CFL fans may need to find an alternative source for their sluice juice beginning in 2025, as financial difficulties have put the Spirit of Edmonton organization in serious peril.
“We’re going to get to Vancouver and I don’t know if we can get to Winnipeg in 2025,” chairman Gerry Haracsi told Global News Edmonton this week.
Founded in 1974, Spirit of Edmonton has been a staple of the Grey Cup festival for 50 years. The volunteer organization is renowned amongst CFL fans for their nightly parties and live entertainment in the lead-up to the championship game. The group also hosts an annual Grey Cup breakfast, which features the famous sluice juice, as well as tailgate parties before every Elks home game.
Thousands of fans are still expected to make Spirit part of their Grey Cup experience in B.C. this November, but the organization is struggling to contend with rising costs. According to the report, events used to operate on an annual budget of $20,000 but that now represents just a fraction of what is required to run them. With most venues now keeping liquor sales for themselves, there simply is not enough revenue coming in.
“Times have been tough, costs are rising,” Haracsi explained. “We’ve been at the Grey Cup two of the last three years in the East and it’s expensive. Sponsorship and donations have really dried up.”
Spirit’s challenges appear to mirror those of the team they support, as the Edmonton Elks have not had a winning season since 2017 and have gone 11-46 over the past four seasons. Paid attendance at Commonwealth Stadium was officially 24,774 in 2023 but the number of people actually in the stands was much lower, with those numbers continuing to dwindle amid an 0-7 start to 2024.
With cumulative financial losses of $16 million since 2019, the community-owned franchise has been proactively seeking private ownership. Reports indicate that a sale is on track for mid-season, which would inject fresh cash into the floundering team.
Spirit of Edmonton will need a similar injection to keep operating in its current capacity beyond this year. They hope help from the public can make that happen.
“[We’re asking] for anything. $10 to $25,000, whatever. We can make things work,” Haracsi said. “We’ll keep plugging away because I don’t want to be the guy that turns off the light.”
According to the organization’s website, businesses looking to sponsor them are asked to contact Rhonda Hjorth at [email protected]. Matthew Iwanyk, a local media personality with Edmonton Sports Talk, also launched a GoFundMe for the group on July 26, which can be found here. At the time of publication, it has raised just $775 off of seven donations.
The Edmonton Elks (0-7) return to the field on Saturday, August 3 when they visit the Saskatchewan Roughriders (5-2). The 111th Grey Cup is slated for Sunday, November 17 in Vancouver.
