Mississauga draws hosting duties for 2026 Scotties Tournament of Hearts
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Rachel Homan has used home-ice advantage to win the last two Scotties hosted in the Ontario region of curling.
So with the province getting to host another national championship next year — a first-ever in the GTA, as announced by Curling Canada early Tuesday — the superstar and her Ottawa Curling Club squad are a good bet to add another title to the ones copped in 2013 Kingston and 2017 St. Catharines.
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But the 2026 Scotties headed to Mississauga is more about that part of the nation itself winning in the sport with these hosting duties.
“We haven’t had a lot of big events in Ontario, basically because the few we haven’t supported them very well, if I’m being honest,” said decorated Ontarian curler Brent Laing. “I think this is probably Ontario’s and specifically the GTA’s chance to really get behind a curling event and show that maybe we want more of that.”
He believes Homan’s current success, as defending national champ and the country’s top-ranked women’s team, will be a big boost to bring fans into the 5,000-seat Paramount Fine Foods Centre, which opened in 1998 and has become a premiere sports and entertainment facility in the GTA.
“With Team Homan’s popularity and what they’ve been doing in the sport the last 18 months, there should be a lot of buzz, especially from the home-province fans,” Laing said. “So that should be a positive for the event, for sure.
“Curling events have been held in Newfoundland quite a lot lately — and rightfully so. Team Gushue’s put Newfoundland curling on the map, and the people come out like crazy when we go there.
“So I hope that’s the case for Ontario for Rachel next year.”
That would go a long way to pushing curling to the forefront in the province, which does host this year’s Scotties but in the Northern Ontario curling region in Thunder Bay, Feb. 14-23.
Mississauga’s Paramount Fine Foods Centre has previously hosted a 2009 Grand Slam of Curling stop and the 2003 Ontario Men’s and Women’s Provincial Curling Championships.
“And the Players Championship has been in Toronto (at Mattamy Athletic Centre) for a lot of years now, and they support it quite well,” Laing said. “But this will be a bigger event. It’ll be interesting to see.”
“I definitely think there’s a popularity upswing in curling at the moment, especially leading into the Olympics and with The Curling Group taking over the grand slams and TV viewership being as good as ever,” continued Laing. “So there’s a lot of good things going, so I think the timing couldn’t really be better to try it again in Ontario and have the GTA really support a big event.”
The dates for next year’s Scotties are Jan. 23-Feb. 1, 2026.
“With an event as iconic and historic as the Scotties Tournament of Hearts, it is getting rarer to have true firsts, so we’re excited to bring this event to Mississauga for the first time,” said Curling Canada CEO Nolan Thiessen. “The Canadian women’s curling championship has always been a staple of the Canadian sporting calendar, and we can’t wait to see the energy and enthusiasm that Mississauga and the GTA will bring to the occasion.”
Paramount Fine Foods Centre — boosted by recently significant renovation — has become a premiere sports and entertainment facility in the GTA. The arena is home to the Raptors 905 of the NBA G League and also to the Toronto Rock for its 2024-25 National Lacrosse League season. Over its 20-plus years of operation, the facility has hosted plenty of high-profile sporting events and artists.
“We’re thrilled to welcome the Scotties to Mississauga for its first-ever stop in the GTA,” said Mississauga mayor Carolyn Parrish. “I want to commend our team at Visit Mississauga for the hard work in establishing our city as a premiere destination for sports, business and leisure, resulting in this successful bid.
“I look forward to meeting with these incredible athletes and want to thank Curling Canada for choosing our great city to host.”
Among the incredible athletes having already put Ontario curling firmly on the map are current stars Homan and her Ottawa Hunt Club rink, as well legends of the game, including Laing and fellow decorated Brier and world winners Russ Howard, John Morris, Glenn Howard and Wayne Middaugh.
“Having the Scotties come to Mississauga is an incredible opportunity for our curling community,” said Curling Ontario executive director Matt Allen. “A lot of excitement builds around this event — especially heading into an Olympic year — and we’re confident the host committee will put together a spectacular event for everyone.”
It will mark the 16th time the Canadian women’s curling championship is hosted in the province of Ontario — nine events in Curling Ontario’s Member Association region and seven in the Northern Ontario Curling Association region.
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