Is curling considered to be a major sporting event? Can someone buy tickets just to watch a match?
No, it’s generally not considered a “major sporting event”. Curling is usually played among friends, with prizes for intra-club competitions limited to a line of engraving on a club trophy and bottle of wine or a nice piece of steak. My father ate and drank very well during his later years of play. The Briars, played at the provincial, national, and international level (and their equivalents elsewhere) draw both audiences and media coverage. Limited numbers of tickets to these events are sold, because curling rinks rarely offer much in the way of accomodation for even modest crowds. This is because the majority of rinks are private clubs, which do not spend money on facilities that are not needed (or wanted) for 360 days out of 365. Tickets are sold months in advance of the event.
if there is one in your area and you just want to watch you don’t need tickets to watch the teams in your local curling club play – – the last I heard visitors/spectators are welcome – it’s one way they attract new members – just contact your local club to find out when people are playing and be prepared to enjoy yourself. It’s fun to watch and even more fun to play.
Only the Olympics and the major bonspiels, such as provincial championships, national championships, The Brier (not The Briars) and the Scott Tournament of Hearts can be considered major spectator events. And yes, tickets are available, for example from this year’s Tournament of Hearts, recently ended : http://www.johnlabattcentre.com/calendar/022006-25.
