It's official: the 2018 World Junior Championships are coming to Buffalo.
Bills and Sabres owner Terry Pegula; Russ Brandon, president for both teams; USA Hockey president Jim Smith; and other officials made the announcement Friday from the 18-yard line of Ralph Wilson Stadium.
The tournament will start in December 2017 with the title game held in January 2018. As part of this tournament, one of the preliminary games will be held outdoors at the Ralph, with a likely matchup between the U.S. and Canada.
The World Juniors was last held in downtown Buffalo in 2011. It brought more than 330,000 fans over the 11-day event and was the second-best attended junior tournament at that time.
USA Hockey said Friday that Buffalo was selected again to host the tournament in 2018, the next time the U.S. was eligible to host the World Junior Championships, because of the success the tournament saw here.
Other cities that were considered included St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Chicago and Tampa.
Follow Shawn Stepner on Twitter: @StepnerWKBW
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