International city

Located on an island in the middle of the St. Lawrence River, Montréal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. The territory was then colonised by the French and later by the British. With an approximate population of 4.2 million (Greater Montréal), the city is today the most bilingual and trilingual metropolis in Canada and the fourth largest French-speaking city in the world. With over 250 daily flights touching down at Montréal-Trudeau International Airport – serving over 100 U.S. and international cities and 30 domestic cities – Montréal is connected to most major destinations.

Sustainable and solution driven

Montréal is recognised as one of the greenest cities in the world – with 19 majors and 1,200 neighbourhood parks representing 26% of its entire surface area.  From electrifying transport to promoting urban agriculture, Montréal is enacting policies and initiatives that reduce greenhouse gas emissions and help create a safe, resilient, inclusive and sustainable city.  As a matter of fact, the city is committed to the fight against climate change in becoming carbon neutral by 2050. To ensure that Montréalers from all sociodemographic backgrounds can enjoy their lives to the fullest, the City of Montréal has joined numerous initiatives, including the Coalition of Inclusive Municipalities and the International Coalition of Inclusive and Sustainable Cities, under the aegis of UNESCO.

Montréal also holds the ranking as North America’s most bike-friendly city, with 846 kilometres of bike lanes and paths – 590 km of which are still accessible throughout the winter months. Additionally, the BIXI bike-sharing network of 6,250 bikes are available to locals and visitors 24 hours a day, 7 days a week from April through November, including the Electric BIXI!

Creativity and innovations

Montréal is a festival city, known for a packed annual schedule of over 100 festivals encompassing crowd-pleasing programs of music, sports, comedy, circuses, film, and fireworks. The city offers the best of both worlds: charming European chic and cutting-edge North American innovation. Thanks to centuries of trade, business and finance, the city has emerged not just as a cultural metropolis but as a world leader in a wide range of business sectors. Metropolitan Montréal is home to the largest concentration of research complexes in Canada, with more than 500 research centres, research chairs and laboratories and 15 universities.

Montréal creates outstanding and innovative event, mixing culture, music and sports, offering an unforgettable moment for both participants and athletes. All year long, the city beats to the rhythm of sports events. We have hosted the world’s largest sporting event (the summer Olympics).

A special love story with sports

Among the gigantic offer in the fields of arts, culture, architecture and entertainment and since the ‘76 Olympics, Montréal has had a love affair with sports and Olympic ideals. Turned on both professional and amateur, the city host annually more than 60 sports events and offers an ultramodern but also natural environment with limitless possibilities. With 12 national training centres, 60 provincial sport federations and associations, sports never stop in Montréal. From hockey, soccer and football to tennis or alpine ski and all aquatic sports, the city offers countless and diverse sporting events and activities all year long and accessible for all, designing great sporting moments in the history of Canada and making Montréal a unique destination where entertainment and athletics reside side-by-side.

It’s no wonder that Montréal was named “#1 Canadian Sport City” from 2018 to 2020, according to the Canadian Sport Hosting Index (CSHI). Sport is part of Montréal’s DNA.