Photo courtesy: CFL/ Geoff Robins

The Toronto Argonauts are planning to set up a home base at the University of Guelph until the team plays its first game at BMO Field in August during the 2026 CFL season.

“Yes, that is the plan. We don’t know exactly what that’s going to look like, but it seems as if they’re going to do their best to give us the things that we need in order to get ourselves ready for each week,” general manager Michael ‘Pinball’ Clemons said from the league’s winter meetings.

“We don’t know exactly what it looks like, but we have a wonderful director of football operations, Melissa Frith, who’s working tirelessly, and she does a tremendous job. We don’t have any doubt that she will do the best that can be done.”

The Argos have been on Guelph’s campus for five straight training camps dating back to 2021. They also held training camp in the Royal City in 2016 as well as numerous times in the 1980s and 1990s. With 2026 being an extended stay, the team has been working on housing arrangements for players and staff.

“There are options there for them potentially to be in Guelph or potentially in their own places. There are different things that they’re putting together, but it is not done at this point. Anything that we respond here at this point would be premature,” Clemons said.

Head coach Mike Miller has been with the Argonauts since 2022 as Toronto’s quarterbacks coach through the 2025 season. In his new role leading the Boatmen, the 55-year-old believes the Double Blue will be comfortable being in Guelph for an extended period after training camp.

“Once we get settled in the beginning of May, we’re there in those months of June and July, I don’t foresee any real problems,” Miller said. “They’ve got an excellent facility, the field is nice, the weight room facility is really good, the training facilities that we have for our trainers, it’s really good.”

For a fifth straight year, the Argonauts will play a pre-season game at Alumni Stadium in Guelph against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats with this year’s matchup set to take place on Friday, May 29. Meanwhile, Toronto’s first home game at BMO Field in 2026 is scheduled to be Thursday, August 6 at 7:30 p.m. ET against the Calgary Stampeders.