Toronto Argonauts

The Toronto Argonauts (officially the Toronto Argonaut Football Club and commonly known as the Argos) are a professional Canadian football team based in Toronto, Ontario. The Argonauts play in the East Division of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Started in 1873, the team is the oldest professional sports team in North America still using its original name, as well as the oldest-surviving team in both the modern-day CFL and East Division.Canadian Football League Facts, Figures & Records. (2009). pg. 23 The team's origins date back to a modified version of rugby football that emerged in North America in the latter half of the 19th century. The Argonauts played their home games at Rogers Centre (originally known as SkyDome) from 1989 until 2016, when the team moved to BMO Field, the fifth stadium site (on the footprint of their third home Exhibition Stadium) to host the team.

The Argonauts have won the Grey Cup a record 19 times and have appeared in the final 25 times. Most recently, they defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 41–24 in the 111th Grey Cup in 2024. The Argonauts hold the best winning percentage in the championship game (.760) and have the longest active winning streak in games in which they have appeared, at eight. The Argonauts have faced every current western CFL team at least once in the Grey Cup, while their most celebrated divisional rivalry has been with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

The team was founded and owned by the Argonaut Rowing Club for its first 83 years, and has been owned by a series of business interests since 1956. The Argonauts were a fixture on the Toronto sports scene for decades, with attendance peaking in the 1970s. In May 2015, a consortium of Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment's Larry Tanenbaum (via the Kilmer Group) and Bell Canada reached an agreement to acquire the team. The sale included a scheduled move to the MLSE-run BMO Field for the 2016 season, which had long been proposed given poor attendance at Rogers Centre. MLSE announced in December 2017 that it had agreed to purchase the team outright, with the deal finalized on January 19, 2018. The previous owners continue to indirectly own stakes in the Argos, as Bell Canada and the Kilmer Group respectively hold 37.5% and 25% stakes in MLSE.

Given the length of the team's history, dozens of players, coaches, and management have been honoured in some form over the years. The team recognizes a select group of players with retired numbers - early greats Joe Krol and Dick Shatto, stalwart offensive lineman Danny Nykoluk, and Michael "Pinball" Clemons, who has been the most recent face of the team. 

Other websites
Toronto Argonauts official website

Category:Canadian football clubs
Category:Sports teams in Toronto
Category:1873 establishments in Canada Category:1870s establishments in Ontario