Niagara River Lions Announce 2021 Season Schedule

St. Catharines, ON – The Canadian Elite Basketball League led the NHL, NBA and later the CPL in returning to play in Canada after the coronavirus shut down the sports world in March of 2020. The CEBL Summer Series put professional basketball on the television and digital screens of millions of viewers across Canada and around the world, establishing the CEBL as the top Canadian-based global team sports brand. The 2021 season will build on that momentum with an expanded viewing audience around the world, and locally through an innovative approach to addressing the uncertainties due to the pandemic around having fans in arenas across the league.

The CEBL and the Niagara River Lions announced the 2021 regular season schedule Thursday, a 14-game slate reduced from the standard 20 games and pushed back from a mid-May start to June 5 to accommodate the possibility of fans being able to attend games in person this summer. The league cannot push its season beyond a late-August playoff finish because most of its players must report to their international pro teams by September.

“As we look ahead to the 2021 season, the health and safety of fans, players, officials and staff is the top priority. Our Front Office and Basketball Operations staff are continuing to work hard in preparation for the season so that once it is safe to do so, we will be able to welcome fans back to the Meridian Centre,” said Jeffrey Sotiriou, President of the Niagara River Lions. “We know that the Niagara Community is eager to attend live events and we look forward to providing them an entertaining basketball product that they have come to know and expect.”

With uncertainty around government regulations of people attending events, and in recognition that some people may not feel comfortable attending events in 2021, an innovative approach has been created to protect the investment of those who have purchased tickets to River Lions games.

 

All season tickets, season ticket deposits and voucher packs that have been purchased for 2021 are automatically being moved forward into 2022 and applied toward next season’s ticket packages. If fans will be allowed into Meridian Centre, those ticketholders may choose to draw tickets from their 2022 package to use for any games they wish to attend in 2021. There will be no obligation to use any tickets in 2021. All unused tickets will remain on account and applied toward the same ticket packages in 2022.

Fans who had purchased tickets for the 2020 season and left their tickets on account for 2021 received retention benefits that included a 20 percent credit toward additional tickets and a 25 percent discount on team merchandise. Those benefits will be extended to all ticketholders through August of 2022.

“Our organization has been blown away by the support shown by our fans and partners over the past year, and we will continue to keep them informed and up-to-date as we navigate local health and safety guidelines,” said Michelle Biskup, Vice President of Operations for the team. “We have always been focused on keeping our fans first, so we have developed a plan to ensure the full protection of any investment in our tickets that gives members full flexibility over the next couple of years.”

Additional ticketing details will be announced closer to the start of the season when it is expected there will be more clarity from government and health officials around public gatherings.

The River Lions open the 2021 season with back-to-back games versus the Hamilton Honey Badgers starting on the road June 10, followed by the home opener on Sunday June 13 at 2:00pm. The seven home games will include single visits from western teams, Saskatchewan, and Fraser Valley. Ottawa, who the River Lions beat last season in order to clinch a playoff spot will visit the Meridian Centre twice. Local rival, Hamilton will play twice at the Meridian Centre, and Guelph once on July 30.

Niagara’s road schedule includes single trips to Ottawa, Fraser Valley, Edmonton, Guelph and Saskatchewan, and two games at Hamilton. The CEBL will announce its plans for the post-season at a later date.

CBC is the premier media partner of the CEBL and will broadcast nationally televised games on seven consecutive Saturdays beginning June 5. The River Lions will appear on national television at home versus Ottawa on June 19. All regular season games will also be live streamed on the free CBC Gem streaming service, cbcsports.ca, the CBC Sports app for iOS and Android devices, and on a new OTT streaming platform the CEBL will unveil this spring.

Highlights of the 2021 Niagara River Lions schedule include:

• Five of Niagara’s first seven games come on the road 

• Niagara plays four consecutive games at home on July 8, 20, 24 and 30

• Niagara will play on three Tuesdays, three Thursdays, three Fridays, three Sundays, and two Saturdays

• The only team Niagara will not be hosting this season is the 2020 CEBL Champions, the Edmonton Stingers 

• Niagara’s longest road trip of the season is four games 

A league created by Canadians for Canadians, the CEBL has the highest percentage of Canadian players of any professional league in the country, with 80 percent of its 2020 rosters being Canadians. Players come from the NBA G League, top international leagues, the Canadian National team program, and top NCAA and U SPORTS programs.

More information about the River Lions is available at riverlions.ca, as well as on Instagram (@niagarariverlions), Twitter (@RiverLions), Facebook, and TikTok.

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Media Contact

Michelle Biskup

Vice President, Operations 

mbiskup@riverlions.ca