Finally, Ottawa, you’ll soon hear a formal announcement that the 2017 Grey Cup game will be held at TD Place stadium.

We could be wrong about that, sure, but we’re not.

Ottawa Sports & Entertainment Group issued a media release Monday promising a “historic” on-field announcement before the Redblacks’ Sunday night home game against the Toronto Argonauts.

The statement indicated participants in the announcement would include members of the Redblacks ownership group, dignitaries and “special guests,” referring in part to players and coaches from the 1976 Grey Cup-champion Ottawa Rough Riders who will gather this weekend for a 40th-anniversary reunion.

Jeff Hunt, president of sports for OSEG, wouldn’t confirm the announcement was about next year’s edition of the Canadian Football League championship game and associated festivities.

“I can just tell you it’s going to be a significant announcement and it’s going to be exciting,” Hunt said. “I don’t want to validate or dissuade you from any speculation that you might want to make ...

“Obviously there’s not a lot of things that are major announcements that we could make, but that could be one of them. Officially, we are still waiting.”

In truth, the waiting game officially began in 2008, when the CFL awarded an expansion franchise to OSEG and named Ottawa host city for the 2014 Grey Cup conditional on the team being ready to play by 2010.

However, construction delays and legal action by opponents of Lansdowne Park redevelopment meant the squad that became known as the Redblacks only took to the field for 2014 and that year’s Grey Cup game took place in Vancouver.

Although OSEG representatives continued to say the CFL had committed to a Grey Cup in Ottawa within the first four seasons of the franchise, with 2017 being Year 4, league commissioner Jeffrey Orridge — who took office in 2015 — repeatedly declined to say whether it would stick to that plan or even whether there was such a commitment in OSEG’s franchise agreement.

“Soon” was also Orridge’s default response to queries about the timing of a 2017 Grey Cup announcement, most recently before the Redblacks’ 2016 season-opener at Edmonton in June.

The right to play host to the Grey Cup was never expressly guaranteed, but rather was conditional on a formal bid acceptable to the CFL and its board of governors.

OSEG confirmed it had submitted a bid, including plans to temporarily expand capacity at 24,000-seat TD Place stadium, and Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said in May he expected a Grey Cup announcement within two or three months.

The CFL habitually announces selection of Grey Cup week hosts a year in advance. Toronto’s choice for this year was revealed Oct. 1, 2015, shortly after the sale of the Argonauts to new ownership was completed, while those of Vancouver and Winnipeg for 2014 and 2015 were disclosed in March.

The Grey Cup would be the latest confirmed major sporting event scheduled for the national capital region in 2017 as part of celebrations linked to the 150th anniversary of Confederation.

Others include the Roar of the Rings Canadian Olympic curling team trials, the Canadian Pacific Women’s Open golf championship, the Can-Am League/American Association baseball all-star game and national championships in figure skating, road cycling, track and field, whitewater canoe and kayaking, electric wheelchair hockey. The Ottawa Senators also hope to host an outdoor game.

Ottawa previously served as Grey Cup host in 1925, 1939, 1940 (when it was a two-game, total-point series with the other contest in Toronto), 1967, 1988 and 2004.

NO UPDATE ON QBS

The Redblacks did not provide an update Monday on injured quarterbacks Trevor Harris and Henry Burris.

In his weekly radio appearance on TSN 1200, head coach Rick Campbell said a medical report on Harris was expected later in the day, but a team spokesman said in mid-afternoon that “no further update is available at this time.”

The CFL’s leading passer through the first four weeks of the schedule, Harris appeared to injure his right knee when Saskatchewan Roughriders defensive lineman Corvey Irvin fell on him in the first quarter of Friday’s game at Regina. Backup QB Brock Jensen finished up at quarterback as the Redblacks lost 30-29.

Burris, winner of the CFL’s most outstanding player award in 2015, damaged the pinky finger on his passing hand by rapping it off the helmet of an Edmonton Eskimos defender on June 25.

Burris has since been on the six-game injured list, which would keep him out of the lineup through an Aug. 6 rematch with the Eskimos, but he could rejoin the active roster before then if the Redblacks were willing to relinquish the salary-cap relief they received with Burris on the six-game list.

Campbell said Friday that Burris had resumed throwing footballs even though he couldn’t practise with the team, but added the Redblacks would not reactivate Burris until he was no longer at undue risk of harming the injured finger.

The Redblacks will not practise Tuesday, but do have a workout scheduled for Wednesday.