Ticats or Stamps in the 102nd Grey Cup comes down to this important question: Chili or Meatloaf?

Heading into Grey Cup weekend, Canadian searches on Google for the Stamps and Ticats are in a virtual dead-heat across Canada. Online searches for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats are highest in Ontario and the Yukon, while searches for the Calgary Stampeders are highest in Alberta and Saskatchewan.

Battle of the Bellies

And geography doesn’t just define allegiances... It may also hint at what food you might see at Grey Cup parties this weekend. Because if there’s meatloaf on your plate this Sunday, there’s a good chance you’re cheering on the Ticats! Searches for Chili recipes are on the rise in Alberta, while searches for meatloaf recipes are spiking in Ontario.

The Players

This week searches for Tiger-Cats semifinals hero Brandon Banks are outpacing his quarterback Zach Collaros by a margin of 3:1. And Canadians are searching 66 percent more frequently for Stampeders’ starting running back Jon Cornish than QB Bo Levi Mitchell.

Grey Cup ... Caribbean Edition

Internationally, searches for the Grey Cup are historically highest in the UK and the US. However, over the past seven days the largest international search volume for the Grey Cup is in Caribbean, with searches highest in the Turks and Caicos, Cayman Islands and Cuba - perhaps Canadians vacationing, or maybe scouting locations for an all-star game!?

Parade route planning?

Top trending terms associated with the Grey Cup include tickets, halftime show, pools and “Grey Cup weekend”. Despite this year’s Grey Cup taking place in climate-controlled BC Place, searches for “coldest Grey Cup” are also on the rise. Finally, it looks like some Canadian football fans are getting a little ahead of themselves: there’s an uptick in Grey Cup Parade searches.

Posted by Aaron Brindle, Google Canada