CAA Centre - Brampton Honey Badgers
- Dave Cottenie
- 2 hours ago
- 6 min read
Photos by Dave Cottenie, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 3.14
CAA Centre
7575 Kennedy Road
Brampton, Ontario L6W 4T2
Canada
Year Opened: 1998
Capacity: 5,000
A Honey of an Experience
When the Canadian Elite Basketball League was established out of the National Basketball League of Canada in 2018, one of the founding franchises was the Hamilton Honey Badgers. Fast forward to 2022 when the City of Hamilton announced a multi-million dollar renovation of the FirstOntario Centre would close the arena for a few years. The response of the CEBL was to permanently move the Honey Badgers north to Brampton. Beginning their new era in 2023 at CAA Centre, the Brampton Honey Badgers have attempted to carve out an existence in what is one of the most unique markets in Ontario. With over 52% of Brampton residents identifying themselves as South Asian, Brampton is far from a traditional Ontario market. In 2025, former CanWest CEO Leonard Asper purchased the Brampton franchise from the CEBL. The Honey Badgers continued to make news in 2026 with the announcement that former Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban was joining the Honey Badgers ownership group.
CAA Centre is most identifiable as the home of the Brampton Steelheads of the OHL. Built in 1998 for the OHL expansion Brampton Battalion, CAA Centre has become part of a greater Brampton Sports Park which includes another community ice pad, a number of soccer and rugby fields, baseball diamonds and the TD Cricket Arena. CAA Centre has a capacity of 5,000 for basketball.
Food & Beverage 3
CAA Centre has a decent concession selection. Concession stands are found in the concourse only on the north side. The main concession has all of the typical arena items including hot dogs, burgers, chicken nuggets, fries, popcorn and pizza. For Honey Badger games some other concession providers are also present and have selections that are favourable to the Brampton demographic. Shelby’s offers shawarma and mango chunks. Rick’s Good Eats offers samosas, chicken sandwiches and butter chicken loaded fries.
Pepsi products are the soft drinks of choice at CAA Centre. The Coors Light stand offers a small selection of beer.
Atmosphere 3
CAA Centre has a fairly non-descript exterior with light siding with blue highlights. It is easy to see which part is the main arena and where the community arena is found. There is no real main entry at CAA Centre, but there are some Brampton Honey Badgers markings on the outside to go along with Brampton Steelheads markings. A curious feature is the large rock at the northwest corner of the arena inscribed as “Joey’s Rock.” It was presented to the City of Brampton from the City of St. John’s, Newfoundland to memorialize former Newfoundland Premier, Joey Smallwood. It is not evident what the connection is between Brampton and St. John’s.
After entering CAA Centre, fans will be brought into the main concourse. There is a decent balance of markings in the concourse as well between the Honey Badgers and Steelheads. A small merchandise table is set up near the concession stands. Fans can check out the Brampton Sports Hall of Fame kiosk in the concourse, a unique feature differing itself from other arenas of the same size.
The seating bowl is a single level with all purple seats in a horseshoe configuration with the east end open. The court is west to east oriented with the centre logo best viewed from the south side. Suites are at the top of the seating bowl on the east and west sides. A foursided video board hangs above the court. Unfortunately, there are no videoboards or scoreboards dedicated to statistics, leaving the fan a little more in the dark then they should be. The 2022 CEBL Championship banner, won in Hamilton, hangs to the east along with a couple of hockey banners. With no changes in seat configuration for basketball that would be found in major league arenas, the floor level at both ends are open. A huge, inflatable Honey Badger stands on the floor in the west end and a club area is found on the floor in the east end.
The gameday atmosphere at a Honey Badgers game is better than expected. The PA announcer is energetic and attempts to build crowd support. The same can be said for the two in-game hosts. Hammer, the team mascot, participates in pregame festivities and interacts with the crowd and the dance team performs a few times during stoppages. The Honey Badgers enter the court from the southeast corner, through an inflatable gate with lights and steam effects. Steam effects are also on both backboards and shoot off for every Brampton dunk and 3-point shot. The Honey Badgers gather in the south concourse after the game for autographs. The family friendly nature of the event is evident with the CEO of the Honey Badgers spending just about the entire game traveling through the crowd and interacting with fans.
It would be remiss not to acknowledge the different scoring system used in the CEBL that adds to the experience. The CEBL employs the “Elam Ending” to complete games. With the final stoppage, less than four minutes remaining in the game, a target score is created using the score of the leading team, plus nine points. The winning team is the first team to reach that target score. This eliminates monotonous stoppages at the end and disincentivises fouling the opponent. The end result is a very exciting ending.
Neighbourhood 3
CAA Centre is located adjacent to the County Court neighbourhood of Brampton. It is on the grounds of the larger Brampton Sports Park and as a result, there is little for pre or post game food and drink in the immediate area. A short drive in the car offers a few choices. There are a ton of Indian restaurants in the area. Pomodoro Italian Kitchen, Mount Vesuvio’s Ristorante, and Loco Kitchen & Bar are more unique options to go along with a number of large chain restaurants north of the arena on Steeles.
As far as other sporting options in the area, the CAA Centre is also the home of the Brampton Steelheads of the OHL. The Brampton Excelsiors of the OJLL and MSL also play in the summer. The CAA Centre is a few short minutes from the town of Caledon East and their hockey teams, the Caledon Admirals and Golden Hawks. There are far more options for fans willing to expand their search into Mississauga or Toronto. Other tourist options in the area include the Peel Art Gallery and checking out Downtown Brampton. However, Brampton is very much part of the GTA and far more options can be found by heading to Toronto.
For fans wishing to stay in the area, the Fairfield Inn Brampton is not far away.
Fans 2
The game that was reviewed was the first of the season and saw over 2,100 fans in attendance. The 2025 season was not a strong one for Brampton on the court or at the turnstile. The Honey Badgers averaged over 1,400 fans per game, which ranked them 10th in the 10 team league. The previous season they averaged 2,000 fans per game. The fans in attendance for the game reviewed were definitely into the action and louder than expected. If Brampton can get some traction and put together a strong season while retaining fans, this category could see some improvements.
Access 3
The CAA Centre is located adjacent to the County Court neighbourhood of Brampton. It is at essentially the confluence of Highways 410 and 407, on Kennedy Road. Fans coming from out of province should beware that Highway 407 is a toll highway. Although it may seem that getting to the arena is not difficult, traffic in this area can be a real chore, especially on Highway 410 during the week. There is free parking on site. For fans wishing to take public transit to the game, there are Brampton Transit bus stops on Kennedy Road. Fans should consult the Brampton Transit website for fares, maps and schedules.
Inside the CAA Centre, the concourses are small and can get cramped. Considering the low number of fans in attendance, this is definitely a concern. It is not possible to walk a full 360 degree circle in the concourse and doubling back may be necessary. The washroom facilities are decent in the facility.
Stadium Journey acknowledges that the security protocols in major sports are constantly changing. It is highly recommended that fans consult the Brampton Honey Baders and CAA Centre websites for prohibited items and safety procedures.
Return on Investment 5
Tickets for most Honey Badger games start at $20, with some tickets going as high as $25. Seats are limited for sale, basically between the baselines, ensuring that fans have the best seat possible. Parking on site is free and concession prices are decent. The goal of family friendly, affordable entertainment is the goal of the Honey Badgers, one that is definitely achieved.
Extras 3
An extra mark for the CEBL focusing on developing Canadian basketball talent. It is required that 70% of all rosters must be Canadian.
An extra mark for the CEBL use of the target score and Elam Ending. Very exciting!
An extra mark for a very enthusiastic Honey Badger volunteer who was seen attempting to rile up the crowd and performed cartwheels after Brampton 3-point shots.
Final Thoughts
The Brampton Honey Badgers are making a strong attempt to find their place in the Brampton sports market. By leaning into the city’s demographic and providing affordable, family fun, the Honey Badgers may have found the recipe for success.
