Don’t expect legendary Canadian skip Brad Gushue to cap his farewell season in the fledgling professional Rock League this spring.
The six-time national men’s curling champion announced this week that he would retire at the end of the 2025-26 campaign.
Gushue, speaking on a conference call Thursday, said representatives from The Curling Group met with him and his wife last summer “to propose the Rock League to us” before making an offer.
“I kind of sat on it for a little bit and then the offer came back and it was not the same offer,” Gushue said.
The Curling Group owns Rock League and the Grand Slam of Curling series.
The new league will feature six elite mixed-gendered global franchises participating in multi-format competitions. The inaugural season is expected to begin in April and run for six weeks in Canada, the U.S., and Europe.
Gushue, from St. John’s, N.L., said he was already thinking about retirement plans at the time of the meeting. The traditional men’s curling season will end with the March 28-April 5 world championship.
“I needed something that would have been compelling enough for me to continue to curl because obviously playing in the Rock League would be extending my career, and there wasn’t enough for me to really get super excited about, to be quite honest,” Gushue said. “That’s probably overly blunt and I apologize for that, but I just never felt comfortable enough with it.
“Obviously if the right offer came along, you probably would take it, but it just never evolved to that point.”
It was a surprise to many when Gushue – arguably the biggest name and most popular curler in Canadian men’s curling – was not on the list when Rock League captains were named last April.
“We did offer Brad a contract for Rock League, but he unfortunately declined,” a spokesperson for The Curling Group said in an email. “Beyond that, we don’t disclose details of the contracts or negotiations.
“We wish him nothing but the best in retirement.”
Brad Jacobs and Rachel Homan, both reigning national champion skips, were named captains of the Canadian teams.
The Curling Group plans to announce Rock League rosters, dates, locations and other information this fall.
“I certainly wish the Rock League and The Curling Group the best of success,” Gushue said. “I think it’s an important piece of curling going forward and I think we, as stakeholders in the game, we have to be cheering for their success and supporting them along the way.”
Gushue’s team will make its season debut at the Grand Slam’s AMJ Masters event next week in London, Ont.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 19, 2025.
Gregory Strong, The Canadian Press
