Battle of Alberta

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The Battle of Alberta is a term applied to the intense rivalry between the Canadian cities of Calgary, the province's most populous city (since 1976), and Edmonton, the capital of the province of Alberta (since 1905). Most often it is used to describe sporting events between the two cities, although this is not exclusive as the rivalry predates organized sports in Alberta.^[1]

Origins

Thus by the turn of the century, the differing political leanings of Calgary and Edmonton that persist to this day (that is, Calgary being quite conservative by Canadian standards and Edmonton tending to be more progressive) were already well established. Not surprisingly then, when the federal Liberal government admitted Alberta to Confederation in 1905, they named Edmonton the capital. However, the Calgary elite were even more infuriated when Edmonton's neighbour, the then-separate city of Strathcona, won the right to host the University of Alberta (see below).

The final important rivalry between the cities during Alberta's early years was over economic leadership, especially in the

The rivalry also extends outside of team sports to international events. Both cities have hosted numerous national and international championships and other tournaments, often in a spirit of one-upmanship: there is constant need for local politicians to prove that their city is "world class" or at least better than the other.

The constant one-upmanship of the two cities in this field has receded in recent years, and they cooperated in a successful joint bid to host the 2012 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships (WJIHC).

Events hosted in Calgary

Calgary hosted the

Calgary was designated as "Canada's Cultural Capital" in 2012 for the inaugural year of the program. The federal government granted $1.6 million to develop and renovate the city's cultural institutions and promote the arts.[6]^[7]

Social entrepreneurs and scholars convened in Calgary during October 2013 for the 6th Social Enterprise World Forum to discuss solutions for global problems.^[8]

In the summer of 2015, Calgary hosted the 2015 World Handball Championships. The ten-day tournament hosted athletes from 30 nations.^[9]

Calgary was named the host the 2024 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games.^[10]

Events hosted in Edmonton

Edmonton hosted the

In 2007, Edmonton started assessing the viability of hosting Expo 2017. The Edmonton City Council approved the building of a bid on April 15, 2009. Later in April, Calgary announced its coming bid to host Expo 2017, though it had not expressed any interest beforehand. In July of the same year, a disagreement occurred when Edmonton received provincial funding for its bid, while Calgary did not. Calgary withdrew its bid to host the event.

Sports

Baseball

Cannons vs. Trappers

Alberta's most prominent baseball rivalry existed between the Calgary Cannons and Edmonton Trappers of the Pacific Coast League. The Cannons existed from 1985 to 2002 while the Trappers existed from 1980 to 2004. The rivalry never reached the same level as it did in other sports, however, and ultimately both teams relocated to the United States (the Trappers to Round Rock, Texas, and the Cannons to Albuquerque, New Mexico). The Trappers captured four PCL championships during their existence, while the Cannons won none.

Vipers vs. Capitals

In 2011, the two cities competed in the North American League as the Calgary Vipers and Edmonton Capitals. The two teams met in the Northern Division playoffs in 2011; the Capitals won the series in six games.^[14] The Vipers folded after the season, and the Capitals suspended operations in February 2012, leaving the province with no professional baseball.

Football

The rivalry between the cities' professional Canadian football teams is equally intense, and even predates the hockey rivalries, as the first football games in Alberta history took place in the 1890s. A team from Edmonton made history as they played in the first football game in Alberta, playing to a scoreless tie against Clover Bar.^[15] The first game played between teams from Edmonton and Calgary took place in 1891 when Edmonton beat Calgary 6–5 in a total point challenge series.^[15]

The rivalry had been diminished for a number of years until the

Today, the primary football team rivalry consists of the Edmonton Elks and the Calgary Stampeders.

Elks vs. Stampeders

In

A similar Calgary Rugby Football Club formed in 1907, competing in the AFRU under various names until – while operating as the Calgary Bronks – joining the Regina Roughriders (from the SRFU) and Winnipeg Blue Bombers (from the MRFU) to form the higher-level WIFU in 1936. The Bronks folded after the 1941 season, the year after the Eskimos had folded. A subsequent Calgary team, the Calgary Stampeders, was formed and joined the WIFU in 1948. This Stampeders team advanced to that year's 36th Grey Cup, becoming the first Calgary team to compete for the Grey Cup and the first Alberta team to win that championship.^[21]

The next season, in 1949, the current incarnation of the Edmonton Eskimos – now known as Edmonton Elks, was founded and immediately joined the WIFU – this time, for good. This Eskimos team's first ever game was on Labour Day against the defending Grey Cup Stampeders, who defeated the Eskimos 20–6 in the restart of the currently ongoing version of the football Battle of Alberta.^[22] Since 1949, the Elks and Stampeders have played on Labour Day every year with the exception of eleven seasons, having an unbroken run since the 1982 season. This has been one of the Canadian Football League's marquee match-ups, with the Monday Labour Day Classic in Calgary followed by the Friday night (Saturday, since 2014) rematch in Edmonton, resulting in a very short turnaround for both teams. As of the 2022 CFL season, the all-time record favours Edmonton, as the Elks have a record of 128–108–3 against their provincial rivals.

In terms of the post-season, the two teams have played each other 27 times, with Edmonton holding a slight edge with 14 victories. The two teams also frequently meet in the West Final. Between 1990 and 2003, the two teams clashed nine times to decide who would represent the West in the Grey Cup, and at least one Alberta team was in the game each year. Calgary has won six out of the last nine playoff match-ups, the most recent one in the 2017 West Final.^[23][24] Calgary has also won the most recent championship by an Albertan team, in 2018 with the 106th Grey Cup game.^[25] While the Stampeders may have won the Grey Cup first and the most recent, the Elks have won the most, with 14 titles compared to the Stampeders' eight as of 2021.

Currently, the Calgary and Edmonton franchises play each other two to three times during the regular season and have played each other at least three times in every regular season but

The first professional hockey rivalry between the two cities dates to the founding of the Western Canada Hockey League in 1921. Both cities received teams, Calgary the Tigers, and Edmonton the Eskimos. The Eskimos won the WCHL title in 1923, but lost the Stanley Cup to the rival National Hockey League's Ottawa Senators. Calgary also appeared in a Stanley Cup championship series in 1924, but lost to the Montreal Canadiens of the NHL. After the demise of the WCHL in 1926, Alberta hockey fans turned to junior hockey. Both cities had teams in the Western Hockey League and Alberta Junior Hockey League.

Pro hockey did not return until the

Flames vs. Oilers

The Battle of Alberta is one of the fiercest rivalries in the league between the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers.^[27] The rivalry peaked during the mid-late 1980s, as from 1983 to 1990 the Western Conference only had two different champions, both being Calgary and Edmonton. They frequently played each other in the playoffs, with three series going seven games. Edmonton won the Stanley Cup in 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, and 1990. Calgary won the Stanley Cup in 1989. Calgary leads the all-time series with a 141–129–18–6 record, however, Edmonton leads in postseason victories with a 23–12 record.

Hitmen vs. Oil Kings

Although not nearly as intense, the Western Hockey League intends to develop one for the Calgary Hitmen and Edmonton Oil Kings. The junior clubs are owned by the Flames and Oilers respectively. Both cities have had several franchises throughout the WHL's history. The original Oil Kings franchise faced the Calgary Centennials from the league's founding in 1966 until the Oil Kings relocation to Portland in 1976. The Calgary Hitmen were formed in 1995, followed a year later by the Edmonton Ice. The Ice never gained a foothold in Edmonton, and left for the Kootenays after two years. The Hitmen survived their initial struggles to grow into one of junior hockey's biggest drawing teams. The modern Oil Kings joined the WHL as an expansion franchise in 2007.

There are currently five Alberta-based WHL teams. In addition to Calgary and Edmonton, there are also the Medicine Hat Tigers, Lethbridge Hurricanes, and Red Deer Rebels and they all play together in one division, making for many intense intra-provincial battles.

Lacrosse

Roughnecks-Rush rivalry

A rivalry existed between Cavalry FC and FC Edmonton of the Canadian Premier League. It had been nicknamed the Al Classico.^[28] As per the fashion in rivalries in Association football around the world, the Wildrose Cup was created and was awarded annually to the team that wins the most points from the Al Classico in league play.^[29]

University sports

Another prominent rivalry exists between the major universities in each city, notably the University of Alberta, in Edmonton, and the University of Calgary, dating back to the creation of the province of Alberta in 1905.

Heated wrangling took place between the cities of Calgary and Edmonton over the location of the new provincial capital and of the new provincial university. The neighbouring province of

Calgary was not granted a university until 1966.

Sports competitions between the two universities have taken place over who has possession of a painted rock. Meanwhile, the University of Alberta has consistently ranked much higher than the University of Calgary in major national and international rankings of universities.

See also

• Battle of Ontario

Notes

References

Further reading

• Sandor, Steven (2005). The battle of Alberta : a century of hockey's greatest rivalry. Victoria: Heritage House Pub.
  ISBN 978-1-4593-1084-1
  .
• Spector, Mark (2015). The battle of Alberta : the historic rivalry between the Edmonton Oilers & the Calgary Flames. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart.
  ISBN 978-0-7710-7806-4
  .

External links

Look up battle of alberta in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• The Battle of Alberta Blog