Calgary Stampeders The Calgary Stampeders are a Canadian Football League team based in Calgary , Alberta and named in reference to the Calgary Stampede . The Stampeders play their home games at McMahon Stadium . They have won the league ' s Grey Cup championship six times , most recently in 2008 . Franchise history . The first time Calgary took the field in Canadian football was in 1891 when they faced Edmonton in a home and away series . The following years saw the formation of several Calgary - based football teams starting with the Calgary Tigers of the Alberta Rugby Football Union in 1908 . This would be followed by the likes of Canucks , the 50th Battalion , Altomahs , Tigers for the second time and later the Bronks . The Stampeders were officially born on September 29 , 1945 . In their very first game played on October 22 at Mewata Stadium they beat the Regina Roughriders 12 – 0 before 4 , 000 fans in attendance . It would be a taste of success to come that decade under the direction of head coach Les Lear and talented stars such as Woody Strode , Paul Rowe , Keith Spaith , Dave Berry , Normie Kwong and Ezzert " Sugarfoot " Anderson . The year 1948 would perhaps be the greatest season in Stamps history , becoming the only professional Canadian football team ever to achieve a perfect season with a record of 12 – 0 and capping the year with a Grey Cup victory over the Ottawa Rough Riders at Toronto ' s Varsity Stadium . It was also during that same Grey Cup festival that Calgary fans brought pageantry to the game and made it into a national celebration , featuring pancake breakfasts on the steps of City Hall , starting the Grey Cup parade and even riding horses in the lobby of the Royal York Hotel . They would return to the Grey Cup the following year ( 1949 ) , with a 13 – 1 record but lost to the Montreal Alouettes 28 – 15 in the title game . It would be 19 years until Calgary once again reached the Grey Cup , losing 24 – 21 to Ottawa in the 1968 final and not until 1971 when they would be crowned champions , defeating the Toronto Argonauts 14 – 11 . The Stampeders nearly folded after the 1985 season marked by declining attendance , financial woes and poor 3 – 13 record . However , a successful Save Our Stamps campaign resulted in season ticket sales of 22 , 400 , additional funds and stability that translated to improved on - field play which laid the groundwork to Grey Cup berths in 1991 and 1992 when they won the title over Winnipeg . The decade of the 1990s was very successful for the Stampeders , led by quarterbacks Doug Flutie and later Jeff Garcia and Dave Dickenson throwing to receivers Allen Pitts , Terry Vaughn and Dave Sapunjis , and a rock steady defence led by Western All Stars Alondra Johnson , Stu Laird and Will Johnson . They would reach the Grey Cup final three more times , losing in 1995 and 1999 and winning in 1998 . After winning their fifth Grey Cup championship in 2001 , Calgary went into a brief period of decline until 2005 when they emerged as playoff contenders again , led by Henry Burris at quarterback and Joffrey Reynolds at running back . Nevertheless , they did not win a playoff game for several years , suffering three successive losses in the 2005 , 2006 , and 2007 Western semi - final games . In 2008 , the Stampeders ended their playoff drought en route to winning the team ' s sixth Grey Cup 22 – 14 against the Montreal Alouettes . Burris was named the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player with DeAngelis being the top Canadian for their efforts . John Hufnagel has been interviewed by several NFL teams and College football teams . Calgary Stampeders year - by - year . This is a complete list of seasons competed by the Calgary Stampeders , a Canadian Football League team . While the team was founded in 1935 ( as the Calgary Bronks ) , they did not join the CFL until it was founded in 1958 . Throughout their history , the Stampeders have won six Grey Cup s . < / div > References . Jim Finks as 1960 interim coach : Toronto Globe and Mail , Saturday 20 August 1960 , p . 21 , " Calgary Coach Resigns " .