TORONTO, July 13, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - BMO is announcing its support of the 2023 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) and will be the official sponsor of all soccer events at the Games taking place July 15 to 23 in Nova Scotia. The announcement builds on BMO just being named an Official Supporter of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™ in North America. 

BMO acknowledges the games are taking place in Mi'kma'ki, the traditional and ancestral territory of the Mi'kmaq people. Held every four years, the games will see more than 5000 athletes, coaches and team staff from over 750 Indigenous Nations across the continent. NAIG 2023 will host competitions in 16 sports within 21 venues across Halifax, Dartmouth, Millbrook First Nation and Sipekne'katik First Nation.

"BMO's sponsorship of NAIG aligns with our commitment to the game of soccer and to supporting the progress of Indigenous youth both on and off the soccer field," said Mike Bonner, Head, Canadian Business Banking, Head, BMO Enterprise Indigenous Strategy and Co-Chair, BMO Indigenous Advisory Council. "Supporting Indigenous customers and communities is a key component of BMO's Indigenous Strategy and an important part of our Purpose to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life. We're excited to be a sponsor of these games and we wish all participants a great tournament."

All NAIG 2023 soccer competitions will be hosted at the BMO Soccer Centre, a year-round, world-class facility popular within the Halifax soccer community. For more information about the games click here.

For more than three decades, BMO's Indigenous Banking Unit has been working with Indigenous communities to support their economic self-determination. Through a network of branches and business banking offices both on and off reserve, BMO offers financial products and services, including housing and renovation financing, trust services, investment management solutions, and long-term financing for on-reserve infrastructure and economic development. Additionally, BMO has partnered with First Nations University of Canada to create Nisitohtamowin – Understanding Indigenous Perspectives, an e-learning course made available to all for free.

For more information about how BMO works with Indigenous communities in Canada, click here to view BMO's annual Indigenous Partnerships and Progress Report.

BMO is committed to making progress for an inclusive society by eliminating barriers to inclusion and driving equity in sport. Last month BMO was named as an Official Supporter of the FIFA Women's World Cup 2023™ in North America, reinforcing BMO as The Bank of Soccer. The agreement also saw BMO become the Official Bank for the 2023 Concacaf Nations League Finals and the 2023 Gold Cup, Concacaf's flagship men's national team competition.

Through the bank's partnerships with MLS teams CF Montréal, Vancouver Whitecaps FC and Los Angeles FC, as well as the National Women's Soccer League's Angel City FC, BMO supports the next generation of men and women professional soccer stars. In May 2023, BMO and CF Montréal announced both organizations are taking another step forward in advancing gender equity in sports by introducing a women's program to the CF Montréal Academy. The bank has also partnered with Toronto FC to launch the Women in Soccer Fellowship, a first-of-its-kind in Canada initiative providing women unique on-the-job experience in coaching, scouting, player development, team services and medical, creating a direct pathway to increasing the number of women in sport.

BMO has also invested over C$25 million to engage, develop and cultivate youth soccer at every level of competition across Canada since 2005, supporting 250,000 youth athletes in the sport. As a Premier Partner of Ontario Soccer, BMO's support of more than 100,000 girls is helping enhance gender equity in the game and helping create systemic change at all levels of soccer. Through community impact-driven partnerships like these, as well as major sponsorships and venues like BMO Field (Toronto) and BMO Stadium (Los Angeles), BMO is growing the game of soccer across North America.

BMO Financial Group is the eighth largest bank in North America by assets, with total assets of $1.25 trillion as of April 30, 2023. Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a diverse team of highly engaged employees providing a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management, global markets and investment banking products and services to over 13 million customers across Canada, the United States, and in select markets globally. Driven by a single purpose, to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, BMO is committed to driving positive change in the world, and making progress for a thriving economy, sustainable future and inclusive society.

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SOURCE BMO Financial Group