Organization

• We proudly hosted our Annual Conference, welcoming 129 club delegates, a significant increase from 77 in 2024. Key sessions included a keynote by Brad Gushue, youth participation strategies, and club governance insights. Stay tuned for a “Save the Date” announcement for an upcoming conference!
• We are thrilled to have increased the value and services provided to member clubs while freezing sheet fees for the 2025-26 season. A notice of fees for the next season will be released later this winter.
• Curling Ontario will be developing a new strategic plan for the next four years in 2026. This process will be collaborative, providing an opportunity for all stakeholders to share their voices and opinions on the future of Curling Ontario.
• Our second annual Club Satisfaction Survey will be launched in February, with a submission deadline of March 30th. This survey provides clubs an opportunity to voice opinions on our services, share future focus areas, and help shape Curling Ontario’s direction.

Club Development

• We’ve conducted six webinars this season, attracting over 200 registrants on various topics. Recordings are available here.
• Upcoming Webinars (register here):
  • February 21, 2026: Membership Magnet – Building The Hospitality Fanbase (Part 2)
  • March 11: Member Club Town Hall – League Structures and Innovative Membership Models
  • March 24: Protecting Your Curling Club with Co-Operators Insurance
• Launch of brand new ‘Club Resource Library’ on our website (Access it here). This Resource Library includes an assortment of resources, templates, articles and guides including topics such as Six Essential Leadership Questions for Curling Club Managers, draw templates, Employment Application Template, Job Description Template, New Hire Checklist, Asset Management Sign-Off Form Template.
• More resources to come later this year including board position templates committee terms of reference and what committees should be standing committees vs ad hoc committees.
• Capitalize on the excitement of the Olympics with our new Olympic leverage toolkit here.
• We launched our Safe, Inclusive, Accessible Club Accreditation Program, with 7 clubs currently participating. Learn more about this program and how a mentor can be set up to support your club through the program here.
• Our clinics program for club curlers is trending well. We hosted 44 clinics by the end of December. Learn more about how you can host one of our eight clinics at your club here.
• Celebrated our 2025 Award Winners. 2025-26 Curling Ontario award nominations will be opened in January and nominations will close March 30.
• 66 clubs have used our Club Volunteer Pin Program – 228 eight-ender pins and 174 six-ender pins have been given to our member clubs.
• Busy Street Curl season this past summer and fall – with 44 bookings from our member clubs to expose the game and drive membership in their communities.
• We have established a working group of experts to develop a detailed, launch-ready Shared Facility Manager Program designed to address common facility needs and optimize operations. The group has been working since September and is already well into the program’s development, with ongoing efforts continuing.

Competitions

• Registered Participants and Team Growth:
  • As of December 11, 2024:  Registered: 1,302 participants, Total Teams: 361
  • As of December 11, 2025: Registered: 1,437 participants, Total Teams: 363
• Growing off last year’s successful return of the Best Western Challenge, we remind clubs that this event was made FOR YOU, BY YOU. This Provincial Championship comes directly from your feedback and is geared towards the club level curler. Spread the word for your club members today! Registration is available here.
• To help first-time competitors and for those who need a refresher, or still feel new to competitions, we have created Rules Ready, Game On! A Guide to Provincial Qualifying and Championship Play
• To support the release of Rules Ready, Game On!, we hosted a webinar featuring experts in the field of Officiating, Coaching, Ice Making and our 2024 Club Championship Team Ontario Skips to help teams heading for competition in the 2025-26 season.
• We have released a Qualifier Host Guide to enable an enhanced and consistent experience for participants at all qualifiers, and ensure hosts are aware of their responsibilities and deadlines while reducing administrative burdens for all and limiting repetitive in-season questions to staff.
• Announced a significant and historic change to one of our longest-running youth events, the Elementary School Championship. We are transforming one of the largest youth bonspiels in Canada to align with modern youth development principles, ensuring a more engaging and age-appropriate experience for all participants. The newly formatted event is changing to split into two age divisions, with a goal of a minimum of 48 teams competing across two categories: U12 and U15. This change addresses feedback from participants, parents, and hosts, and is designed to create a bridge for young curlers as they progress from the U12 level to U18 and beyond.
• Expressions of Interest for 2026-27 Qualifier and Provincial Championship hosts coming by the end of January. 
• We are developing a resource featuring success stories and data, to clearly demonstrate the value and benefit for clubs that host Provincial and Qualifying events. We hope to encourage facilities who have not recently hosted to participate in the hosting program. 
• Still to come: 
  • Food & Farm Care Men’s and Women’s Curling Ontario Championships – January 4-11, 2026
  • U18 Provincials – January 14-18, 2026
  • Four Person Stick Provincials – January 23-25, 2026 
  • Mixed Doubles Provincials – February 5-8, 2026
  • Two Person Stick Provincials – February 20-22, 2026
  • U20 Provincials – February 25 – March 1, 2026
  • Seniors Qualifying, Challenge Round and Provincials – March 11-15, 2026
  • Grandmasters Provincials – March 19-21, 2026
  • Wheelchair – Registration closes January 12th
  • Best Western Challenge – Registration closes January 26th – Two Tiers!
  • Mixed – Registration closes February 16th
  • Senior Mixed – Registration closes February 16th
  • Silver Tankard – Registration closes February 23rd – Teams of Eight!

Marketing Efforts

• We have completed new Curling Ontario Brand Guidelines to enhance brand consistency across clubs.
• We sent a physical mailout to all Curling Ontario Member Clubs in September including a NEW value proposition for clubs to better understand the programs and benefits to membership with Curling Ontario (view it here), a letter from Curling Ontario, event posters to hang, the 2025-2026 competition calendar and reminders.
• Developed a new section on our website for clubs to enhance your club’s potential with Curling Ontario services and programs. View it here.
• Social Media:
  • Launched the Curling Ontario 150 campaign featuring “What Does Curling Mean to You?” videos, fostering community engagement and connection.
  • Pride Month Engagement: Achieved significant engagement on our Pride Month social media posts, highlighting inclusivity within the sport.
• Social Media Numbers:
  • Impressions: Increased from 667,774 in 2024 to 1,048,108 in 2025
  • Engagements: Jumped from 22,078 in 2024 to 59,559 in 2025
  • Post Link Clicks: Rose from 1,782 in 2024 to 3,383 in 2025
  • Engagement Rate: Improved from 3% in 2024 to 5.7%in 2025
• Newsletters:
  • Back Line Newsletter: Average Open Rates YTD: 45.7%
  • Club Development Newsletter: Average Open Rates YTD: 27.6%
• Expanded our Curling Ontario Shop apparel. Get some new Curling Ontario swag here!
• A new, more robust annual report was created, featuring comprehensive overviews of all departments. View it here.
• Upcoming Initiatives:
  • Training and Onboarding Program: Develop a comprehensive, easy-to-access training program for new club representatives that covers how to effectively use Curling Ontario resources and access online tools.
  • Canva Templates: Templates specifically designed for Curling Ontario clubs to promote the TRY | LEARN | PLAN initiative across social media and print materials

Thank you for taking the time to review our mid-year State of the Organization. We appreciate your ongoing support and engagement. We look forward to sharing the full annual report with you in September!

If you have any questions regarding the mid-year state of the organization, please reach out to Matt Allen at matt@curlingontario.ca.