Spectator Sports

Auto Racing

The Grand Prix of Toronto (formerly the Molson Indy; tel. 416/588-7223; www.grandprixtoronto.com) was cancelled in 2008, much to the shock of fans. The event is supposed to run in July 2009 at the Exhibition Place Street circuit, but check the website for updates.

Baseball

Rogers Centre, 1 Blue Jays Way, on Front Street beside the CN Tower, is the home of the Toronto Blue Jays. For tickets, contact the Toronto Blue Jays, tel. 888/OK-GO-JAY or 416/341-1234 or http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com.

Basketball

Toronto's basketball team, the Raptors, has its home ground in the Air Canada Centre, 40 Bay St. at Lakeshore Boulevard. The NBA schedule runs from October to April. The arena seats 19,500 for basketball. For information, contact the Raptors Basketball Club, 40 Bay St. (tel. 416/815-5600; www.nba.com/raptors). For tickets, call Ticketmaster (tel. 416/870-8000).

Stephen Colbert vs. the Raptors -- Toronto's basketball team has been on Stephen Colbert's bad side since the very first episode of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report on October 17, 2005. At that time, Colbert put the Raptors "On Notice" for losing a game to Maccabi Tel Aviv, the Euroleague champions. Things got worse in early 2007: Because the Raptors' mascot came in ahead of the Saninaw Spirits' Steagle Colbeagle the Eagle in an online poll, Colbert demoted the Raptors to his "Dead to Me" board. Oh, the indignity of being on the same list as bowtie pasta, screw-cap wines, and men with beards!

Football

Remember Kramer on Seinfeld? He would watch only Canadian football. Here's your chance to catch a game. Rogers Centre, 1 Blue Jays Way, is home to the Argonauts of the Canadian Football League. They play between June and November. For information, contact the club at tel. 416/341-2700 or visit www.argonauts.on.ca. For tickets call Ticketmaster (tel. 416/870-8000).

Golf Tournaments

Canada's national golf tournament, the Bell Canadian Open, usually takes place at the Glen Abbey Golf Club in Oakville, about 40 minutes from the city (tel. 905/844-1800). Most years, it runs over the Labour Day weekend.

Hockey

Hockey isn't Canada's national sport, believe it or not (that's lacrosse), but it's arguably the most popular. The Air Canada Centre, 40 Bay St., at Lakeshore Boulevard, is the home of the Toronto Maple Leafs (http://mapleleafs.nhl.com). Though the arena seats 18,700 for hockey, tickets are not easy to come by, because many are sold by subscription. The rest are available through Ticketmaster (tel. 416/870-8000).

Horse Racing

Thoroughbred racing takes place at Woodbine Racetrack, Rexdale Boulevard and Highway 427, Etobicoke (tel. 416/675-6110 or 416/675-7223). It's famous for the Queen's Plate (usually contested on the third Sun in June); the Canadian International, a classic turf race (Sept or Oct); and the North America Cup (mid-June). Woodbine also hosts harness racing in spring and fall.

Soccer

When I was growing up in Toronto, the soccer team was the Toronto Blizzard (and I have to confess that I didn't notice when the team ceased to exist). Toronto's new soccer club, the Toronto FC (http://toronto.fc.mlsnet.com), is getting a lot more attention. It's the first non-U.S. team in Major League Soccer. They play at BMO Field at Exhibition Place; it was built for the FC and it holds 20,195 spectators. For tickets, call Ticketmaster (tel. 416/870-8000).

Tennis Tournaments

Canada's international tennis championship, the Rogers Cup, takes place in Toronto and Montreal every August (the men's and women's championships alternate cities each year). In 2009, the men play in Montréal and the women in Toronto. Expect major names -- like Ivanovic, Sharapova, and Williams -- to show up. For more information, call tel. 877/283-6647 or check www.tenniscanada.com.