WINNIPEG, September 20, 2006 -- Winnipeg will stage the 2008 Tim Hortons Brier, it was announced today by the Canadian Curling Association (CCA).

The Canadian men’s curling championship will be held March 8-16, 2008 at the new MTS Centre, a 15,000 seat multi-purpose facility, and will mark the fifth time that the city has hosted the event, joining Edmonton, Calgary, Saskatoon, Halifax and Toronto as the only other cities to have staged the prestigious championship at least five times, since it began in 1927.

“On behalf of the CCA, we are very pleased that the 2008 Tim Hortons Brier has been awarded to Winnipeg,” said Georgina Anderson, a member of the Board of Directors of the Canadian Curling Association and a past president of the Manitoba Curling Association. “Winnipeg has hosted some of the most successful curling events in the past, and that, combined with a dedicated Host Committee surrounded by a wealth of experienced and knowledgeable volunteers and fans, will help ensure that this Brier will be just as successful.”

The last Brier to be held in the city was in 1998, when it was played at the Winnipeg Arena and won by Ontario’s Wayne Middaugh. Other years as host were in 1940, 1952 and 1970. In each of those years, it was won by a team from Winnipeg. The city also staged the 2003 Ford Worlds at the Arena.

The Brier began in 1927 in Toronto and has been played in 31 different cities across Canada, from Victoria to St. John’s. Manitoba has won a record 26 Briers, the latest by Jeff Stoughton in 1999 in Edmonton, while Alberta is next with 22. New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island and Yukon/Northwest Territories have yet to win.

“We're very pleased and excited to host the Tim Hortons Brier in a new facility for Winnipeg and Manitoba, the MTS Centre,” said Barry Greenberg, the host committee president and former president of the Canadian Curling Association. “We look forward to working in partnership with the Canadian Curling Association to stage a very successful event."

Tim Hortons, the largest quick service restaurant chain in Canada, is in the final year of a three-year contract, with a three-year option, as the title sponsor of the Canadian men’s curling championship. Negotiations are currently on-going with the CCA to confirm and extend its sponsorship of the premier curling event in Canada.

Tickets for the 2008 Tim Hortons Brier, which is being presented by Monsanto Canada, are expected to go on sale in February of 2007. The Keith’s Brier Patch and the Purple Heart Lounge will be located in the Convention Centre, just a few blocks from the MTS Centre.

The Brier competition involves 10 provinces plus teams representing Northern Ontario and Yukon/Northwest Territories playing a round robin, leading to the Page Playoff system involving the top four teams. The first and second place teams meet in the Page 1 vs 2 game, with the winner advancing to the final while the loser goes to the semi-final. The third and fourth place teams meet in the Page 3 vs 4 game, with the winner advancing to the semi-final while the loser is eliminated.

The 2008 renewal will mark the 79th edition of the men’s championship. It will also be the seventh time that Manitoba has hosted the event. In addition to Winnipeg, the Brier was played in Brandon in 1963 and 1982.

As usual, there will be extensive television coverage, with TSN televising the round robin draws and Page Playoffs while CBC-TV will carry the semi-final and final. The 2008 champion will then represent Canada at the world men’s curling championship in Grand Forks, North Dakota at the Ralph Engelstad Arena, April 5-13.

Since 1980, when the first Labatt Brier was held in Calgary and a playoff format was introduced, 17 of 27 Brier winners have gone on to win the men’s world curling championship. The latest was Edmonton’s Randy Ferbey, who captured the 2005 Tim Hortons Brier in Edmonton and the Ford Worlds in Victoria, B.C.

The 2007 Tim Hortons Brier will be held at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario, March 3-11.

The Brier attendance record is 281,985, set by Edmonton in 2005, which eclipsed the former mark of 248,793 established in 2000 in Saskatoon. When Winnipeg staged the 1998 Labatt Brier, the final attendance was 147,017, while the 2003 Ford Worlds attracted 153,571 fans.