The Hamilton Tiger-Cats are a Canadian Football League (CFL) team based in Hamilton, Ontario. The Tiger-Cats play in the East Division of the CFL. Their home venue is Tim Hortons Field and the head coach is Orlondo Steinauer.
📜 Hamilton Tiger-Cats History
The Hamilton Tiger-Cats football team dates back to 1950, although competitive football had been played in Hamilton since 1869. The original team founded in the 19th century was named the Hamilton Tigers, and they saw success and multiple Grey Cup victories in the pre-1950 period.
The Hamilton Tigers folded in 1941, when many players left the club to join the armed forces in World War II. A new club, the Hamilton Wildcats, was formed to maintain Hamilton's presence in Canadian football. The Hamilton Tigers returned in 1945, however, and the teams began to compete for fans and players, which damaged both clubs. In 1950, the teams solved this problem by merging into one entity, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.
The 1950s and 1960s were highly successful years for the Ti-Cats, who won the Grey Cup on 6 occasions between 1953 and 1972. In 1961, Hamilton made history by becoming the first (and as of 2023, only) CFL team ever to beat an active NFL team – the Tiger-Cats defeated the Buffalo Bills 38-21.
After a difficult spell in the 1970s, the Ti-Cats rebounded in the next decade, reaching the Grey Cup for 3 straight seasons between 1984 and 1986. In the last of these games, Hamilton finally took the victory, beating Edmonton to win a 7th Grey Cup.
The 1990s saw very limited success on the field for the Tiger-Cats, and the club struggled with financial instability. Despite this, the team made it to the Grey Cup in both 1998 and 1999, winning the trophy on the second attempt with a victory over the Calgary Stampeders.
Bob Young took over ownership of the Tiger-Cats franchise in 2004, and the team moved into a brand new stadium, Tim Hortons Field, in 2014. The Ti-Cats reached the Grey Cup in 2013 and 2014, but lost both games.
