Manitoba·NewA massive crowd of people lined the streets of downtown Winnipeg on Saturday to see colourful Christmas floats and Santa Claus, and to get a close up look at the Canadian Football League’s championship trophy. This year’s parade featured a chance to see the CFL’s championship trophyDave Baxter · CBC News · Posted: Nov 16, 2025 9:22 AM EST | Last Updated: 8 minutes agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.Santa Claus waves to the crowd at Saturday’s Manitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade in Winnipeg. (Dave Baxter/CBC)A huge crowd lined the streets of downtown Winnipeg on Saturday to see colourful Christmas floats and Santa Claus, and to get a close up look at the Canadian Football League’s championship trophy. This year’s Manitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade in Winnipeg doubled as a Grey Cup parade and came with a distinct football theme, which included the Grey Cup cruising down the street in a black convertible. With the 112th Grey Cup set to kick off in Winnipeg on Sunday, the parade also included representation from all nine CFL teams, including all of their cheer teams which marched in the parade and performed a few routines for the crowd. The Grey Cup cruised though the streets of Winnipeg on Saturday in the Manitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade. (Dave Baxter/CBC)And while Winnipeggers young and old filled the streets, there were also quite a few out-of-towners at the parade this year who will also be at Sunday’s championship game. Saskatchewan Roughriders fans Eric Kashton, Joel Alberts, and Radek Horejda, who travelled to Winnipeg from Regina to see Sunday’s game, also checked out Saturday’s parade.The Edmonton Elks cheer team did a few routines on Saturday while taking part in the Manitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade in Winnipeg. (Dave Baxter/CBC)“It’s awesome here, the parade is great, and we got to see the Grey Cup which was awesome,” Kashton said. “It’s nice to see so many people out and it just has a really good vibe.”He said they are excited for Sunday’s game, but have also been having a great time since arriving in Winnipeg, with everything going on in the city leading up to the game. Saskatchewan Roughriders fans Eric Kashton, Joel Alberts, and Radek Horejda, who travelled to Winnipeg from Regina to see Sunday’s game, also checked out Saturday’s Santa Claus Parade. (Dave Baxter/CBC)He added most of the people the group met at the parade have been welcoming, despite them wearing their Roughriders jerseys.“Everyone’s been really nice,” he said. “We’ve gotten really good hospitality, and actually a lot of Bomber fans have come up to us and said, ‘go riders.’”Thousands lined the streets of Winnipeg on Saturday for the Manitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade. (Dave Baxter/CBC)Trevor and Keely Milner, brought their two kids Oliver and Lilly to Saturday’s parade, and said although it was a bonus to see the Grey Cup, Santa Claus was the main attraction for the kids. “They’re here to see Santa, they’re very excited,” Trevor said. “So they get to see Santa and all the floats, and it’s just fun, it’s fun for them.”He added he’s been to a few of the Santa Claus parades, but said usually the temperatures are a lot colder than what Winnipeg experienced on Saturday evening, as temperatures hovered around the freezing mark.Winnipeg Blue Bombers mascots Buzz and Boomer made an appearance at the Manitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade in Winnipeg on Saturday. (Dave Baxter/CBC)“The weather has been really nice so that’s great too,” he said. “Probably a few more people out than usual because it’s so nice out.”The Grey Cup will be handed out in Winnipeg on Sunday, to either the Saskatchewan Roughriders or the Montreal Alouettes, who will battle for the trophy at Princess Auto Stadium in the 112th Grey Cup championship game. ABOUT THE AUTHORDave Baxter is an award-winning reporter and editor currently working for CBC Manitoba. Born and raised in Winnipeg, he has also previously reported for the Winnipeg Sun and the Winnipeg Free Press, as well as several rural Manitoba publications.
Santa Claus parade brings out thousands on Grey Cup weekend
