport that is played either individually against a single opponent (singles) or between two teams of two players each (doubles). Each player uses a tennis racket that is strung with cord to strike a hollow rubber ball cov ...

) in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest T ...

, Canada. Located on the grounds of Stampede Park, the arena was completed in 1950 at a cost of C$1.25 million ($ million today) to replace Victoria Arena as the home of the

Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a professional Canadian football team based in Calgary, Alberta. The Stampeders compete in the West Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). The club plays its home games at McMahon Stadium and are the third-o ...

minor professional hockey club (not to be confused with the present-day

Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a c ...

team of the same name), which hosted their

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior ...

games for years. The Corral was built and owned by the not-for-profit Calgary Exhibition & Stampede organization, which leased the underlying land at $1/year from the city of Calgary. Seating 6,475, plus standing room, it was used during the annual Calgary Stampede, with a variety of entertainment events in each year's daily ENMAX Corral Show. In March 2016, the Calgary Stampede organization announced plans to demolish the Stampede Corral to make way for a $500 million expansion of the adjacent

BMO Centre The BMO Centre is the largest convention centre in Calgary, Alberta. It is located in Stampede Park, which is in the Beltline district south of downtown Calgary. The BMO Centre was previously known as the Round-up Centre. In March 2016, the Ca ...

. Stampede officials said that the Corral was no longer up to code, and it would not have been worth the expense to renovate it. Demolition began in December 2020 and was completed in 2021. At the time of construction, the Stampede Corral was the largest arena in Canada west of

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, and the first in the region without support columns obscuring the lines of sight. It was officially opened on December 15, 1950. The first hockey game was held at the Corral on December 26, as the Stampeders defeated the

Edmonton Flyers The Edmonton Flyers are a defunct ice hockey team that was based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. The team existed from 1940 until 1963. The Flyers played in the Edmonton Gardens. The Flyers were nominated by W. G. Hardy to represent Canada at the ...

5–0 in a Western Canada Senior Hockey League game before a standing-room-only crowd of 8,729. The following musicians from Alberta performed there:

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her st ...

in '64,

Loverboy Loverboy is a Canadian rock band formed in 1979 in Calgary, Alberta. Loverboy's hit singles, particularly " Turn Me Loose" and " Working for the Weekend", have become arena rock staples and are still heard on many classic rock and classic hits ...

in '80;

Tegan and Sara Tegan and Sara () are a Canadian indie pop duo formed in 1998 in Calgary, Alberta. The band is led by identical twin sisters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin (born September 19, 1980). Both musicians are songwriters and multi-instrumenta ...

in '05. The Stampede Corral hosted several major events, including the 1972

World Figure Skating Championships The World Figure Skating Championships (''"Worlds"'') is an annual figure skating competition sanctioned by the International Skating Union. Medals are awarded in the categories of men's singles, women's singles, pair skating, and ice dance. ...

, the

figure skating Figure skating is a sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform on figure skates on ice. It was the first winter sport to be included in the Olympic Games, when contested at the 1908 Olympics in London. The Olympic disciplines are me ...

and

events at the

1988 Winter Olympics The 1988 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games (french: XVes Jeux olympiques d'hiver) and commonly known as Calgary 1988 ( bla, Mohkínsstsisi 1988; sto, Wîchîspa Oyade 1988 or ; cr, Otôskwanihk 1998/; srs, Guts� ...

, as well as rodeo competitions. The Corral was also a frequent venue for the Canada Davis Cup team, with Canada holding a 5–0 all-time record in the Corral in this international tennis challenge. Most recently, Canada defeated

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

4–1 in the 2008 tournament. For years, the Stampede Corral played host to special wrestling supershows promoted by

Stu Hart Stewart Edward Hart (May 3, 1915 – October 16, 2003) was a Canadian amateur and professional wrestler, wrestling booker, promoter, coach, trainer, football player and sailor. He is best known for founding and handling Stampede Wrestling, a ...

Stampede Wrestling Stampede Wrestling was a Canadian professional wrestling promotion based in Calgary, Alberta. For nearly 50 years, it was one of the main promotions in western Canada and the Canadian Prairies. Originally established by Stu Hart in 1948, the pro ...

, particularly during the Calgary Stampede. Stampede Wrestling is known for having featured some of the biggest names in pro wrestling history prior to its purchase by the World Wrestling Federation (now known as WWE) in 1984, including

Bret Hart Bret Hart (born July 2, 1957) is a Canadian-American retired professional wrestler, currently signed to WWE under a legend's contract. A member of the Hart wrestling family and a second-generation wrestler, he has an amateur wrestling back ...

Archie Gouldie Archibald Edward Gouldie (November 22, 1936 – January 23, 2016) was a Canadian professional wrestler. He wrestled for Stampede Wrestling for decades as Archie "The Stomper" Gouldie, with the nickname coming from the wrestler's reputation of ...

, Dan Kroffat and

Jake Roberts Aurelian Smith Jr. (born May 30, 1955), better known by the ring name Jake "The Snake" Roberts, is an American professional wrestler and actor currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW) where he performs as manager to Lance Archer. He is ...

. WWE also used the Corral numerous times for non-televised house shows. On November 21, 2016, the last Disney On Ice show was cancelled at the last minute. No reason cited for the cancellation although Disney offered refunds. The Stampede Corral housed one of Canada's most extensive private sports photo collections on public display – part of the Calgary Stampede Archives collection. A significant restoration of the photo collection, taking two years and costing over $75,000, was underway in 2016.

Former tenants

References

Official website
{{Authority control Venues of the 1988 Winter Olympics Calgary Cowboys Calgary Flames arenas Defunct National Hockey League venues Defunct indoor arenas in Canada Indoor ice hockey venues in Canada Legends Football League venues Music venues in Calgary Olympic figure skating venues Olympic ice hockey venues Sports venues completed in 1950 Sports venues in Calgary Stampede Wrestling Tennis venues in Canada Western Hockey League arenas World Hockey Association venues North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor venues Historic buildings in Calgary 1950 establishments in Alberta Rodeo venues in Canada Tennis in Alberta