Varsity Stadium Varsity Stadium is a collegiate football stadium that is home to the Varsity Blues , the athletic teams of the University of Toronto in Toronto , Ontario , Canada . While the present structure was built in 2007 , it is in fact the third major incarnation of the stadium that has occupied the same site since 1898 . Varsity Stadium is also a former home of the Toronto Argonauts , and has previously hosted the Grey Cup , the Vanier Cup , and the soccer semifinals of the 1976 Summer Olympics . History . Varsity Stadium has for its entire history been host to the University of Toronto ' s collegiate Canadian football team , the Varsity Blues . However it was , until the opening of Exhibition Stadium in 1959 , the home of the Canadian professional football team the Toronto Argonauts . It still holds the record for the number of times any stadium has hosted the Canadian professional football championship game , the Grey Cup . Capacity of the stadium has varied with time , but peaked at about 22 , 000 in the 1950s although , with the use of temporary bleachers , a record crowd of 27 , 425 watched the Edmonton Eskimos defeat the Montreal Alouettes 50 - 27 in the 1956 Grey Cup final . During the 1976 Summer Olympics , Varsity Stadium hosted football games , and was the site of the semi - final game between Brazil and Poland . Perhaps the most famous Canadian football game played in the Stadium was the 1950 Mud Bowl for the Grey Cup championship . In soccer , the NASL ' s Toronto Blizzard made Varsity Stadium its home for the 1984 season . In the summer of 1986 , Varsity Stadium played host to the World Lacrosse Championships , a tournament featuring the United States , Canada , England , and Australia . The US defeated Canada in the final , 18 - 9 . The Toronto Blizzard returned to Varsity in 1987 as part of the Canadian Soccer League but would move to the smaller Centennial Park Stadium as a cost - cutting move . They returned in 1993 as a member of the American Professional Soccer League but again were forced to move , this time to Lamport Stadium , again due to financial difficulties . Varsity Stadium continued to host the Canadian intercollegiate championship , the Vanier Cup , but that too moved to larger quarters such as Skydome ( now known as Rogers Centre ) as the popularity of the collegiate championship grew . The Canadian national team hosted Iran for a friendly match at the stadium in August 1997 . A near - capacity crowd of over 15 , 000 attended — primarily Iranians from across the continent . It was the first visit for Iran ' s team in North America since before the Islamic Revolution , when its Olympic soccer team played at the 1976 Summer Games which coincidentally staged matches at Varsity Stadium . Minor league professional soccer team Toronto Lynx moved into the stadium in 1997 , but was forced to move to Centennial Park Stadium due to the impending demolition of the historic facility . The stadium was demolished over the summer of 2002 after the cost of maintaining the large facility was far more than it generated in revenue . At that time , several structural sections of the stadium were being held up by temporary repairs , and the future integrity of the structure was in question . The field and track were retained after the demolition . From 2003 through 2005 , temporary seating of about 1 , 500 was installed to permit the use of the field for intercollegiate games . The name Varsity Field was used from 2002 to 2006 during the period when the old stadium was demolished and the new stadium was being built . A plan to build a new 25 , 000 seat multi - purpose stadium on the site in 2005 was voted down by management of the University of Toronto due to concerns over its cost . The facility was then planned to be built on the grounds of York University but that too failed . At the time of its demolition , Varsity Stadium was the second largest capacity stadium in Canada with a grass field , after Commonwealth Stadium in Edmonton , Alberta . As FIFA rules require international matches to be played on natural surfaces , the loss of Varsity as a venue resulted in financial difficulties to Canada ' s national soccer team in Canada ' s largest market as there were no large grass field stadiums remaining in Toronto , until BMO Field was converted to grass from field turf in 2010 . Concerts . The stadium has also been host to several concerts most notably the 1969 " Rock ' n Roll Revival Concert " , which " Rolling Stone " once called the second most important event in rock & roll history and resulted in a documentary movie , " Sweet Toronto " , and John Lennon ' s " Live Peace In Toronto " album . The performers were The Doors , Plastic Ono Band ( Lennon , Yoko Ono , and Eric Clapton , with Klaus Voormann and Alan White ) , Bo Diddley , Chicago Transit Authority ( later renamed " Chicago " ) , Tony Joe White , Alice Cooper , Jerry Lee Lewis , Chuck Berry , Cat Mother & the All Night Newsboys , Gene Vincent , Junior Walker & the All Stars , Little Richard , Doug Kershaw , Screaming Lord Sutch , Nucleus , Milkwood , and Whiskey Howl . KISS performed at the stadium during their Destroyer Tour on September 6 , 1976 . Rush performed at the stadium on September 2 , 1979 during their Permanent Waves Warm - up Tour . New facilities . Facilities and features built in the first phase of the stadium ' s reconstruction include an IAAF Class II 400m eight - lane track , artificial field turf ( FIFA 2 Star rated surface by Polytan ) , and a winter bubble enabling use during inclement weather . The multi - use capability was one of the main reasons that the plan was passed by the governing council , as opposed to the 25 , 000 seat stadium . Compared to the old Varsity Stadium , the seating is closer to Varsity Arena , almost making the two structures one conjoined complex . Part of the red brick wall along Bloor Street was maintained for historic purposes , but the new facility is much more open and visible from the streets overall . The new facilities are designed by Diamond and Schmitt Architects .