On your marks! Sports events coming to Montréal in 2026
With a history that includes hosting the 1976 Summer Olympic Games as well as being home to the most iconic professional hockey team of all time, the Montréal Canadiens, Montréal is one of the world’s great sports cities. Over the course of an average year, the city hosts approximately 60 major sporting events. Organizers of elite sporting events understand that Montréal offers an ideal combination of world-class facilities, professional athletic organizations and leaders, and an unmatched cultural exceptionality in North America.
Montréal is a city that attracts major sports events year-round, and we’re excited about what’s on the roster for 2026. The year is already set to be big with a city-wide celebration of the 50th anniversary of the 1976 Summer Olympics. Add to that the 2026 UCI Road World Championships, which will, without doubt, be the most significant sporting event held in Montréal since those Olympics.
In short, we’re especially excited about what the city’s sports programming has to offer in 2026, and pleased to offer you an advance highlight reel.
WWE Friday Night Smackdown and Main Event
It’s unfailingly fun when professional wrestling thunders back into Montréal — a city with a long and loving relationship with these high-energy events — and the WWE Friday Night Smackdown and Saturday Night’s Main Event will be throwing it down this January.
Dates: January 23-24, 2026
Organized by: WWE
Venue: Bell Centre
World Aquatics Diving Cup
Montréal has a rich diving history, having hosted 14 World Aquatics Diving World Cup and Grand Prix events, as well as the 2022 World Junior Diving Championships. The historic Olympic Pool will once again be the competition venue when the World Aquatics Diving World Cup commences its 2026 season.
Dates: February 26 to March 1, 2026
Organized by: World Aquatics
Venue: Parc Olympique, Le Centre Sportif
International Gymnix 2026
The largest competition of its kind in Canada, more than 1,200 athletes from around the world participate in this celebration of women’s artistic gymnastics. Apart from the athletic performances, a multitude of activities are planned to entertain the whole family, including a gymnastics course for children, food kiosks and the opportunity to purchase gymnastics sportswear.
Dates: March 4-8, 2026
Organized by: International Gymnix
Venue: Claude Robillard Sports Complex
ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships
The 2026 ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships will feature elite-level skaters competing in a series of thrilling, edge-of-your-seat races. Montréal is a historic hotbed for the sport and has been home to many of its Olympic stars. The championships gather the best female and male short track speed skaters from around the world.
Dates: March 13-15, 2026
Organized by: International Skating Union (ISU)
Venue: Maurice Richard Arena
Women’s Basketball National Championship
Montréal’s downtown Dawson College, situated across the street from the Montréal Canadiens’ former home in the storied Forum arena, will play host to a different kind of net-scoring sport when it hosts the high-level CCAA Women’s Basketball National Championship.
Dates: March 18-21, 2026
Organized by: Canadian Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA)
Venue: Dawson College
Canadian 4-on-4 Ultimate Championships
Ultimate Canada, the nation’s preeminent authority on ultimate frisbee (or discs, as they call them), has announced that the fast-action Canadian 4-on-4 Ultimate Championships will take place in Montréal in the spring of this year.
Dates: April 11-12, 2026
Organized by: Ultimate Canada
Venue: Complexe Sportif Marie-Victorin
Formula 1 Grand Prix du Canada 2026
Montréal is home to the Formula 1 Canadian Grand Prix, the biggest sporting event in all of Canada. It comprises three full days of elite competition and classy fine-dining and big-partying at off-site celebrations throughout the city. A new slate of activities adjacent to the race itself include daily concerts by A-list music names such as Bryan Adams, Simple Plan and Alessia Cara.
Dates: May 22-24, 2026
Organized by: Formula 1
Venue: Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve
World Triathlon Para Series Montréal 2026
The 2026 World Triathlon Para Series Montréal will see its return as one of 13 international para triathlons, welcoming the world’s best para-triathletes for sprint distance competitions that test the limits of endurance.
Dates: June 27-28, 2026
Organized by: World Triathlon
Venue: Parc Jean-Drapeau
Bell Canadian Swimming Trials
The 2026 Bell Canadian Swimming Trials is a championship meet featuring five-days of heats and finals at the 50-metre Montréal Olympic Pool.
Dates: July 5-9, 2026
Organized by: Swimming Canada
Venue: Parc Olympique, Le Centre Sportif
The Global Tournament of International All Star
The AIA Global Tournament for cheer and dance will light up Montréal this summer. The competition, which sees thousands of participants, has invited teams from more than 15 countries and 85 qualifying events, encompassing all levels and genres within the international cheer and dance community.
Dates: July 15-20, 2026
Organized by: Association for International All Star (AIA)
Venue: Verdun Auditorium
Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour – Elite 16
Top-tier beach volleyball athletes will touch down in Montréal to spike several days of high-intensity action at the 2026 Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour – Elite 16 this August. Parc Jean-Drapeau will become the epicentre of the sport, hosting the world’s best competitors, high-energy DJ sets, delicious food options and lively entertainment.
Dates: TBC
Organized by: Volleyball World Beach Pro Tour
Venue: Parc Jean-Drapeau
WNBA regular season games
B-ballers are in for a treat again when the Toronto Tempo play two official, regular-season WNBA games in this increasingly basketball-obsessed city.
Dates: When the WNBA announces its 2026 schedule
Organized by: WNBA
Venue: Bell Centre
Valleyfield Regatta
Steeped in history, the annual Valleyfield Regatta will celebrate its 86th edition this year with 10 days of thrill-filled hydroplane racing. Competing at speeds of up to 225 km/hr, this major international event draws upwards of 130,000 spectators each year to the picturesque city of Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, located immediately southwest of the island of Montréal.
Dates: July 3-12, 2026
Organized by: Valleyfield Regatta
Venue: Baie St-François
Montréal International Dragon Boat Challenge
Following the unqualified success of last year’s event, the Montréal International Dragon Boat Challenge is back in 2026 in an expanded form. The world-renowned Olympic Basin offers a 2,000-metre race course with six lanes located just 15 minutes from the city’s downtown.
Dates: July 18-20, 2026
Organized by: Mission Dragon Boat
Venue: Olympic Basin, Parc Jean-Drapeau
National Bank Open 2026
The very best in men’s tennis return to the prestigious National Bank Open presented by Rogers tournament, one of the most-anticipated events on the city’s professional sports calendar (attendance in the past has topped 200,000).
Dates: August 1-13, 2026
Organized by: Tennis Canada
Venue: IGA Stadium
JACKALOPE
JACKALOPE — Canada’s largest action sports festival — features a wide variety of thrilling competitions and demonstrations (skateboarding, bouldering, fixed gear racing, BASE jumping and more), as well as exhilarating activities, food trucks and live music.
Dates: September 11-13, 2026
Organized by: Tribu Expérientiel
Venue: Jacques-Cartier Pier in the Old Port
Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal 2026
Once a year, for over five muscle-burning hours, elite cyclists from around the world — competitors in the Tour de France, Giro d’Italia, Summer Olympics and the like — bring peak athletic performance to the peaks of Mount Royal for the annual Grand Prix Cycliste de Montréal. It features the best of the best of pro cyclists in a 150-rider peloton on a challenging circuit, and is one of only two Union cycliste internationale (UCI) world tour events in North America.
Date: September 13, 2026
Organized by: Événements GPCQM
Venue: Mount Royal Park
2026 UCI Road World Championships
Montréal is set to become the epicentre of world cycling, hosting the prestigious 2026 UCI Road World Championships. Over the course of eight days, the competition — a free event that’s open to the public — is expected to draw close to 500,000 cycling enthusiasts. This will only be the second time that the event has taken place in Montréal, and only the third time it’s been staged in Canada.
Dates: September 20-27, 2026
Organized by: Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI)
Venue: Mount Royal Park
Marathon Beneva de Montréal 2026
The annual Marathon Beneva de Montréal is for both elite and recreational runners, attracting thousands of competitors for its multiple races. It follows a picturesque course that offers a unique experience each year aimed at highlighting the city’s many attractions.
Dates: October 9-11, 2026
Organized by: Courons MTL
Venue: Parc Jean-Drapeau and Parc Maisonneuve