It’s finally here: Centennial Bowl home opener is tonight!
It’s been nearly 9 months since our last home match at the Centennial Bowl. After what seemed like an interminable off-season, we’re finally back, ready for a new summer of soccer, with both our teams competing at the highest semi-pro level in Ontario - the League1 Premier Division.
Tonight, our men’s team is playing in the Round of 16 of the revamped L1 Cup, a knockout cup competition that runs in parallel with the regular season, and features all L1O teams, regardless of the tier they’re playing in at the league level. Our opponent: League2 side The Borough FC, a new team based in Scarborough.
A few days later, we’ll be back in league action, with the men’s team facing Blue Devils FC, on Victoria Day Monday; the women’s team will follow it up with a Cup match against NDC Ontario the very next day. And the following weekend will feature the first of six double-headers, in which fans can watch both our teams on the same day, with just one ticket.
So, what can you expect from the Bowl this season?
Well, in addition to the high quality soccer, the Bowl will feature more or less the same setup as in 2023. There will be merch and snacks; we will have our friends from Fleetstreets on hand with their pies and, this year, also hot dogs, and the beer garden will be back with drinks from our sponsors at Wellington Brewery (*one quick note about the beer garden: it will not be open tonight, but it will be back in force for every game starting the next one, on Monday May 20th).
As for the football, there are plenty of reasons to be excited. With the new League1 Ontario structure, which has teams separated in tiers, with promotion/relegation between them, every point in every game matters more than before.
So grab your tickets if you haven’t already (and may we suggest the season tickets - even if you only attend 7 of the events this year, you’d be saving money compared to single game tickets), come on down to the Bowl, scan the QR codes around the venue for the match day program, and enjoy the best football Guelph has to offer.
Thank you for supporting Guelph United for another season!
For a quick preview FAQ we put together before the start of the season, click here.