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Wikipedia

Canadian Football League

February 07, 2023

"CFL" redirects here. For the lamp type, see Compact fluorescent lamp. For other uses, see CFL (disambiguation).

The Canadian Football League (CFL; French: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a city in Canada. They are divided into two divisions: four teams in the East Division and five teams in the West Division.

Canadian Football League
Ligue canadienne de football
Upcoming season or competition:
2023 CFL season
SportCanadian football
FoundedJanuary 19, 1958 (65 years ago) (1958-01-19)[1][2]
Inaugural season1958
CommissionerRandy Ambrosie
No. of teams9
CountryCanada
Headquarters50 Wellington Street East
Toronto, Ontario
Most recent
champion(s)		Toronto Argonauts
(8th CFL title)
Most titlesEdmonton Elks
(11 CFL titles)
TV partner(s)
Official websiteCFL.ca

As of 2022, it features a 21-week regular season in which each team plays 18 games with three bye weeks. This season traditionally runs from mid-June to early November. Following the regular season, six teams compete in the league's three-week playoffs, which culminate in the Grey Cup championship game in late November. The Grey Cup is one of Canada's largest annual sports and television events.[3]

The CFL was officially named on January 19, 1958,[4] upon the merger between the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union or "Big Four" (founded in 1907) and the Western Interprovincial Football Union (founded in 1936).[5]

History

Early history

Further information: History of Canadian football

Rugby football began to be played in Canada in the 1860s, and many of the first Canadian football teams played under the auspices of the Canadian Rugby Football Union (CRFU), founded in 1884.[6] The CRFU was reorganized as the Canadian Rugby Union (CRU) in 1891, and served as an umbrella organization for several provincial and regional unions. The Grey Cup was donated by Governor General the Earl Grey in 1909 to the team winning the Senior Amateur Football Championship of Canada. By that time, the sport as played in Canada had diverged markedly from its rugby origins with the introduction of the Burnside rules, and started to become more similar to the American game.

For much of the early part of the 20th century, the game was contested by intraprovincial leagues, or unions. In 1907, several of the stronger senior clubs in Ontario and Quebec formed the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union (IRFU or Big Four). It took almost 30 years for an elite interprovincial western union to emerge, when in 1936 the stronger senior clubs in Manitoba, Alberta and Saskatchewan formed the Western Interprovincial Football Union (WIFU). From the 1930s to the 1950s, the Big Four and WIFU gradually evolved from amateur to professional leagues, and amateur teams were no longer competitive for the Grey Cup. Apart from the World War II years, an amateur team last won the Grey Cup in 1936.

By the end of World War II, the WIFU's play was at the same level as that of the Big Four. Within a few years after the return of peace, both interprovincial unions had turned openly professional. However, while the Big Four champion got an automatic berth to the Grey Cup final, until 1954 the WIFU's champion had to play in a semi-final against the champion of the Ontario Rugby Football Union (ORFU)–by then, the only amateur union still competing for the Grey Cup. The ORFU withdrew from Grey Cup competition after the 1953 season, and the WIFU champion was given an automatic berth in the Grey Cup final. For this reason, 1954 is reckoned as the start of the modern era of Canadian football, in which the Grey Cup has been exclusively contested by professional teams. Since 1965, Canada's top university football teams, competing in what is now U Sports, have competed for the Vanier Cup.

In 1956, the IRFU and WIFU formed a new umbrella organization, the Canadian Football Council (CFC). In 1958, the CFC left the CRU and reorganized as the Canadian Football League. As part of an agreement between the CRU and CFL, the CFL took possession of the Grey Cup, and the amateurs were officially locked out of Grey Cup play. However, the Grey Cup had been the de facto professional championship since 1954. The CRU remained the governing body for amateur play in Canada, eventually adopting the name Football Canada. Initially, the two unions remained autonomous, and there was no intersectional play between eastern (IRFU) and western (WIFU) teams except at the Grey Cup final. This situation was roughly analogous to how Major League Baseball operated for almost all of the 20th century, and how the AFL and NFL operated during the 1960s prior to those leagues' 1970 merger.

The IRFU was renamed the Eastern Football Conference in 1960, while the WIFU was renamed the Western Football Conference in 1961. Also in 1961, limited intersectional play was introduced. Because the West played 16 games by this time while the East still only played 14, this arrangement oddly allowed both the four-team Eastern Conference and the five-team Western Conference to play three games per intraconference opponent and one game per interconference opponent. It was not until 1974 that the East expanded its schedule to 16 games, just like the West. In 1981, the two conferences agreed to a full merger, becoming the East and West Divisions of the CFL. With the merger came a fully balanced and interlocking schedule of 16 games per season (with all nine teams playing each other twice, once at home and once on the road). Since 1986 (with exception of 2021), the CFL's regular season schedule has been 18 games.

The separate histories of the IRFU and the WIFU accounted for the fact that two teams had basically the same name: the IRFU's Ottawa Rough Riders were often called the "Eastern Riders", while the WIFU's Saskatchewan Roughriders were called the "Western Riders" or "Green Riders". Other team names had traditional origins. With rowing a national craze in the late 19th century, the Argonaut Rowing Club of Toronto formed a rugby team for its members' off-season participation. The football team name Toronto Argonauts still remains even though it and the rowing club have long since gone their separate ways. After World War II, the two teams in Hamilton—the Tigers and the Flying Wildcats—merged both their organizations into the Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

 
CFL logo from 1970 to 2002

The league remained stable with nine franchises—the BC Lions, Calgary Stampeders, Edmonton Eskimos, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Toronto Argonauts, Ottawa Rough Riders and Montreal Alouettes—from its 1958 inception until 1981. After the 1981 season, the Alouettes folded and were replaced the next year by a new franchise named the Concordes.

In 1986 the Concordes were renamed the Alouettes to attract more fan support, but the team folded the next year. The loss of the Montreal franchise forced the league to move its easternmost Western team, Winnipeg, into the East Division from 1987 to 1994.

United States expansion

Main article: Canadian Football League in the United States

In 1993, the league admitted its first United States-based franchise, the Sacramento Gold Miners. After modest success, the league then expanded further in the U.S. in 1994 with the Las Vegas Posse, Baltimore Stallions, and Shreveport Pirates. For the 1995 campaign, the American teams were split off into their own South Division, and two more teams, the Birmingham Barracudas and Memphis Mad Dogs, were added; at the same time, the Posse folded and the Gold Miners relocated to become the San Antonio Texans. In 1995, the Stallions became the only non-Canadian team to win the Grey Cup.

Despite all American teams having the advantage of not being bound to the CFL's minimum Canadian player quotas, only the Stallions proved to be an on-field and off-field success. The establishment of the NFL's Baltimore Ravens, worsening financial problems among the league's core Canadian teams, and the inconsistent performance of the other American teams prompted the CFL to abandon its American experiment and retrench its Canadian operations. The Stallions organization was used as the basis for a revival of the Montreal Alouettes.

Post-U.S. expansion era

The CFL returned to an all-Canadian format in 1996 with nine teams;[7] the league conducted a dispersal draft to distribute players from the disbanded American-based teams; however, the Ottawa Rough Riders, in existence since 1876, folded after the 1996 season (another dispersal draft was conducted the next year to distribute the former Rough Rider players among the remaining eight teams). Toronto and recently revived Montreal also were struggling; Montreal's woes were solved by moving to Percival Molson Memorial Stadium, a much smaller venue than the cavernous Olympic Stadium. The Winnipeg team again moved to the East Division from 1997 to 2001 to make up for the loss of Ottawa.

In 1997, the NFL provided a US$3-million interest-free loan to the financially struggling CFL. In return, the NFL was granted access to CFL players entering a defined two-month window in the option year of their contract. This was later written into the CFL's collective bargaining agreement with its players. The CFL's finances have since stabilized and they eventually repaid the loan. The CFL–NFL agreement expired in 2006. Both leagues have been attempting to reach a new agreement, but the CFL broke off negotiations in November 2007 after Canadian telecommunications firm Rogers Communications paid $78 million to host seven Bills games in Toronto over five seasons (the last Bills Toronto Series game was played during the 2013 NFL season).[8][9]

 
Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium (shown during player introductions prior to a game) is the largest venue in the CFL.

In 2002, the league expanded back to nine teams with the creation of the Ottawa Renegades. After four seasons of financial losses, the Renegades were suspended indefinitely before the 2006 season; their players were absorbed by the remaining teams in a dispersal draft. Winnipeg was moved to the East Division again in 2006, a situation that continued until 2013.

In 2005, the league set an all-time attendance record with a total attendance of more than 2.3 million.[10] In June 2006 the league announced the launch of CFL Broadband, an internet streaming service designed to provide fans with another media platform, in addition to TSN and CBC broadcasts, to watch games live.[11]

Mark Cohon era (2007–2015)

With Mark Cohon as commissioner of the league the CFL entered a period of stability and growth. New television deals, two new collective bargaining agreements, the 100th Grey Cup celebration, and widespread stadium renovation and rebuilding highlighted this era. The 100th anniversary of the Grey Cup had the highest ever television ratings for a championship game in English Canada.[12]

During the 2000s the CFL had the third highest per-game attendance of any North American sports league and the seventh highest per-game attendance of any sports league worldwide. A 2006 survey conducted at the University of Lethbridge confirmed that the CFL was the second most popular sports league in Canada, with the following of 19% of the total adult Canadian population compared to 30% for the NHL. The NFL had 11% following, with a total of 26% following at least one of the pro football leagues. In other words, approximately 80% of Canadian football fans follow the CFL, and about 55% follow the NFL.[13] With the absence of Ottawa from 2006 to 2013, league attendance hovered around the 2 million mark. It stood at 2,029,875 in 2012 for a single game average of 28,193.[14] The 2007 season was a recent high point with average game attendance of 29,167, the best since 1983.[15]

During Mark Cohon's time in office many of the teams either undertook major renovations to their existing stadiums, or constructed brand new stadiums. The Montreal Alouettes were the first to undertake this project, adding 5,000 seats to Percival Molson Memorial Stadium in time for the 2010 CFL season.[16] The Edmonton Eskimos and Calgary Stampeders also renovated their respective stadiums and facilities for the 2010 season.[17] In 2011, the BC Lions played under a new, retractable roof in BC Place after spending one and a half seasons at Empire Field.[18] In 2013, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers moved to Investors Group Field, now known as IG Field, an entirely new stadium at the University of Manitoba. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats began using their new stadium, Tim Hortons Field, after spending 2013 at University of Guelph's stadium and the first half of the 2014 season at McMaster University's football field following the demolition of the iconic Ivor Wynne Stadium.[19]

In 2014 the Ottawa Redblacks kicked off their inaugural season (having been awarded a franchise in 2008[20]), becoming the third Ottawa franchise in CFL history. The new Ottawa franchise returned the league to a nine-team structure, with five teams in the West Division and four in the East; the Winnipeg Blue Bombers moved back to the West Division.[21] The expansion Ottawa Redblacks played at the massively renovated Frank Clair Stadium, now branded as TD Place Stadium.[22]

In Mark Cohon's last year as commissioner he negotiated a new five-year collective bargaining agreement (from 2014 through the 2018 season) between the CFL and the Canadian Football League Players' Association (CFLPA).[23]

Jeffrey Orridge era (2015–2017)

The Toronto Argonauts entered a period of transition off the field, with new ownership and a new stadium. The Argonauts were sold by politician/businessman David Braley to Bell Media and MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum.[24] At the start of the 2016 season the Argos moved to BMO Field after more than twenty seasons at the Rogers Centre (formerly called the SkyDome from 1989 to 2005).[25] Construction on the New Mosaic Stadium for the Saskatchewan Roughriders was completed in October 2016[26] and the first game was played in the 2017 season.[27]

In 2015, Michael Sam signed a two-year contract with Montreal Alouettes of the CFL,[28][29] becoming the first openly gay player in the league's history.[29] Sam left the team the day before the first preseason game, citing personal reasons.[30] As reported by Fox Sports, Sam returned to Montreal to continue his professional football career.[31] He left again on August 14, this time permanently, again citing personal reasons.

Immediately following the 2015 season Jeffrey Orridge announced a re-branding for the CFL, including a new logo, motto, uniforms for all nine teams and website.[32] After not having a drug enforcement policy in effect for the 2015 season the league and the CFLPA agreed to a new drug policy.[33] In 2017, the Board of Governors and Jeffrey Orridge agreed to part ways, effective June 30, 2017; Orridge cited "differing views on the future of the league" between him and the Board of Governors for the departure, with both sides stating the decision was mutual and amicable.[34] His last day as commissioner was June 15, 2017.[35] Jim Lawson, the CFL's Chair of the Board of Governors, took over the duties of interim Commissioner until a suitable replacement was found.[36]

Randy Ambrosie era (2017–present)

On June 29, 2017, the CFL announced Randy Ambrosie would succeed Orridge as CFL commissioner.[37] The move was made official on July 5, with Ambrosie named as the 14th commissioner of the league.[38] Having spent nine seasons as a player with the Calgary Stampeders, Toronto Argonauts and Edmonton Eskimos from 1985 to 1993, Ambrosie is the first commissioner to have played in the league since Larry Smith left the position in 1997.

On September 12, 2018, it was announced that Buffalo, New York-based New Era Cap Company would become the official apparel supplier of the CFL beginning in 2019, replacing Adidas.[39]

In October 2018, the CFL began focusing marketing internationally again after the unsuccessful expansion into the United States during the 1990s, with Ambrosie's plan being called CFL 2.0.[40] Ambrosie partnered with the Professional American Football League of Mexico (LFA) for player development, as part of the league's plan to expand globally.[41][42][43] Ambrosie also later announced a special edition of the CFL Combine to be held in 2019 in Mexico for Mexican players, which was held on January 13, 2019.[44] Ambroise said he wished the combine in Mexico to become annual, and that a combine could be held in Europe.[44] On January 14, 2019, the league held a draft of LFA and Mexican university players[45] where wide receiver Diego Viamontes was the first pick, selected by the Edmonton Eskimos.[46] The CFL announced in February 2019 that German and French football players from the German Football League and the Fédération française de football américain [fr] would participate in the CFL national combine.[47][48] Throughout early 2019, Ambrosie actively travelled Europe forming partnerships between the CFL and top-level European American football leagues and associations, specifically Germany (GFL), Austria (AFL), France (FFFA), the Nordic countries (NL, VL, SS, and NAFL), and Italy (IFL).[49][50][51] By January 2020 football leagues from 13 countries had signed partnerships with the CFL,[52] these partnerships included mutual exchanging of players and coaches[53] with leagues like the Mexican LFA holding reserved roster spots for Canadians with up to 25 playing in the league's 2020 season.[54] In February 2020, the CFL expanded its global alliance system, welcoming the Japanese X-League, generally regarded the third-best professional gridiron league in the world.[55] This coincided with the CFL announcing that its global combine in 2020 with new rules, including two designated active-roster international players and three practice-squad international players with as many as 45 global players in the league.[56]

The league took over operations of the Montreal Alouettes prior to the 2019 season after Robert C. Wetenhall, the league's last non-Canadian owner, surrendered the franchise to the league in May.[57] The Alouettes found new ownership in January 2020 in Crawford Steel executives Sid Spiegel and Gary Stern, whose holding company S and S Sportsco will oversee the team.[58]

On August 17, 2020, the CFL cancelled its 2020 season after coronavirus-related social distancing mandates and travel restrictions imposed in most of Canada prevented the league from selling tickets and the league was unable to secure a bailout from the federal government to cover any losses. It was the first cancelled season in the league's history, and the first year without a Grey Cup championship since the canceled 1916–1919 seasons. The league returned in 2021, playing a shortened 14-game schedule which began that August, with the season concluding with the Grey Cup game in December for the first time since 1972.[59][60] On March 10, 2021, the then-on hiatus XFL announced that it was in talks with the CFL over the possibility of a future collaboration;[61] these discussions were called off four months later with nothing coming of them.[62]

Teams

Active teams

Team City Stadium Capacity Coordinates Founded (lineage) Head coach General manager Owner
East Division
Hamilton Tiger-Cats Hamilton, Ontario Tim Hortons Field 24,000 43°15′9.26″N 79°49′48.89″W / 43.2525722°N 79.8302472°W / 43.2525722; -79.8302472 (Hamilton Tiger-Cats) 1950 (1869)[a] Orlondo Steinauer Orlondo Steinauer Hamilton Sports Group[63]
(Bob Young, chairman)
Montreal Alouettes Montreal, Quebec Percival Molson Memorial Stadium 20,025 45°30′36.3″N 73°34′50.4″W / 45.510083°N 73.580667°W / 45.510083; -73.580667 (Montreal Alouettes) 1996 (1946)[b] Jason Maas Danny Maciocia S & S Sportsco
(Gary Stern and the estate of Sid Spiegel)
Ottawa Redblacks Ottawa, Ontario TD Place Stadium 24,000 45°23′53.44″N 75°41′1.14″W / 45.3981778°N 75.6836500°W / 45.3981778; -75.6836500 (Ottawa Redblacks) 2014 (1876)[c] Bob Dyce Shawn Burke Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group
(Roger Greenberg, chairman)[65]
Toronto Argonauts Toronto, Ontario BMO Field 25,000 43°37′58″N 79°25′07″W / 43.63278°N 79.41861°W / 43.63278; -79.41861 (Toronto Argonauts) 1873[66] Ryan Dinwiddie Michael Clemons Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment
(Larry Tanenbaum, chairman)[67]
West Division
BC Lions Vancouver, British Columbia BC Place 54,320 49°16′36″N 123°6′43″W / 49.27667°N 123.11194°W / 49.27667; -123.11194 (BC Lions) 1954 Rick Campbell Rick Campbell and
Neil McEvoy 		Amar Doman
Calgary Stampeders Calgary, Alberta McMahon Stadium 35,400 51°4′13.18″N 114°7′17.00″W / 51.0703278°N 114.1213889°W / 51.0703278; -114.1213889 (Calgary Stampeders) 1945 Dave Dickenson Dave Dickenson Calgary Sports and Entertainment
(N. Murray Edwards, chairman)
Edmonton Elks Edmonton, Alberta Commonwealth Stadium 56,302 53°33′35″N 113°28′34″W / 53.55972°N 113.47611°W / 53.55972; -113.47611 (Edmonton Elks) 1949 (1911)[d] Chris Jones Chris Jones Publicly owned (80 shareholders)
(Brad Sparrow, chairman)
Saskatchewan Roughriders Regina, Saskatchewan Mosaic Stadium 33,350 50°27′9.46″N 104°37′27.09″W / 50.4526278°N 104.6241917°W / 50.4526278; -104.6241917 (Saskatchewan Roughriders) 1910[e] Craig Dickenson Jeremy O'Day Publicly owned (≤12,074 shareholders)[70]
(Wayne Morsky, chairman)
Winnipeg Blue Bombers Winnipeg, Manitoba IG Field 33,234 49°48′28″N 97°8′35″W / 49.80778°N 97.14306°W / 49.80778; -97.14306 (Winnipeg Blue Bombers) 1930 (1887)[f] Mike O'Shea Kyle Walters Winnipeg Football Club
(Dayna Spiring, chairwoman)
Map this section's coordinates using: OpenStreetMap 
Download coordinates as: KML

Future teams

Team City Stadium Timeframe
Atlantic Schooners Halifax, Nova Scotia, and/or
Moncton, New Brunswick 		Proposed New Stadium Committed to by the league in the future

Defunct teams

Proposed and disbanded teams

Team City Planned debut Result of proposal
Atlantic Schooners (1) Halifax/Dartmouth, Nova Scotia 1984 Venture was abandoned due to lack of stadium funding from provincial government.
San Antonio Texans (1) San Antonio, Texas 1993 Folded before beginning play.[h]
Proposed Mississippi team Jackson, Mississippi 1995 While numerous locations (including Milwaukee[72] and Los Angeles) had been discussed as a home for a potential relocation of the Las Vegas Posse, Jackson, Mississippi, came the closest to fruition: it had hired a coach and general manager and was included on early drafts of the 1995 schedule before the corporation that owned the Posse raised the price unexpectedly to more than could be justified just as the new owner was about to buy the team.[73]
Miami Manatees Miami, Florida 1995 After exploring multiple cities to relocate the Las Vegas Posse, Miami was chosen. However, the league suspended all US operations before the team could ever take the field.[i]
Proposed Houston team Houston, Texas 1996 After most US CFL franchises folded, the Baltimore Stallions considered relocating to Houston; league pressure led Stallions ownership to reactivate the then-dormant Montreal Alouettes instead.
Norfolk Pirates/Hampton Roads Pirates Norfolk, Virginia, or Hampton, Virginia 1996 Owners for the Shreveport Pirates attempted to relocate the team to either Norfolk or Hampton, Virginia. However, the city refused to invest $400,000 in renovations after finding out about multiple lawsuits against the owners and the venture was abandoned.[j]
Proposed second Shreveport team Shreveport, Louisiana 1996 Investment group Ark-LA-Tex Football Association had prepared to purchase the Birmingham Barracudas for $750,000 and relocate them to Shreveport, replacing the former Pirates; however, the CFL cancelled its US expansion before the relocation could take place.[75]
Proposed Milwaukee team Milwaukee, Wisconsin 1996 As the Las Vegas Posse looked for a place to relocate the floundering franchise, Milwaukee, backed by real estate developer Marvin Fishman and original owner of the Milwaukee Bucks looked to bring a CFL team to the city. The bid saw then CFL Commissioner Larry Smith giving a press conference at Milwaukee County Stadium, but the proposal fell through when the CFL suspended its US operations.[76]
Proposed Quebec City team Quebec City, Quebec 2006 As the Ottawa Renegades' financial woes became apparent, a business group from Quebec City emerged attempting to relocate the team to their city. The venture was ultimately abandoned and the franchise was suspended by the league and later sold to Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group.
Notes
  1. ^ The Hamilton Tiger-Cats were created in 1950 as a merger between the Hamilton Tigers (founded in 1869 as the Hamilton Football Club)[6] and the Hamilton Wildcats (founded in 1941).
  2. ^ The CFL considers the current Montreal Alouettes franchise to be a continuation of the original Montreal Alouettes (founded 1946, played in the CFL 1958–1981) and Montreal Concordes (founded 1982, renamed the Montreal Alouettes in 1986, folded just before the 1987 season).[64] However this does not include the Montreal Football Club that was formed in 1872, and joined the IRFU in 1907–1915, and the Montreal AAA Winged Wheelers, who played in the IRFU during the 1930s and 40s, winning the Grey Cup in 1931. While the current incarnation of the Alouettes inherited many of the players and staff of the Baltimore Stallions, the CFL considers the Stallions a separate entity.
  3. ^ All Ottawa clubs including the previous Rough Riders (1876-1996) and Renegades (2002-2006) are combined with the current Redblacks for historical consistency only, even though the CFL considers them separate clubs.
  4. ^ While football in Edmonton was first played in 1890,[68] the Edmonton Elks (in their current incarnation) recognize their first season in 1949.[69] This was further evidenced by the "60 seasons" decals worn on their helmets during the 2008 season.
  5. ^ Became the Saskatchewan Roughriders officially in 1950, after the team became the only pro football team left in the province in 1948. The Roughriders were originally called the Regina Rugby Football club from 1910 to 1924. then called the Regina Roughriders from 1925 to 1949.
  6. ^ Created by a merger of the Winnipegs and the St. John's team on June 10, 1930, and become known as the "Winnipeg Pegs" before changing to the current name, Blue Bombers, in 1937.[71]
  7. ^ Franchise folded after the 1995 season. Owner and most players moved to the revived Montreal Alouettes in 1996; the league considers the Stallions a separate franchise from the Alouettes.
  8. ^ a b The San Antonio Texans formed in 1993 folded before playing a game. The 1995 Texans team were the former Sacramento Gold Miners, who moved to San Antonio in 1995.
  9. ^ Both the Mississippi and the Miami teams were to use the franchise of the Las Vegas Posse. Mississippi was included on the 1995 draft schedule, but disagreements with the Posse's ownership led to the sale falling through. The Miami ownership group would have put the franchise back onto the field in 1996, but the league withdrew from the United States prior to the 1996 season.
  10. ^ After two seasons in Shreveport, posting an 8–28 record, team owner Lonie Glieberman intended to relocate them to Virginia. There, he agreed to rename them the Hampton Roads Pirates or Norfolk Pirates if the city paid $400,000 for stadium renovations. Local politicians declined Glieberman's request upon learning that he had lawsuits pending in Louisiana.[74]

Timeline

Note: team franchise history is listed as it is recognized by the CFL in its publication CFL Guide and Record Book (2017).[77]

Potential expansion

Potential CFL expansion markets are the Maritimes, Quebec City, Saskatoon, London, and Windsor, all of which have been lobbying for Canadian Football League franchises in recent years.[78][79][80] During the 1970s and 1980s, Harold Ballard attempted multiple times (albeit all unsuccessfully) to secure a second CFL team for Toronto (either by way of expansion or by relocating the Hamilton Tiger-Cats), under the premise that Canada's largest city could support two teams.[81]

Maritimes

Since the 1980s, the CFL has occasionally played exhibition and, later, regular-season games at various cities in the Maritimes, including Canada Games Stadium in Saint John, New Brunswick; Huskies Stadium in Halifax, Nova Scotia; and Moncton Stadium in Moncton, New Brunswick. The league conditionally approved an expansion franchise, the Atlantic Schooners, for play in the 1984 season, but the team never made it to play after plans for a stadium collapsed.

No city in the Maritimes has a permanent stadium that meets CFL standards. As of 2010, the largest stadium in the Maritimes is Croix-Bleue Medavie Stadium, which has 10,000 permanent seats and is expandable to 20,000 with temporary seats.[82] A pre-season game, dubbed Touchdown Atlantic, was held in Halifax in the 2005 CFL season and regular season games were played in Moncton under the same branding in 2010, 2011, and 2013.[83] All 20,000 seats for the 2010 Moncton game sold out in 32 hours;[84] the 2013 game did not sell out. Former Commissioner Mark Cohon said that Moncton Stadium would require massive renovations to host a CFL team permanently. The cost of the required renovations would be the equivalent of building a brand-new stadium.[85] In November 2015 the Halifax city council voted 9–7 against purchasing land that would then be used to build a 20,000-seat stadium. It was agreed that the price tag for the land was too much, but the close vote indicated municipal interest in building a near CFL sized stadium in Halifax.[86]

Atlantic Schooners revival
See also: Schooners Sports and Entertainment

In November 2017, the CFL conducted further discussions with a group in Halifax interested in securing a franchise for the city;[87] the group made a "very credible" pitch to the CFL head office.[88] According to TSN analyst Dave Naylor the group named 'Maritime Football Ltd.' consists of Anthony LeBlanc (former president and CEO of the NHL's Arizona Coyotes), Bruce Bowser (president of AMJ Campbell Van Lines) and Gary Drummond (former president of hockey operations for the Coyotes).[88] In June 2018 the group met with the Halifax Regional Council in private about plans to bring a CFL team to Halifax, with the possibility of playing at Université de Moncton while a stadium in Halifax is being built.[89][90] Maritime Football Ltd. ownership group selected a site in Shannon Park, Dartmouth, Nova Scotia to develop a new stadium.[91] The stadium was estimated to cost between $170 to $190 million, seat 24,000 and have a business model similar to the Ottawa Redblacks, who entered the league in 2014.[92] On October 30, 2018, Halifax City Council unanimously voted in favour of proceeding with a business case analysis of a stadium in the Halifax municipality.[93][94] Following this positive momentum, Maritime Football Ltd. and CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie announced that the group would proceed with a season ticket drive to further gauge interest, and also running a team name contest in the hopes of making an announcement on the team name just prior to the 106th Grey Cup game.[95] The target year for the proposed team to enter the league was 2021, with the team name including "Atlantic" in its name, but no franchise was actually awarded in this announcement.[96][97] Further to the previous discussions with Moncton and New Brunswick politicians, it was also suggested that the potential new franchise could begin play in Moncton while the stadium in Halifax is built.[97] On November 23, 2018, two days before the 106th Grey Cup, Maritime Football Ltd., since renamed Schooners Sports and Entertainment, and commissioner Ambrosie announced the new team would be called the Atlantic Schooners.[98]

Quebec City

There has been interest in adding a team in Quebec City. In 2003, an exhibition game was held at Telus Stadium between the Montreal Alouettes and Ottawa Renegades where Montreal won 54–23.[99] In 2008, the federal government rejected a proposal that could have paved the way for a CFL franchise in Quebec City, saying Ottawa is not in the business of subsidizing professional sports.[100] The following year in May 2009, Christina Saint Marche, a British businesswoman, announced her interest in operating a team in Quebec City—stating that there would be a natural rivalry with the Montreal Alouettes.[101] During the 2010 Grey Cup state of the league news conference, Cohon noted that the Alouettes hold the rights for the entire province of Quebec and that any expansion would have to be negotiated with them first.[102] Another exhibition game was held at Telus Stadium on June 13, 2015, with Ottawa (whose TD Place Stadium was in use by the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup) hosting Montreal.[103]

Saskatoon

Saskatoon last hosted top-level Canadian football in 1935 when the Regina Roughriders left the Saskatchewan Rugby Football Union to form the WIFU. The Saskatoon Hilltops (along with another Saskatchewan-based team, the Moose Jaw Millers) eventually suspended operations due to World War II; the Hilltops remained an amateur team when they returned in 1947 (they have since played in the Canadian Junior Football League). Saskatoon last won a provincial title in 1921. By the time they resumed play after the war, the Roughriders had been the dominant team in the province for two decades.

In early 2012, management at Credit Union Centre publicly expressed its desire to bring a CFL team to Saskatoon. However, the Regina-based Saskatchewan Roughriders have long branded themselves as a province-wide team, and claimed that the population of Saskatchewan is too small to support two teams.[78] In any event, Saskatoon also lacks a suitable outdoor stadium. Its largest, Griffiths Stadium, home of the University of Saskatchewan's Saskatchewan Huskies, seats only 6,171 spectators. The Gordie Howe Bowl, which has hosted CFL exhibitions in the past, has even fewer seats (it seats 3,950 people).

Mexico

While not openly being considered for franchise expansion, Mexico was suggested by Commissioner Randy Ambrosie as a possible location for neutral site regular season games (similar to the NFL's Mexico Series) as early as 2019, as well as potentially partnering with the LFA for player development, as part of the league's plan to expand globally.[41][42][43] Ambrosie also later announced a special edition of the CFL Combine to be held in 2019 in Mexico for Mexican players, and in 2019, the league held a draft of LFA and Mexican university players. In March 2019, Commissioner Randy Ambrosie told the media that after the LFA combine, multiple parties inquired about purchasing a franchise for Mexico. Ambrosie reiterated that the league had no intention to expand internationally at this time.[45]

Season structure

 
Montreal Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo looks down field with the ball during the 2005 Grey Cup game against the Edmonton Eskimos at BC Place

Since 2018, the CFL season has included:

  • A two-game, three-week exhibition season (or pre-season) in mid-June
  • An 18-game, 21-week regular season running from late June to early November
  • A six-team, three-week single elimination playoff tournament beginning in November and culminating in the Grey Cup championship in late November. Championship teams will play either two or three playoff games, including the Grey Cup game, depending on their standing at the end of the regular season. The division leaders at the end of the regular season receive byes in the first round of the playoffs.

Preseason

Team training camps open 28 days prior to the first regular season game of the season, a camp solely devoted to first year players is allowed the 3 days before the main camp opens. The pre-season exhibition schedule is two weeks long with each team playing two games against teams from its own division.

Regular season

The regular season is 21 weeks long, with games beginning in mid-June and finishing by early November. The CFL's nine current teams are divided into two divisions: the East Division with four teams and the West Division, with five teams. Each team plays two games against each of the other eight teams, plus two divisional games with opponents rotating each season. With 18 regular season games being played, each team gets three bye weeks.

The most popular featured week in the CFL season is the Labour Day Classic, played over the course of the Labour Day weekend, where the matchups feature the first half of home-and-home series between the traditional geographic rivalries of Toronto–Hamilton (a rivalry which began in 1873[6]), Edmonton–Calgary (see Battle of Alberta), Winnipeg–Saskatchewan, and Ottawa–Montreal. In years that Ottawa or Montreal were not in the league, BC played against one of these teams.[104] The following week's rematch of these games is a popular event as well, especially in recent years, where the rematch of the Saskatchewan–Winnipeg game has been dubbed the Banjo Bowl.

Other features of the regular season schedule are the Hall of Fame Game and the Thanksgiving Day Classic, the doubleheader held on Thanksgiving where the match ups usually do not feature traditional rivalries. From 2010 to 2013, a neutral site regular season game was played in Moncton under the name Touchdown Atlantic.

The league awards points based on regular season results (much like in most ice hockey leagues, but unlike the NFL, which strictly uses winning percentages to determine their standings; two points are awarded for a win, one for a tie and none for a loss). As of the 2021 season, in the event two or more teams in a division finish the season with the same number of points, the tie is broken based on the following criteria (in descending order), with coin tosses used if all such tie-breaker steps fail:[105]

  • Number of wins in all games;
  • Winning percentage in games between the tied teams;
  • Net aggregate of points scored (i.e. total points scored less total points conceded) between the tied teams;
  • Net quotient of points scored (i.e. total points scored divided by total points conceded) between the tied teams;
  • Winning percentage in divisional games;
  • Net aggregate of points scored in divisional games;
  • Net quotient of points scored in divisional games;
  • Net aggregate of points scored in all games;
  • Net quotient of points scored in all games.

Playoffs

The playoffs take place in November. After the regular season, the top team from each division has an automatic home berth in the division final, and a bye week during the division semifinal. The second-place team from each division hosts the third-place team in the division semifinal, unless a fourth-place team from one division finishes with a better record than a third place team in the other (this provision is known as the crossover rule, and while it implies that it is possible for two teams in the same division to play for the Grey Cup, only three crossover teams have won a semifinal since the rule's 1996 inception, and neither advanced to the Grey Cup). The winners of each division's semifinal game then travel to play the first place teams in the division finals. Since 2005, the division semifinals and division finals have been sponsored by Scotiabank.[106] The two division champions then face each other in the Grey Cup game, which, since 2007, has been held either on the fourth or fifth Sunday of November; for 2021, the game was played in December, the first time this had happened since 1972.

Grey Cup

 
The Grey Cup

The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the CFL and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team. The Grey Cup is the second-oldest trophy in North American professional sports, after the Stanley Cup. The Grey Cup game is hosted in one of the league's member cities. In recent years, it has been hosted in a different city every year, selected two or more years in advance. The Toronto Argonauts have won the most Grey Cups with 18 wins total, most recently in 2022. In 2012, the game was held in Toronto at Rogers Centre, and for the second year in row the cup was won on a team's home field, with Toronto beating Calgary 35–22.[107] In 2013, the Grey Cup was won at home for the third consecutive time (by the Saskatchewan Roughriders), which had not been done since Toronto won at home from 1945 to 1947. In 2016, the Grey Cup was won on the natural grass turf of BMO Field by the Ottawa Redblacks beating the heavily favoured Calgary Stampeders 39–33 in overtime; the first Grey Cup championship for any Ottawa CFL team in 40 years.

As the country's single largest annual sporting event,[3] the Grey Cup has long served as an unofficial Canadian autumn festival generating national media coverage and a large amount of revenue for the host city. Many fans travel from across the country to attend the game and the week of festivities that lead up to it. A 2014 survey found that 48% of Canadians would prefer to watch the Grey Cup over the Super Bowl if they could only watch one or the other, with 52% preferring the Super Bowl.[108]

CFL Grey Cup appearances, active teams[109]
Team Wins Losses Total Last Won
BC Lions 6 4 10 2011
Calgary Stampeders 7 8 15 2018
Edmonton Eskimos/Elks 11 8 19 2015
Hamilton Tiger-Cats 6 14 20 1999
Montreal Alouettes 6 8 14 2010
Ottawa Redblacks 1 2 3 2016
Saskatchewan Roughriders 4 7 11 2013
Toronto Argonauts 8 3 11 2022
Winnipeg Blue Bombers 9 7 16 2021

Since 2015, the Grey Cup game's presenting sponsor is Shaw Communications.[110]

Awards

Following the Grey Cup game, the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player and Grey Cup Most Valuable Canadian are selected. A number of league individual player awards, such as the Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Defensive Player, are awarded annually at a special ceremony in the host city during the week before the Grey Cup game; this ceremony is broadcast nationally on TSN. The Annis Stukus Trophy, also known as the Coach of the Year Award, is awarded separately at a banquet held during the off-season each February. While the CFL has not held an all-star game since 1988, an All-Star Team is selected and honoured at the league awards ceremony during Grey Cup week.

Broadcasting

See also: List of Grey Cup broadcasters

The CFL Championship game, the Grey Cup, previously held the record for the largest television audience in Canadian history. Television coverage on CBC, CTV and Radio-Canada of the 1983 Grey Cup attracted a viewing audience of 8,118,000 people[citation needed] as Toronto edged B.C. 18–17, ending a 31-year championship drought for the Argonauts. At the time, this represented 33% of the Canadian population.[citation needed] This has since been surpassed by the 2002 and 2010 Men's Olympic Gold Medal Hockey Game.[citation needed]

Canadian broadcasters

Currently, the official television broadcasters of CFL games are cable network TSN (which began televising CFL games in 1985), while TSN's French-language network RDS broadcasts Montreal Alouettes games for the Quebec television market.[111] Games are typically scheduled for Thursday to Saturday evenings during June, July and August, but switch to more Saturday and Sunday afternoon games during September and October.[112] TSN has created a tradition of at least one Friday night game each week, branded as Friday Night Football. CBC and TSN drew record television audiences for CFL broadcasts in 2005.[113] The 2006 season was the first season in which every regular-season game was televised, as the league implemented an instant replay challenge system.[114] In 2006, the CFL also began offering pay-per-view webcasts of every game on CFL Broadband.[115] Until the end of the 2007 season, CBC and RDS were the exclusive television broadcasters for all playoff games, including the Grey Cup, which regularly draws a Canadian viewing audience in excess of 4 million.[116]

In 2008, the CFL began a new, five-year television deal with CTVglobemedia. Valued at $16 million per-year, it gave TSN and RDS exclusive rights to all CFL games, including the playoffs and Grey Cup.[3] In March 2013, TSN exercised an option to extend its contract through 2018. In 2015, the deal was extended for an additional three years, along with exclusive Grey Cup rights for Bell Media Radio stations.[117]

Foreign coverage

In 2013, the CFL announced that its U.S. broadcast rights would return to the ESPN Networks for the 2013 season, with five games airing on ESPN2, and 55 airing on ESPN3.[118] This agreement was renewed in 2014 for five years, the same length as the TSN deal (ESPN holds a stake in TSN), with a stipulation that at least 17 games would be carried on ESPN2 (or another ESPN network, such as ESPN or ESPNEWS) each season, including the Grey Cup; this gives ESPN exclusive CFL rights during this time frame. Originally ESPN3 carried all games not carried on one of the linear channels online, later ESPN moved those games to ESPN+.[119][120][121][122]

ESPN has had a long relationship with the CFL; the channel broadcast its first CFL game on July 9, 1980, when the network was only 10 months old.[123]

ESPN Brasil began broadcasting CFL games live in Brazil in 2015, as a result of the growth of the NFL and College Football fan base in Brazil.[124] BT Sport, which has a licensing partnership with ESPN, has also carried CFL games in Britain and Ireland since 2015.[125]

In June 2019, the CFL signed a broadcast deal with MVS Comunicaciones to broadcast one game a week in Mexico on MVS TV.[126]

Previous broadcasting arrangements

Canada

The public broadcaster CBC Television, which held a monopoly on Canadian television until 1961, held Canadian professional football broadcast rights beginning the year of its debut, 1952. The private, commercial CTV network was created in 1961 in part because Toronto businessman John Bassett had won the television rights to the Eastern Football Conference, and needed an outlet to air the games. From 1962 through 1986, CBC and CTV shared CFL broadcasting rights. They split playoff games and simulcast the Grey Cup. In 1962, 1965, 1967, 1968 and 1970, CTV commentators were used for the dual network telecast, while in 1963, 1964, 1966 and 1969, the CBC's announcers were provided. From 1971 through 1986, one network's crew called the first half while the other called the other half. After the 1986 season, CTV dropped coverage of the CFL and the Grey Cup. From 1987 through 1990, the CFL operated its own syndicated network, CFN. Like CTV, CFN split playoff games with CBC. However, CFN had completely separate coverage of the Grey Cup, utilizing its own production and commentators. From 1991 to 2007, all post-season games had been exclusively on CBC; beginning in 2008, the Grey Cup and all other CFL games are exclusive to cable TV on TSN, although the cable provider reserves the right to move the game to sister network CTV (as of 2022, it has never done so, opting to broadcast that Sunday's NFL games on CTV instead.)

United States

The predecessor to the CFL's East Division, the IRFU, had a television contract with NBC in 1954 that provided far more coverage than the NFL's existing contract with DuMont. NBC aired games on Saturday afternoons, competing against college football broadcasts on CBS and ABC. The revenue from the contract allowed the IRFU to directly compete against the NFL for players in the late 1950s, setting up a series of CFL games in the United States beginning in 1958 and a series of interleague exhibitions beginning in 1959. Interest in the CFL in the United States faded dramatically after the debut of the American Football League in 1960.[127]

In 1982, during a players' strike in the NFL, NBC broadcast CFL games in the United States in lieu of the NFL games which were cancelled; the first week of broadcasts featured the NFL on NBC broadcast teams, before a series of blowout games on the network and the resulting low ratings resulted in NBC cutting back and eventually cancelling its CFL coverage after only a few weeks. ESPN host Chris Berman became a fan of the game in the early days of ESPN, when the network first aired CFL games, and continues to cover the Canadian league on-air.[128] The now-defunct FNN-SCORE (unrelated to the Canadian cable network formerly known as The Score [now Sportsnet 360]) carried games in the late 1980s. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, SportsChannel America carried games, using CBC Television, CFN and TSN feeds. In 1993, several SportsChannel Pacific-produced games that were part of the Sacramento Gold Miners' local package were also shown nationally.

Beginning in 1994, with now four US-based teams in the league, ESPN reached a four-year deal with the league to produce and air two games per week and all post-season games on its fledgling ESPN2. They also put some games on the main network to fill broadcast time vacated by the 1994–95 Major League Baseball strike. The 1994 and 1995 Grey Cups were shown live on ESPN2 and then re-aired on ESPN the following day, leading into the network's Monday Night Countdown show. ESPN's on-air talent included a mix of the network's American football broadcasters and established CFL broadcasters from Canada. Most of the US-based teams also had deals with local carriers to show games that were not covered in the national package. Though there were no US teams in the league after 1995, ESPN2 continued showing games until 1997, albeit on a much lighter schedule.

The now-defunct America One network held CFL broadcast rights in the United States from 2001 to 2009 and aired a majority of the league's games.[129] Until the 2007 season, America One syndicated CFL games to regional sports networks like Altitude, NESN, and MASN; these were discontinued in 2008, mainly because America One and the CFL were able to reach a deal only days before the season began, not allowing the network time to establish agreements with individual RSNs. The Grey Cup aired on Versus on November 22, 2008, with a replay the next day on America One. From 2006 through the 2008 season, Friday Night Football was carried exclusively on World Sport HD in the United States; however, due to the January 2009 shutdown of that channel's parent company, Voom HD Networks, America One reclaimed those rights.

NFL Network took over the league broadcast contract in 2010. For the 2010 season, the network carried 14 games, no more than one each week.[130] For 2011, the network increased its output to two games each week.[131] NFL Network declined to continue its coverage after the 2011 season.[132] It offered to pick up another package in 2019 on the condition that the league change its schedule to not directly compete with the NFL regular season,[133] something that the CFL stated needs to be negotiated with the players' union.[134]

In late July 2012, NBC Sports Network acquired rights to the CFL for the remainder of the 2012 season. The NBCSN deal included nine regular season games starting August 27 (including Labour Day Classic games) and all the playoffs.[135] NBC Sports renewed their agreement with the CFL for the 2013 season.[136]

The European ESPN America network carried a collection of CFL games as part of its lineup until the network shut down in 2013.

As of 2022, games are broadcast on ESPN2.

Internet

There are no blackout restrictions on radio broadcasts of CFL games, while TSN streams all games online for authenticated subscribers to participating television providers.

The majority of games not on ESPN television channels are streamed in the United States via the subscription service ESPN+.[137]

In 2017, the league announced a partnership with Yare Media to offer subscription streaming packages in 130 international territories.[138]

Radio

CFL teams have individual local broadcast contracts with terrestrial radio stations for regular season and playoff games, while TSN Radio owns the rights to the Grey Cup.[139] In 2006, Sirius Satellite Radio gained exclusive rights for North American CFL satellite radio broadcasts and broadcast 25 CFL games per season, including the Grey Cup, through 2008.[140] Sirius would later extend its radio coverage through 2010,[141][142] after which it merged with former rival XM Radio Canada to form Sirius XM Canada. The merged broadcaster continues to air CFL games, and as of 2022, is contracted to air the CFL until the 2023 season. English language broadcasts of every CFL game air on Canada Talks, with French-language broadcasts of the Montreal Alouettes broadcast on Influence Franco.[143]

Players and compensation

Compensation and revenue

The CFLPA agreed to include a provision allowing the CFL to enforce a salary cap in the 2002 Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA),[144] but the league began enforcing it only from the 2007 season ($4.05 million per team) onward. The cap was raised to $4.2 million in the 2008 season and remained at that level for 2009.[145] Financial penalties for teams that breach the cap are set at $1 to $1 for the first $100,000 over, $2 to $1 for $100,000 to $300,000 over, and $3 to $1 for $300,000 and above. Penalties could also include forfeited draft picks.[146] On June 29, 2010, a new collective bargaining agreement was ratified that raised the salary cap to $4.25 million for the 2010 CFL season and continued to increase by $50,000 each season until 2013.[147] In 2014, a new CBA was ratified and the salary cap was raised to $5 million per team, with that amount increasing again by $50,000 each year until 2018.[148] As per the 2019 collective bargaining agreement, the 2021 salary expenditure cap is scheduled to be $5,350,000 and with the minimum team salary set at $4,750,000.[149][150][151] The salary cap number was subject to increase as players now have revenue sharing of 20% from broadcast deals (outside of TSN and ESPN), but since the league did not play in 2020, the cap number will likely be static.[150][151]

For 2010, the minimum team salary was set at $3.9 million while the minimum player salary was set at $42,000.[147] With the new CBA in 2014, the salary floor was raised to $4.4 million per team with increases of $50,000 per year, and the minimum salary was raised to $50,000 per year.[148] The average salary per player in 2014 was CA$96,000.[152] A new collective bargaining agreement was signed in 2019 that set the minimum annual player salary at $54,000, with that number increasing to $65,000 for National and American players in 2020.[153] In 2019, Mike Reilly and Bo Levi Mitchell were the highest paid players in the CFL after signing contracts in February 2019 for average yearly salaries of over $700,000.[154] Players designated as global players (see player designations) are paid the league minimum by rule and may have a portion of their salary sent back to their original home league as part of a partnership with the CFL.[155]

Player compensation is not tied to league revenue, which remains a trade secret. Only the four publicly held teams in the league reveal their financial information, as those companies are required to do so under Canadian law. As of 2013, prior to Ottawa's rejoining the league (at which time Toronto, which is partially owned by a public company, was still fully private), estimates of the CFL's revenue varied between $150 million[156] and CA$200 million.[157] As of 2019, five of the CFL's nine teams (including all three community-owned franchises) are profitable, and four operate at a loss; those four teams lose more than the five profitable teams, resulting in a net loss of approximately CA$20 million overall.[158]

Player designations

Players in the CFL carry nationality designations referring to their country of origin: Nationals ("a Canadian citizen at the time of signing his first contract, was classified as a non-import prior to May 21, 2019, was physically resident in Canada for an aggregate period of five years prior to reaching the age of 18, or played football for a minimum of three years at a U Sports institution, was draft eligible in 2021 at a minimum, and has graduated with a degree at that institution"), Americans (non-National and non-Global players, almost exclusively used for United States citizens), and Globals (any player who does not hold Canadian or American citizenship and does not qualify as a National in any other way).[159] In prior versions of the CFL CBA and league rules, National players were known as non-import players and American players were known as international (2014–2018) and import (before 2014) players, with the criteria to qualify as a non-import player being more restrictive.[160] Global players were introduced in 2019.[159]

National players enter the CFL through the CFL Draft or free agency. Global players enter the CFL in a similar method as national players, with exclusive drafts held only for eligible players. American players are typically inducted by way of the negotiation list: any team can lay unilateral claim to up to 45 players that have never played in the CFL at any given time (each team must make at least ten of those names public as of 2018), with no limit on how long a player can be held on the list and no limit on how old the player must be (thus CFL teams can claim players not yet eligible for the NFL Draft). Once a player on a negotiation list expresses formal interest in joining the CFL, that team has up to ten days to offer a contract (usually a league-minimum, two-year contract) to retain the player's rights.[161] Other than the names that are made public, the full list of names league-wide are a secret held from the general public and even from the other teams, with teams only finding out if a player is on another team's negotiating list if the league office tells them.

Roster limits

In 2006, the active roster limit was increased from 40 to 42, in 2014 it was again increased to 44, and in 2016 was increased to 46.[148][162][163] An unlimited number of players may be put on a team's disabled, injured and suspended lists.

As of 2021, each team must abide by the National/American/Global ratio rule, which requires teams to have two quarterbacks, two Global players, and a maximum of 20 American players (excluding quarterbacks) with a minimum of 44 total Active Roster players and a maximum of 45.[162][164] Each team will also have one player of any nationality on the Reserve Roster who receives the benefits of being on the Active Roster, but may not play in a game.[164]

Through the 2018 season, quarterbacks, of which a team was required to carry three on a roster, were not allowed to be counted toward the national player requirement nor the starter requirement, which put Canadian quarterbacks at a disadvantage compared to other positions in being hired by a CFL franchise.[162][165] This rule was changed in 2019 whereby teams had two roster spots for quarterbacks and a third quarterback counted in the ratio.[166][167][168] Additionally, a National quarterback would be considered one of the club's National Starting Players as long as he remains on the field at the quarterback position.[169]

Teams are additionally allowed up to 10 national or international players (with a minimum of one national if there are less than seven players or two nationals if there are at least seven players total) on their practice squad roster and may expand it to 12 if the team carries the maximum allowed two global practice squad players, though they are not required to do so.[146][162][163] Every year, the practice squad roster is temporary increased in size to 15 following the start of the National Football League's season to accommodate for the influx of cut NFL players.[163] Unlike players on the active roster, players on the practice squad may be signed at any time to another team's active roster without compensation to the player's original team.[163]

Labour representation

CFL players are represented by the Canadian Football League Players' Association (CFLPA). Each team elects two players to the CFLPA Board of Player Representatives, which meets once per year. Every two years, it elects an executive Board of Directors.[170]

CFL Draft

Further information: CFL Draft

Eligible Canadian nationals (usually from U Sports football domestically or American college football) are drafted by teams in the annual CFL Draft. The draft usually takes place in May and currently consists of eight rounds. The first two rounds of the draft are usually shown live on TSN. The CFL Combine (formerly known as the CFL Evaluation Camp), similar to the NFL Combine,[171] precedes the draft. A junior player in the locale of a team may be claimed as a territorial exemption and sign with that team before beginning collegiate play (one recent example is when the BC Lions claimed Andrew Harris[172]). Teams maintain "negotiation lists" of players they wish to sign as free agents.

League commissioners

Commissioners
Sydney Halter 1958–1966
Keith Davey 1967
Ted Workman (interim) 1967
Allan McEachern 1967–1968
Jake Gaudaur 1968–1984
Douglas Mitchell 1984–1988
Bill Baker[tablenote 1] 1989
J. Donald Crump[tablenote 2] 1990–1991
Larry Smith 1992–1997
John Tory 1997–2000
Michael Lysko 2000–2002
David Braley (interim) 2002
Tom Wright 2002–2007
Mark Cohon 2007–2015
Jim Lawson (interim) 2015
Jeffrey Orridge 2015–2017
Jim Lawson (interim) 2017
Randy Ambrosie 2017–present
  1. ^ In 1989, the commissioner role was split into two positions. Bill Baker held the title of President/Chief Operating Officer. Roy McMurtry, Q.C. held the position of Chairman/Chief Executive Officer. When Baker resigned, McMurtry continued as Chairman and CEO until Crump's appointment but did not serve as Acting Commissioner.
  2. ^ Between Donald Crump's resignation and Larry Smith's appointment, Phil Kershaw held the role of Chairman but was not acting Commissioner.

See also

References

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Further reading

  • O'Brien, Steve (2005). The Canadian Football League: The Phoenix of Professional Sports Leagues. Lulu Press. ISBN 978-1-4116-5860-8.
  • Maher, Tod (2012). The Canadian Pro Football Encyclopedia: Every Player, Coach and Game. ISBN 978-0-9835136-3-6.

External links

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Canadian Football League.

Official

  • Official website  
  • French Website
  • Canadian Football League Players Association

Media

  • TSN
  • SLAM! Sports
  • Rogers Sportsnet
  • Score Media

Other

  • CFLapedia

February 07, 2023
canadian, football, league, redirects, here, lamp, type, compact, fluorescent, lamp, other, uses, disambiguation, french, ligue, canadienne, football, professional, sports, league, canada, highest, level, competition, canadian, football, league, consists, nine. CFL redirects here For the lamp type see Compact fluorescent lamp For other uses see CFL disambiguation The Canadian Football League CFL French Ligue canadienne de football LCF is a professional sports league in Canada The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football The league consists of nine teams each located in a city in Canada They are divided into two divisions four teams in the East Division and five teams in the West Division Canadian Football LeagueLigue canadienne de footballUpcoming season or competition 2023 CFL seasonSportCanadian footballFoundedJanuary 19 1958 65 years ago 1958 01 19 1 2 Inaugural season1958CommissionerRandy AmbrosieNo of teams9CountryCanadaHeadquarters50 Wellington Street EastToronto OntarioMost recentchampion s Toronto Argonauts 8th CFL title Most titlesEdmonton Elks 11 CFL titles TV partner s Canada TSN1 TSN2 TSN3 TSN4 TSN5RDS RDS2United States ESPN2 ESPNEWSESPN International See listOfficial websiteCFL caAs of 2022 it features a 21 week regular season in which each team plays 18 games with three bye weeks This season traditionally runs from mid June to early November Following the regular season six teams compete in the league s three week playoffs which culminate in the Grey Cup championship game in late November The Grey Cup is one of Canada s largest annual sports and television events 3 The CFL was officially named on January 19 1958 4 upon the merger between the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union or Big Four founded in 1907 and the Western Interprovincial Football Union founded in 1936 5 Contents 1 History 1 1 Early history 1 2 United States expansion 1 3 Post U S expansion era 1 3 1 Mark Cohon era 2007 2015 1 3 2 Jeffrey Orridge era 2015 2017 1 3 3 Randy Ambrosie era 2017 present 2 Teams 2 1 Active teams 2 2 Future teams 2 3 Defunct teams 2 3 1 Proposed and disbanded teams 2 4 Timeline 2 5 Potential expansion 2 5 1 Maritimes 2 5 1 1 Atlantic Schooners revival 2 5 2 Quebec City 2 5 3 Saskatoon 2 5 4 Mexico 3 Season structure 3 1 Preseason 3 2 Regular season 3 3 Playoffs 3 4 Grey Cup 3 5 Awards 4 Broadcasting 4 1 Canadian broadcasters 4 2 Foreign coverage 4 3 Previous broadcasting arrangements 4 3 1 Canada 4 3 2 United States 4 4 Internet 4 5 Radio 5 Players and compensation 5 1 Compensation and revenue 5 2 Player designations 5 3 Roster limits 5 4 Labour representation 6 CFL Draft 7 League commissioners 8 See also 9 References 10 Further reading 11 External links 11 1 Official 11 2 Media 11 3 OtherHistory EditEarly history Edit Further information History of Canadian football Rugby football began to be played in Canada in the 1860s and many of the first Canadian football teams played under the auspices of the Canadian Rugby Football Union CRFU founded in 1884 6 The CRFU was reorganized as the Canadian Rugby Union CRU in 1891 and served as an umbrella organization for several provincial and regional unions The Grey Cup was donated by Governor General the Earl Grey in 1909 to the team winning the Senior Amateur Football Championship of Canada By that time the sport as played in Canada had diverged markedly from its rugby origins with the introduction of the Burnside rules and started to become more similar to the American game For much of the early part of the 20th century the game was contested by intraprovincial leagues or unions In 1907 several of the stronger senior clubs in Ontario and Quebec formed the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union IRFU or Big Four It took almost 30 years for an elite interprovincial western union to emerge when in 1936 the stronger senior clubs in Manitoba Alberta and Saskatchewan formed the Western Interprovincial Football Union WIFU From the 1930s to the 1950s the Big Four and WIFU gradually evolved from amateur to professional leagues and amateur teams were no longer competitive for the Grey Cup Apart from the World War II years an amateur team last won the Grey Cup in 1936 By the end of World War II the WIFU s play was at the same level as that of the Big Four Within a few years after the return of peace both interprovincial unions had turned openly professional However while the Big Four champion got an automatic berth to the Grey Cup final until 1954 the WIFU s champion had to play in a semi final against the champion of the Ontario Rugby Football Union ORFU by then the only amateur union still competing for the Grey Cup The ORFU withdrew from Grey Cup competition after the 1953 season and the WIFU champion was given an automatic berth in the Grey Cup final For this reason 1954 is reckoned as the start of the modern era of Canadian football in which the Grey Cup has been exclusively contested by professional teams Since 1965 Canada s top university football teams competing in what is now U Sports have competed for the Vanier Cup In 1956 the IRFU and WIFU formed a new umbrella organization the Canadian Football Council CFC In 1958 the CFC left the CRU and reorganized as the Canadian Football League As part of an agreement between the CRU and CFL the CFL took possession of the Grey Cup and the amateurs were officially locked out of Grey Cup play However the Grey Cup had been the de facto professional championship since 1954 The CRU remained the governing body for amateur play in Canada eventually adopting the name Football Canada Initially the two unions remained autonomous and there was no intersectional play between eastern IRFU and western WIFU teams except at the Grey Cup final This situation was roughly analogous to how Major League Baseball operated for almost all of the 20th century and how the AFL and NFL operated during the 1960s prior to those leagues 1970 merger The IRFU was renamed the Eastern Football Conference in 1960 while the WIFU was renamed the Western Football Conference in 1961 Also in 1961 limited intersectional play was introduced Because the West played 16 games by this time while the East still only played 14 this arrangement oddly allowed both the four team Eastern Conference and the five team Western Conference to play three games per intraconference opponent and one game per interconference opponent It was not until 1974 that the East expanded its schedule to 16 games just like the West In 1981 the two conferences agreed to a full merger becoming the East and West Divisions of the CFL With the merger came a fully balanced and interlocking schedule of 16 games per season with all nine teams playing each other twice once at home and once on the road Since 1986 with exception of 2021 the CFL s regular season schedule has been 18 games The separate histories of the IRFU and the WIFU accounted for the fact that two teams had basically the same name the IRFU s Ottawa Rough Riders were often called the Eastern Riders while the WIFU s Saskatchewan Roughriders were called the Western Riders or Green Riders Other team names had traditional origins With rowing a national craze in the late 19th century the Argonaut Rowing Club of Toronto formed a rugby team for its members off season participation The football team name Toronto Argonauts still remains even though it and the rowing club have long since gone their separate ways After World War II the two teams in Hamilton the Tigers and the Flying Wildcats merged both their organizations into the Hamilton Tiger Cats CFL logo from 1970 to 2002 The league remained stable with nine franchises the BC Lions Calgary Stampeders Edmonton Eskimos Saskatchewan Roughriders Winnipeg Blue Bombers Hamilton Tiger Cats Toronto Argonauts Ottawa Rough Riders and Montreal Alouettes from its 1958 inception until 1981 After the 1981 season the Alouettes folded and were replaced the next year by a new franchise named the Concordes In 1986 the Concordes were renamed the Alouettes to attract more fan support but the team folded the next year The loss of the Montreal franchise forced the league to move its easternmost Western team Winnipeg into the East Division from 1987 to 1994 United States expansion Edit Main article Canadian Football League in the United States In 1993 the league admitted its first United States based franchise the Sacramento Gold Miners After modest success the league then expanded further in the U S in 1994 with the Las Vegas Posse Baltimore Stallions and Shreveport Pirates For the 1995 campaign the American teams were split off into their own South Division and two more teams the Birmingham Barracudas and Memphis Mad Dogs were added at the same time the Posse folded and the Gold Miners relocated to become the San Antonio Texans In 1995 the Stallions became the only non Canadian team to win the Grey Cup Despite all American teams having the advantage of not being bound to the CFL s minimum Canadian player quotas only the Stallions proved to be an on field and off field success The establishment of the NFL s Baltimore Ravens worsening financial problems among the league s core Canadian teams and the inconsistent performance of the other American teams prompted the CFL to abandon its American experiment and retrench its Canadian operations The Stallions organization was used as the basis for a revival of the Montreal Alouettes Post U S expansion era Edit The CFL returned to an all Canadian format in 1996 with nine teams 7 the league conducted a dispersal draft to distribute players from the disbanded American based teams however the Ottawa Rough Riders in existence since 1876 folded after the 1996 season another dispersal draft was conducted the next year to distribute the former Rough Rider players among the remaining eight teams Toronto and recently revived Montreal also were struggling Montreal s woes were solved by moving to Percival Molson Memorial Stadium a much smaller venue than the cavernous Olympic Stadium The Winnipeg team again moved to the East Division from 1997 to 2001 to make up for the loss of Ottawa In 1997 the NFL provided a US 3 million interest free loan to the financially struggling CFL In return the NFL was granted access to CFL players entering a defined two month window in the option year of their contract This was later written into the CFL s collective bargaining agreement with its players The CFL s finances have since stabilized and they eventually repaid the loan The CFL NFL agreement expired in 2006 Both leagues have been attempting to reach a new agreement but the CFL broke off negotiations in November 2007 after Canadian telecommunications firm Rogers Communications paid 78 million to host seven Bills games in Toronto over five seasons the last Bills Toronto Series game was played during the 2013 NFL season 8 9 Edmonton s Commonwealth Stadium shown during player introductions prior to a game is the largest venue in the CFL In 2002 the league expanded back to nine teams with the creation of the Ottawa Renegades After four seasons of financial losses the Renegades were suspended indefinitely before the 2006 season their players were absorbed by the remaining teams in a dispersal draft Winnipeg was moved to the East Division again in 2006 a situation that continued until 2013 In 2005 the league set an all time attendance record with a total attendance of more than 2 3 million 10 In June 2006 the league announced the launch of CFL Broadband an internet streaming service designed to provide fans with another media platform in addition to TSN and CBC broadcasts to watch games live 11 Mark Cohon era 2007 2015 Edit With Mark Cohon as commissioner of the league the CFL entered a period of stability and growth New television deals two new collective bargaining agreements the 100th Grey Cup celebration and widespread stadium renovation and rebuilding highlighted this era The 100th anniversary of the Grey Cup had the highest ever television ratings for a championship game in English Canada 12 During the 2000s the CFL had the third highest per game attendance of any North American sports league and the seventh highest per game attendance of any sports league worldwide A 2006 survey conducted at the University of Lethbridge confirmed that the CFL was the second most popular sports league in Canada with the following of 19 of the total adult Canadian population compared to 30 for the NHL The NFL had 11 following with a total of 26 following at least one of the pro football leagues In other words approximately 80 of Canadian football fans follow the CFL and about 55 follow the NFL 13 With the absence of Ottawa from 2006 to 2013 league attendance hovered around the 2 million mark It stood at 2 029 875 in 2012 for a single game average of 28 193 14 The 2007 season was a recent high point with average game attendance of 29 167 the best since 1983 15 During Mark Cohon s time in office many of the teams either undertook major renovations to their existing stadiums or constructed brand new stadiums The Montreal Alouettes were the first to undertake this project adding 5 000 seats to Percival Molson Memorial Stadium in time for the 2010 CFL season 16 The Edmonton Eskimos and Calgary Stampeders also renovated their respective stadiums and facilities for the 2010 season 17 In 2011 the BC Lions played under a new retractable roof in BC Place after spending one and a half seasons at Empire Field 18 In 2013 the Winnipeg Blue Bombers moved to Investors Group Field now known as IG Field an entirely new stadium at the University of Manitoba The Hamilton Tiger Cats began using their new stadium Tim Hortons Field after spending 2013 at University of Guelph s stadium and the first half of the 2014 season at McMaster University s football field following the demolition of the iconic Ivor Wynne Stadium 19 In 2014 the Ottawa Redblacks kicked off their inaugural season having been awarded a franchise in 2008 20 becoming the third Ottawa franchise in CFL history The new Ottawa franchise returned the league to a nine team structure with five teams in the West Division and four in the East the Winnipeg Blue Bombers moved back to the West Division 21 The expansion Ottawa Redblacks played at the massively renovated Frank Clair Stadium now branded as TD Place Stadium 22 In Mark Cohon s last year as commissioner he negotiated a new five year collective bargaining agreement from 2014 through the 2018 season between the CFL and the Canadian Football League Players Association CFLPA 23 Jeffrey Orridge era 2015 2017 Edit The Toronto Argonauts entered a period of transition off the field with new ownership and a new stadium The Argonauts were sold by politician businessman David Braley to Bell Media and MLSE chairman Larry Tanenbaum 24 At the start of the 2016 season the Argos moved to BMO Field after more than twenty seasons at the Rogers Centre formerly called the SkyDome from 1989 to 2005 25 Construction on the New Mosaic Stadium for the Saskatchewan Roughriders was completed in October 2016 26 and the first game was played in the 2017 season 27 In 2015 Michael Sam signed a two year contract with Montreal Alouettes of the CFL 28 29 becoming the first openly gay player in the league s history 29 Sam left the team the day before the first preseason game citing personal reasons 30 As reported by Fox Sports Sam returned to Montreal to continue his professional football career 31 He left again on August 14 this time permanently again citing personal reasons Immediately following the 2015 season Jeffrey Orridge announced a re branding for the CFL including a new logo motto uniforms for all nine teams and website 32 After not having a drug enforcement policy in effect for the 2015 season the league and the CFLPA agreed to a new drug policy 33 In 2017 the Board of Governors and Jeffrey Orridge agreed to part ways effective June 30 2017 Orridge cited differing views on the future of the league between him and the Board of Governors for the departure with both sides stating the decision was mutual and amicable 34 His last day as commissioner was June 15 2017 35 Jim Lawson the CFL s Chair of the Board of Governors took over the duties of interim Commissioner until a suitable replacement was found 36 Randy Ambrosie era 2017 present Edit On June 29 2017 the CFL announced Randy Ambrosie would succeed Orridge as CFL commissioner 37 The move was made official on July 5 with Ambrosie named as the 14th commissioner of the league 38 Having spent nine seasons as a player with the Calgary Stampeders Toronto Argonauts and Edmonton Eskimos from 1985 to 1993 Ambrosie is the first commissioner to have played in the league since Larry Smith left the position in 1997 On September 12 2018 it was announced that Buffalo New York based New Era Cap Company would become the official apparel supplier of the CFL beginning in 2019 replacing Adidas 39 In October 2018 the CFL began focusing marketing internationally again after the unsuccessful expansion into the United States during the 1990s with Ambrosie s plan being called CFL 2 0 40 Ambrosie partnered with the Professional American Football League of Mexico LFA for player development as part of the league s plan to expand globally 41 42 43 Ambrosie also later announced a special edition of the CFL Combine to be held in 2019 in Mexico for Mexican players which was held on January 13 2019 44 Ambroise said he wished the combine in Mexico to become annual and that a combine could be held in Europe 44 On January 14 2019 the league held a draft of LFA and Mexican university players 45 where wide receiver Diego Viamontes was the first pick selected by the Edmonton Eskimos 46 The CFL announced in February 2019 that German and French football players from the German Football League and the Federation francaise de football americain fr would participate in the CFL national combine 47 48 Throughout early 2019 Ambrosie actively travelled Europe forming partnerships between the CFL and top level European American football leagues and associations specifically Germany GFL Austria AFL France FFFA the Nordic countries NL VL SS and NAFL and Italy IFL 49 50 51 By January 2020 football leagues from 13 countries had signed partnerships with the CFL 52 these partnerships included mutual exchanging of players and coaches 53 with leagues like the Mexican LFA holding reserved roster spots for Canadians with up to 25 playing in the league s 2020 season 54 In February 2020 the CFL expanded its global alliance system welcoming the Japanese X League generally regarded the third best professional gridiron league in the world 55 This coincided with the CFL announcing that its global combine in 2020 with new rules including two designated active roster international players and three practice squad international players with as many as 45 global players in the league 56 The league took over operations of the Montreal Alouettes prior to the 2019 season after Robert C Wetenhall the league s last non Canadian owner surrendered the franchise to the league in May 57 The Alouettes found new ownership in January 2020 in Crawford Steel executives Sid Spiegel and Gary Stern whose holding company S and S Sportsco will oversee the team 58 On August 17 2020 the CFL cancelled its 2020 season after coronavirus related social distancing mandates and travel restrictions imposed in most of Canada prevented the league from selling tickets and the league was unable to secure a bailout from the federal government to cover any losses It was the first cancelled season in the league s history and the first year without a Grey Cup championship since the canceled 1916 1919 seasons The league returned in 2021 playing a shortened 14 game schedule which began that August with the season concluding with the Grey Cup game in December for the first time since 1972 59 60 On March 10 2021 the then on hiatus XFL announced that it was in talks with the CFL over the possibility of a future collaboration 61 these discussions were called off four months later with nothing coming of them 62 Teams EditActive teams Edit Team City Stadium Capacity Coordinates Founded lineage Head coach General manager OwnerEast DivisionHamilton Tiger Cats Hamilton Ontario Tim Hortons Field 24 000 43 15 9 26 N 79 49 48 89 W 43 2525722 N 79 8302472 W 43 2525722 79 8302472 Hamilton Tiger Cats 1950 1869 a Orlondo Steinauer Orlondo Steinauer Hamilton Sports Group 63 Bob Young chairman Montreal Alouettes Montreal Quebec Percival Molson Memorial Stadium 20 025 45 30 36 3 N 73 34 50 4 W 45 510083 N 73 580667 W 45 510083 73 580667 Montreal Alouettes 1996 1946 b Jason Maas Danny Maciocia S amp S Sportsco Gary Stern and the estate of Sid Spiegel Ottawa Redblacks Ottawa Ontario TD Place Stadium 24 000 45 23 53 44 N 75 41 1 14 W 45 3981778 N 75 6836500 W 45 3981778 75 6836500 Ottawa Redblacks 2014 1876 c Bob Dyce Shawn Burke Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group Roger Greenberg chairman 65 Toronto Argonauts Toronto Ontario BMO Field 25 000 43 37 58 N 79 25 07 W 43 63278 N 79 41861 W 43 63278 79 41861 Toronto Argonauts 1873 66 Ryan Dinwiddie Michael Clemons Maple Leaf Sports amp Entertainment Larry Tanenbaum chairman 67 West DivisionBC Lions Vancouver British Columbia BC Place 54 320 49 16 36 N 123 6 43 W 49 27667 N 123 11194 W 49 27667 123 11194 BC Lions 1954 Rick Campbell Rick Campbell andNeil McEvoy Amar DomanCalgary Stampeders Calgary Alberta McMahon Stadium 35 400 51 4 13 18 N 114 7 17 00 W 51 0703278 N 114 1213889 W 51 0703278 114 1213889 Calgary Stampeders 1945 Dave Dickenson Dave Dickenson Calgary Sports and Entertainment N Murray Edwards chairman Edmonton Elks Edmonton Alberta Commonwealth Stadium 56 302 53 33 35 N 113 28 34 W 53 55972 N 113 47611 W 53 55972 113 47611 Edmonton Elks 1949 1911 d Chris Jones Chris Jones Publicly owned 80 shareholders Brad Sparrow chairman Saskatchewan Roughriders Regina Saskatchewan Mosaic Stadium 33 350 50 27 9 46 N 104 37 27 09 W 50 4526278 N 104 6241917 W 50 4526278 104 6241917 Saskatchewan Roughriders 1910 e Craig Dickenson Jeremy O Day Publicly owned 12 074 shareholders 70 Wayne Morsky chairman Winnipeg Blue Bombers Winnipeg Manitoba IG Field 33 234 49 48 28 N 97 8 35 W 49 80778 N 97 14306 W 49 80778 97 14306 Winnipeg Blue Bombers 1930 1887 f Mike O Shea Kyle Walters Winnipeg Football Club Dayna Spiring chairwoman Map this section s coordinates using OpenStreetMap Download coordinates as KML BC Lions Calgary Stampeders Edmonton Elks Saskatchewan Roughriders Winnipeg Blue Bombers Hamilton Tiger Cats Toronto Argonauts Ottawa Redblacks Montreal Alouettes Future teams Edit Team City Stadium TimeframeAtlantic Schooners Halifax Nova Scotia and or Moncton New Brunswick Proposed New Stadium Committed to by the league in the futureDefunct teams Edit Team City Stadium Years activeBaltimore FC Baltimore Stallions Baltimore Maryland Memorial Stadium 1994 1995 g Birmingham Barracudas Birmingham Alabama Legion Field 1995Las Vegas Posse Las Vegas Nevada Sam Boyd Silver Bowl 1994Memphis Mad Dogs Memphis Tennessee Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium 1995Montreal Alouettes 1 Montreal Quebec Autostade amp Olympic Stadium 1946 1981Montreal Concordes Alouettes 2 1982 1987Ottawa Rough Riders Ottawa Ontario Frank Clair Stadium 1876 1996Ottawa Renegades 2002 2005Sacramento Gold Miners Sacramento California Hornet Stadium 1993 1994San Antonio Texans 2 San Antonio Texas Alamodome 1995 h Shreveport Pirates Shreveport Louisiana Independence Stadium 1994 1995Proposed and disbanded teams Edit Team City Planned debut Result of proposalAtlantic Schooners 1 Halifax Dartmouth Nova Scotia 1984 Venture was abandoned due to lack of stadium funding from provincial government San Antonio Texans 1 San Antonio Texas 1993 Folded before beginning play h Proposed Mississippi team Jackson Mississippi 1995 While numerous locations including Milwaukee 72 and Los Angeles had been discussed as a home for a potential relocation of the Las Vegas Posse Jackson Mississippi came the closest to fruition it had hired a coach and general manager and was included on early drafts of the 1995 schedule before the corporation that owned the Posse raised the price unexpectedly to more than could be justified just as the new owner was about to buy the team 73 Miami Manatees Miami Florida 1995 After exploring multiple cities to relocate the Las Vegas Posse Miami was chosen However the league suspended all US operations before the team could ever take the field i Proposed Houston team Houston Texas 1996 After most US CFL franchises folded the Baltimore Stallions considered relocating to Houston league pressure led Stallions ownership to reactivate the then dormant Montreal Alouettes instead Norfolk Pirates Hampton Roads Pirates Norfolk Virginia or Hampton Virginia 1996 Owners for the Shreveport Pirates attempted to relocate the team to either Norfolk or Hampton Virginia However the city refused to invest 400 000 in renovations after finding out about multiple lawsuits against the owners and the venture was abandoned j Proposed second Shreveport team Shreveport Louisiana 1996 Investment group Ark LA Tex Football Association had prepared to purchase the Birmingham Barracudas for 750 000 and relocate them to Shreveport replacing the former Pirates however the CFL cancelled its US expansion before the relocation could take place 75 Proposed Milwaukee team Milwaukee Wisconsin 1996 As the Las Vegas Posse looked for a place to relocate the floundering franchise Milwaukee backed by real estate developer Marvin Fishman and original owner of the Milwaukee Bucks looked to bring a CFL team to the city The bid saw then CFL Commissioner Larry Smith giving a press conference at Milwaukee County Stadium but the proposal fell through when the CFL suspended its US operations 76 Proposed Quebec City team Quebec City Quebec 2006 As the Ottawa Renegades financial woes became apparent a business group from Quebec City emerged attempting to relocate the team to their city The venture was ultimately abandoned and the franchise was suspended by the league and later sold to Ottawa Sports and Entertainment Group Notes The Hamilton Tiger Cats were created in 1950 as a merger between the Hamilton Tigers founded in 1869 as the Hamilton Football Club 6 and the Hamilton Wildcats founded in 1941 The CFL considers the current Montreal Alouettes franchise to be a continuation of the original Montreal Alouettes founded 1946 played in the CFL 1958 1981 and Montreal Concordes founded 1982 renamed the Montreal Alouettes in 1986 folded just before the 1987 season 64 However this does not include the Montreal Football Club that was formed in 1872 and joined the IRFU in 1907 1915 and the Montreal AAA Winged Wheelers who played in the IRFU during the 1930s and 40s winning the Grey Cup in 1931 While the current incarnation of the Alouettes inherited many of the players and staff of the Baltimore Stallions the CFL considers the Stallions a separate entity All Ottawa clubs including the previous Rough Riders 1876 1996 and Renegades 2002 2006 are combined with the current Redblacks for historical consistency only even though the CFL considers them separate clubs While football in Edmonton was first played in 1890 68 the Edmonton Elks in their current incarnation recognize their first season in 1949 69 This was further evidenced by the 60 seasons decals worn on their helmets during the 2008 season Became the Saskatchewan Roughriders officially in 1950 after the team became the only pro football team left in the province in 1948 The Roughriders were originally called the Regina Rugby Football club from 1910 to 1924 then called the Regina Roughriders from 1925 to 1949 Created by a merger of the Winnipegs and the St John s team on June 10 1930 and become known as the Winnipeg Pegs before changing to the current name Blue Bombers in 1937 71 Franchise folded after the 1995 season Owner and most players moved to the revived Montreal Alouettes in 1996 the league considers the Stallions a separate franchise from the Alouettes a b The San Antonio Texans formed in 1993 folded before playing a game The 1995 Texans team were the former Sacramento Gold Miners who moved to San Antonio in 1995 Both the Mississippi and the Miami teams were to use the franchise of the Las Vegas Posse Mississippi was included on the 1995 draft schedule but disagreements with the Posse s ownership led to the sale falling through The Miami ownership group would have put the franchise back onto the field in 1996 but the league withdrew from the United States prior to the 1996 season After two seasons in Shreveport posting an 8 28 record team owner Lonie Glieberman intended to relocate them to Virginia There he agreed to rename them the Hampton Roads Pirates or Norfolk Pirates if the city paid 400 000 for stadium renovations Local politicians declined Glieberman s request upon learning that he had lawsuits pending in Louisiana 74 Timeline Edit Note team franchise history is listed as it is recognized by the CFL in its publication CFL Guide and Record Book 2017 77 Potential expansion Edit Potential CFL expansion markets are the Maritimes Quebec City Saskatoon London and Windsor all of which have been lobbying for Canadian Football League franchises in recent years 78 79 80 During the 1970s and 1980s Harold Ballard attempted multiple times albeit all unsuccessfully to secure a second CFL team for Toronto either by way of expansion or by relocating the Hamilton Tiger Cats under the premise that Canada s largest city could support two teams 81 Maritimes Edit Since the 1980s the CFL has occasionally played exhibition and later regular season games at various cities in the Maritimes including Canada Games Stadium in Saint John New Brunswick Huskies Stadium in Halifax Nova Scotia and Moncton Stadium in Moncton New Brunswick The league conditionally approved an expansion franchise the Atlantic Schooners for play in the 1984 season but the team never made it to play after plans for a stadium collapsed No city in the Maritimes has a permanent stadium that meets CFL standards As of 2010 the largest stadium in the Maritimes is Croix Bleue Medavie Stadium which has 10 000 permanent seats and is expandable to 20 000 with temporary seats 82 A pre season game dubbed Touchdown Atlantic was held in Halifax in the 2005 CFL season and regular season games were played in Moncton under the same branding in 2010 2011 and 2013 83 All 20 000 seats for the 2010 Moncton game sold out in 32 hours 84 the 2013 game did not sell out Former Commissioner Mark Cohon said that Moncton Stadium would require massive renovations to host a CFL team permanently The cost of the required renovations would be the equivalent of building a brand new stadium 85 In November 2015 the Halifax city council voted 9 7 against purchasing land that would then be used to build a 20 000 seat stadium It was agreed that the price tag for the land was too much but the close vote indicated municipal interest in building a near CFL sized stadium in Halifax 86 Atlantic Schooners revival Edit This section needs to be updated The reason given is The most recent development in this section is from 2018 Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information November 2022 See also Schooners Sports and Entertainment In November 2017 the CFL conducted further discussions with a group in Halifax interested in securing a franchise for the city 87 the group made a very credible pitch to the CFL head office 88 According to TSN analyst Dave Naylor the group named Maritime Football Ltd consists of Anthony LeBlanc former president and CEO of the NHL s Arizona Coyotes Bruce Bowser president of AMJ Campbell Van Lines and Gary Drummond former president of hockey operations for the Coyotes 88 In June 2018 the group met with the Halifax Regional Council in private about plans to bring a CFL team to Halifax with the possibility of playing at Universite de Moncton while a stadium in Halifax is being built 89 90 Maritime Football Ltd ownership group selected a site in Shannon Park Dartmouth Nova Scotia to develop a new stadium 91 The stadium was estimated to cost between 170 to 190 million seat 24 000 and have a business model similar to the Ottawa Redblacks who entered the league in 2014 92 On October 30 2018 Halifax City Council unanimously voted in favour of proceeding with a business case analysis of a stadium in the Halifax municipality 93 94 Following this positive momentum Maritime Football Ltd and CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie announced that the group would proceed with a season ticket drive to further gauge interest and also running a team name contest in the hopes of making an announcement on the team name just prior to the 106th Grey Cup game 95 The target year for the proposed team to enter the league was 2021 with the team name including Atlantic in its name but no franchise was actually awarded in this announcement 96 97 Further to the previous discussions with Moncton and New Brunswick politicians it was also suggested that the potential new franchise could begin play in Moncton while the stadium in Halifax is built 97 On November 23 2018 two days before the 106th Grey Cup Maritime Football Ltd since renamed Schooners Sports and Entertainment and commissioner Ambrosie announced the new team would be called the Atlantic Schooners 98 Quebec City Edit There has been interest in adding a team in Quebec City In 2003 an exhibition game was held at Telus Stadium between the Montreal Alouettes and Ottawa Renegades where Montreal won 54 23 99 In 2008 the federal government rejected a proposal that could have paved the way for a CFL franchise in Quebec City saying Ottawa is not in the business of subsidizing professional sports 100 The following year in May 2009 Christina Saint Marche a British businesswoman announced her interest in operating a team in Quebec City stating that there would be a natural rivalry with the Montreal Alouettes 101 During the 2010 Grey Cup state of the league news conference Cohon noted that the Alouettes hold the rights for the entire province of Quebec and that any expansion would have to be negotiated with them first 102 Another exhibition game was held at Telus Stadium on June 13 2015 with Ottawa whose TD Place Stadium was in use by the 2015 FIFA Women s World Cup hosting Montreal 103 Saskatoon Edit Saskatoon last hosted top level Canadian football in 1935 when the Regina Roughriders left the Saskatchewan Rugby Football Union to form the WIFU The Saskatoon Hilltops along with another Saskatchewan based team the Moose Jaw Millers eventually suspended operations due to World War II the Hilltops remained an amateur team when they returned in 1947 they have since played in the Canadian Junior Football League Saskatoon last won a provincial title in 1921 By the time they resumed play after the war the Roughriders had been the dominant team in the province for two decades In early 2012 management at Credit Union Centre publicly expressed its desire to bring a CFL team to Saskatoon However the Regina based Saskatchewan Roughriders have long branded themselves as a province wide team and claimed that the population of Saskatchewan is too small to support two teams 78 In any event Saskatoon also lacks a suitable outdoor stadium Its largest Griffiths Stadium home of the University of Saskatchewan s Saskatchewan Huskies seats only 6 171 spectators The Gordie Howe Bowl which has hosted CFL exhibitions in the past has even fewer seats it seats 3 950 people Mexico Edit While not openly being considered for franchise expansion Mexico was suggested by Commissioner Randy Ambrosie as a possible location for neutral site regular season games similar to the NFL s Mexico Series as early as 2019 as well as potentially partnering with the LFA for player development as part of the league s plan to expand globally 41 42 43 Ambrosie also later announced a special edition of the CFL Combine to be held in 2019 in Mexico for Mexican players and in 2019 the league held a draft of LFA and Mexican university players In March 2019 Commissioner Randy Ambrosie told the media that after the LFA combine multiple parties inquired about purchasing a franchise for Mexico Ambrosie reiterated that the league had no intention to expand internationally at this time 45 Season structure Edit Montreal Alouettes quarterback Anthony Calvillo looks down field with the ball during the 2005 Grey Cup game against the Edmonton Eskimos at BC Place Since 2018 the CFL season has included A two game three week exhibition season or pre season in mid June An 18 game 21 week regular season running from late June to early November A six team three week single elimination playoff tournament beginning in November and culminating in the Grey Cup championship in late November Championship teams will play either two or three playoff games including the Grey Cup game depending on their standing at the end of the regular season The division leaders at the end of the regular season receive byes in the first round of the playoffs Preseason Edit Team training camps open 28 days prior to the first regular season game of the season a camp solely devoted to first year players is allowed the 3 days before the main camp opens The pre season exhibition schedule is two weeks long with each team playing two games against teams from its own division Regular season Edit The regular season is 21 weeks long with games beginning in mid June and finishing by early November The CFL s nine current teams are divided into two divisions the East Division with four teams and the West Division with five teams Each team plays two games against each of the other eight teams plus two divisional games with opponents rotating each season With 18 regular season games being played each team gets three bye weeks The most popular featured week in the CFL season is the Labour Day Classic played over the course of the Labour Day weekend where the matchups feature the first half of home and home series between the traditional geographic rivalries of Toronto Hamilton a rivalry which began in 1873 6 Edmonton Calgary see Battle of Alberta Winnipeg Saskatchewan and Ottawa Montreal In years that Ottawa or Montreal were not in the league BC played against one of these teams 104 The following week s rematch of these games is a popular event as well especially in recent years where the rematch of the Saskatchewan Winnipeg game has been dubbed the Banjo Bowl Other features of the regular season schedule are the Hall of Fame Game and the Thanksgiving Day Classic the doubleheader held on Thanksgiving where the match ups usually do not feature traditional rivalries From 2010 to 2013 a neutral site regular season game was played in Moncton under the name Touchdown Atlantic The league awards points based on regular season results much like in most ice hockey leagues but unlike the NFL which strictly uses winning percentages to determine their standings two points are awarded for a win one for a tie and none for a loss As of the 2021 season in the event two or more teams in a division finish the season with the same number of points the tie is broken based on the following criteria in descending order with coin tosses used if all such tie breaker steps fail 105 Number of wins in all games Winning percentage in games between the tied teams Net aggregate of points scored i e total points scored less total points conceded between the tied teams Net quotient of points scored i e total points scored divided by total points conceded between the tied teams Winning percentage in divisional games Net aggregate of points scored in divisional games Net quotient of points scored in divisional games Net aggregate of points scored in all games Net quotient of points scored in all games Playoffs Edit The playoffs take place in November After the regular season the top team from each division has an automatic home berth in the division final and a bye week during the division semifinal The second place team from each division hosts the third place team in the division semifinal unless a fourth place team from one division finishes with a better record than a third place team in the other this provision is known as the crossover rule and while it implies that it is possible for two teams in the same division to play for the Grey Cup only three crossover teams have won a semifinal since the rule s 1996 inception and neither advanced to the Grey Cup The winners of each division s semifinal game then travel to play the first place teams in the division finals Since 2005 the division semifinals and division finals have been sponsored by Scotiabank 106 The two division champions then face each other in the Grey Cup game which since 2007 has been held either on the fourth or fifth Sunday of November for 2021 the game was played in December the first time this had happened since 1972 Grey Cup Edit The Grey Cup The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the CFL and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team The Grey Cup is the second oldest trophy in North American professional sports after the Stanley Cup The Grey Cup game is hosted in one of the league s member cities In recent years it has been hosted in a different city every year selected two or more years in advance The Toronto Argonauts have won the most Grey Cups with 18 wins total most recently in 2022 In 2012 the game was held in Toronto at Rogers Centre and for the second year in row the cup was won on a team s home field with Toronto beating Calgary 35 22 107 In 2013 the Grey Cup was won at home for the third consecutive time by the Saskatchewan Roughriders which had not been done since Toronto won at home from 1945 to 1947 In 2016 the Grey Cup was won on the natural grass turf of BMO Field by the Ottawa Redblacks beating the heavily favoured Calgary Stampeders 39 33 in overtime the first Grey Cup championship for any Ottawa CFL team in 40 years As the country s single largest annual sporting event 3 the Grey Cup has long served as an unofficial Canadian autumn festival generating national media coverage and a large amount of revenue for the host city Many fans travel from across the country to attend the game and the week of festivities that lead up to it A 2014 survey found that 48 of Canadians would prefer to watch the Grey Cup over the Super Bowl if they could only watch one or the other with 52 preferring the Super Bowl 108 CFL Grey Cup appearances active teams 109 Team Wins Losses Total Last WonBC Lions 6 4 10 2011Calgary Stampeders 7 8 15 2018Edmonton Eskimos Elks 11 8 19 2015Hamilton Tiger Cats 6 14 20 1999Montreal Alouettes 6 8 14 2010Ottawa Redblacks 1 2 3 2016Saskatchewan Roughriders 4 7 11 2013Toronto Argonauts 8 3 11 2022Winnipeg Blue Bombers 9 7 16 2021Since 2015 the Grey Cup game s presenting sponsor is Shaw Communications 110 Awards Edit Following the Grey Cup game the Grey Cup Most Valuable Player and Grey Cup Most Valuable Canadian are selected A number of league individual player awards such as the Most Outstanding Player and Most Outstanding Defensive Player are awarded annually at a special ceremony in the host city during the week before the Grey Cup game this ceremony is broadcast nationally on TSN The Annis Stukus Trophy also known as the Coach of the Year Award is awarded separately at a banquet held during the off season each February While the CFL has not held an all star game since 1988 an All Star Team is selected and honoured at the league awards ceremony during Grey Cup week Broadcasting EditSee also List of Grey Cup broadcasters The CFL Championship game the Grey Cup previously held the record for the largest television audience in Canadian history Television coverage on CBC CTV and Radio Canada of the 1983 Grey Cup attracted a viewing audience of 8 118 000 people citation needed as Toronto edged B C 18 17 ending a 31 year championship drought for the Argonauts At the time this represented 33 of the Canadian population citation needed This has since been surpassed by the 2002 and 2010 Men s Olympic Gold Medal Hockey Game citation needed Canadian broadcasters Edit Currently the official television broadcasters of CFL games are cable network TSN which began televising CFL games in 1985 while TSN s French language network RDS broadcasts Montreal Alouettes games for the Quebec television market 111 Games are typically scheduled for Thursday to Saturday evenings during June July and August but switch to more Saturday and Sunday afternoon games during September and October 112 TSN has created a tradition of at least one Friday night game each week branded as Friday Night Football CBC and TSN drew record television audiences for CFL broadcasts in 2005 113 The 2006 season was the first season in which every regular season game was televised as the league implemented an instant replay challenge system 114 In 2006 the CFL also began offering pay per view webcasts of every game on CFL Broadband 115 Until the end of the 2007 season CBC and RDS were the exclusive television broadcasters for all playoff games including the Grey Cup which regularly draws a Canadian viewing audience in excess of 4 million 116 In 2008 the CFL began a new five year television deal with CTVglobemedia Valued at 16 million per year it gave TSN and RDS exclusive rights to all CFL games including the playoffs and Grey Cup 3 In March 2013 TSN exercised an option to extend its contract through 2018 In 2015 the deal was extended for an additional three years along with exclusive Grey Cup rights for Bell Media Radio stations 117 Foreign coverage Edit In 2013 the CFL announced that its U S broadcast rights would return to the ESPN Networks for the 2013 season with five games airing on ESPN2 and 55 airing on ESPN3 118 This agreement was renewed in 2014 for five years the same length as the TSN deal ESPN holds a stake in TSN with a stipulation that at least 17 games would be carried on ESPN2 or another ESPN network such as ESPN or ESPNEWS each season including the Grey Cup this gives ESPN exclusive CFL rights during this time frame Originally ESPN3 carried all games not carried on one of the linear channels online later ESPN moved those games to ESPN 119 120 121 122 ESPN has had a long relationship with the CFL the channel broadcast its first CFL game on July 9 1980 when the network was only 10 months old 123 ESPN Brasil began broadcasting CFL games live in Brazil in 2015 as a result of the growth of the NFL and College Football fan base in Brazil 124 BT Sport which has a licensing partnership with ESPN has also carried CFL games in Britain and Ireland since 2015 125 In June 2019 the CFL signed a broadcast deal with MVS Comunicaciones to broadcast one game a week in Mexico on MVS TV 126 Previous broadcasting arrangements Edit Canada Edit This section does not cite any sources Please help improve this section by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed August 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message The public broadcaster CBC Television which held a monopoly on Canadian television until 1961 held Canadian professional football broadcast rights beginning the year of its debut 1952 The private commercial CTV network was created in 1961 in part because Toronto businessman John Bassett had won the television rights to the Eastern Football Conference and needed an outlet to air the games From 1962 through 1986 CBC and CTV shared CFL broadcasting rights They split playoff games and simulcast the Grey Cup In 1962 1965 1967 1968 and 1970 CTV commentators were used for the dual network telecast while in 1963 1964 1966 and 1969 the CBC s announcers were provided From 1971 through 1986 one network s crew called the first half while the other called the other half After the 1986 season CTV dropped coverage of the CFL and the Grey Cup From 1987 through 1990 the CFL operated its own syndicated network CFN Like CTV CFN split playoff games with CBC However CFN had completely separate coverage of the Grey Cup utilizing its own production and commentators From 1991 to 2007 all post season games had been exclusively on CBC beginning in 2008 the Grey Cup and all other CFL games are exclusive to cable TV on TSN although the cable provider reserves the right to move the game to sister network CTV as of 2022 it has never done so opting to broadcast that Sunday s NFL games on CTV instead United States Edit The predecessor to the CFL s East Division the IRFU had a television contract with NBC in 1954 that provided far more coverage than the NFL s existing contract with DuMont NBC aired games on Saturday afternoons competing against college football broadcasts on CBS and ABC The revenue from the contract allowed the IRFU to directly compete against the NFL for players in the late 1950s setting up a series of CFL games in the United States beginning in 1958 and a series of interleague exhibitions beginning in 1959 Interest in the CFL in the United States faded dramatically after the debut of the American Football League in 1960 127 In 1982 during a players strike in the NFL NBC broadcast CFL games in the United States in lieu of the NFL games which were cancelled the first week of broadcasts featured the NFL on NBC broadcast teams before a series of blowout games on the network and the resulting low ratings resulted in NBC cutting back and eventually cancelling its CFL coverage after only a few weeks ESPN host Chris Berman became a fan of the game in the early days of ESPN when the network first aired CFL games and continues to cover the Canadian league on air 128 The now defunct FNN SCORE unrelated to the Canadian cable network formerly known as The Score now Sportsnet 360 carried games in the late 1980s In the late 1980s and early 1990s SportsChannel America carried games using CBC Television CFN and TSN feeds In 1993 several SportsChannel Pacific produced games that were part of the Sacramento Gold Miners local package were also shown nationally Beginning in 1994 with now four US based teams in the league ESPN reached a four year deal with the league to produce and air two games per week and all post season games on its fledgling ESPN2 They also put some games on the main network to fill broadcast time vacated by the 1994 95 Major League Baseball strike The 1994 and 1995 Grey Cups were shown live on ESPN2 and then re aired on ESPN the following day leading into the network s Monday Night Countdown show ESPN s on air talent included a mix of the network s American football broadcasters and established CFL broadcasters from Canada Most of the US based teams also had deals with local carriers to show games that were not covered in the national package Though there were no US teams in the league after 1995 ESPN2 continued showing games until 1997 albeit on a much lighter schedule The now defunct America One network held CFL broadcast rights in the United States from 2001 to 2009 and aired a majority of the league s games 129 Until the 2007 season America One syndicated CFL games to regional sports networks like Altitude NESN and MASN these were discontinued in 2008 mainly because America One and the CFL were able to reach a deal only days before the season began not allowing the network time to establish agreements with individual RSNs The Grey Cup aired on Versus on November 22 2008 with a replay the next day on America One From 2006 through the 2008 season Friday Night Football was carried exclusively on World Sport HD in the United States however due to the January 2009 shutdown of that channel s parent company Voom HD Networks America One reclaimed those rights NFL Network took over the league broadcast contract in 2010 For the 2010 season the network carried 14 games no more than one each week 130 For 2011 the network increased its output to two games each week 131 NFL Network declined to continue its coverage after the 2011 season 132 It offered to pick up another package in 2019 on the condition that the league change its schedule to not directly compete with the NFL regular season 133 something that the CFL stated needs to be negotiated with the players union 134 In late July 2012 NBC Sports Network acquired rights to the CFL for the remainder of the 2012 season The NBCSN deal included nine regular season games starting August 27 including Labour Day Classic games and all the playoffs 135 NBC Sports renewed their agreement with the CFL for the 2013 season 136 The European ESPN America network carried a collection of CFL games as part of its lineup until the network shut down in 2013 As of 2022 games are broadcast on ESPN2 Internet Edit There are no blackout restrictions on radio broadcasts of CFL games while TSN streams all games online for authenticated subscribers to participating television providers The majority of games not on ESPN television channels are streamed in the United States via the subscription service ESPN 137 In 2017 the league announced a partnership with Yare Media to offer subscription streaming packages in 130 international territories 138 Radio Edit CFL teams have individual local broadcast contracts with terrestrial radio stations for regular season and playoff games while TSN Radio owns the rights to the Grey Cup 139 In 2006 Sirius Satellite Radio gained exclusive rights for North American CFL satellite radio broadcasts and broadcast 25 CFL games per season including the Grey Cup through 2008 140 Sirius would later extend its radio coverage through 2010 141 142 after which it merged with former rival XM Radio Canada to form Sirius XM Canada The merged broadcaster continues to air CFL games and as of 2022 update is contracted to air the CFL until the 2023 season English language broadcasts of every CFL game air on Canada Talks with French language broadcasts of the Montreal Alouettes broadcast on Influence Franco 143 Players and compensation EditCompensation and revenue Edit The CFLPA agreed to include a provision allowing the CFL to enforce a salary cap in the 2002 Collective Bargaining Agreement CBA 144 but the league began enforcing it only from the 2007 season 4 05 million per team onward The cap was raised to 4 2 million in the 2008 season and remained at that level for 2009 145 Financial penalties for teams that breach the cap are set at 1 to 1 for the first 100 000 over 2 to 1 for 100 000 to 300 000 over and 3 to 1 for 300 000 and above Penalties could also include forfeited draft picks 146 On June 29 2010 a new collective bargaining agreement was ratified that raised the salary cap to 4 25 million for the 2010 CFL season and continued to increase by 50 000 each season until 2013 147 In 2014 a new CBA was ratified and the salary cap was raised to 5 million per team with that amount increasing again by 50 000 each year until 2018 148 As per the 2019 collective bargaining agreement the 2021 salary expenditure cap is scheduled to be 5 350 000 and with the minimum team salary set at 4 750 000 149 150 151 The salary cap number was subject to increase as players now have revenue sharing of 20 from broadcast deals outside of TSN and ESPN but since the league did not play in 2020 the cap number will likely be static 150 151 For 2010 the minimum team salary was set at 3 9 million while the minimum player salary was set at 42 000 147 With the new CBA in 2014 the salary floor was raised to 4 4 million per team with increases of 50 000 per year and the minimum salary was raised to 50 000 per year 148 The average salary per player in 2014 was CA 96 000 152 A new collective bargaining agreement was signed in 2019 that set the minimum annual player salary at 54 000 with that number increasing to 65 000 for National and American players in 2020 153 In 2019 Mike Reilly and Bo Levi Mitchell were the highest paid players in the CFL after signing contracts in February 2019 for average yearly salaries of over 700 000 154 Players designated as global players see player designations are paid the league minimum by rule and may have a portion of their salary sent back to their original home league as part of a partnership with the CFL 155 Player compensation is not tied to league revenue which remains a trade secret Only the four publicly held teams in the league reveal their financial information as those companies are required to do so under Canadian law As of 2013 prior to Ottawa s rejoining the league at which time Toronto which is partially owned by a public company was still fully private estimates of the CFL s revenue varied between 150 million 156 and CA 200 million 157 As of 2019 five of the CFL s nine teams including all three community owned franchises are profitable and four operate at a loss those four teams lose more than the five profitable teams resulting in a net loss of approximately CA 20 million overall 158 Player designations Edit Players in the CFL carry nationality designations referring to their country of origin Nationals a Canadian citizen at the time of signing his first contract was classified as a non import prior to May 21 2019 was physically resident in Canada for an aggregate period of five years prior to reaching the age of 18 or played football for a minimum of three years at a U Sports institution was draft eligible in 2021 at a minimum and has graduated with a degree at that institution Americans non National and non Global players almost exclusively used for United States citizens and Globals any player who does not hold Canadian or American citizenship and does not qualify as a National in any other way 159 In prior versions of the CFL CBA and league rules National players were known as non import players and American players were known as international 2014 2018 and import before 2014 players with the criteria to qualify as a non import player being more restrictive 160 Global players were introduced in 2019 159 National players enter the CFL through the CFL Draft or free agency Global players enter the CFL in a similar method as national players with exclusive drafts held only for eligible players American players are typically inducted by way of the negotiation list any team can lay unilateral claim to up to 45 players that have never played in the CFL at any given time each team must make at least ten of those names public as of 2018 with no limit on how long a player can be held on the list and no limit on how old the player must be thus CFL teams can claim players not yet eligible for the NFL Draft Once a player on a negotiation list expresses formal interest in joining the CFL that team has up to ten days to offer a contract usually a league minimum two year contract to retain the player s rights 161 Other than the names that are made public the full list of names league wide are a secret held from the general public and even from the other teams with teams only finding out if a player is on another team s negotiating list if the league office tells them Roster limits Edit In 2006 the active roster limit was increased from 40 to 42 in 2014 it was again increased to 44 and in 2016 was increased to 46 148 162 163 An unlimited number of players may be put on a team s disabled injured and suspended lists As of 2021 each team must abide by the National American Global ratio rule which requires teams to have two quarterbacks two Global players and a maximum of 20 American players excluding quarterbacks with a minimum of 44 total Active Roster players and a maximum of 45 162 164 Each team will also have one player of any nationality on the Reserve Roster who receives the benefits of being on the Active Roster but may not play in a game 164 Through the 2018 season quarterbacks of which a team was required to carry three on a roster were not allowed to be counted toward the national player requirement nor the starter requirement which put Canadian quarterbacks at a disadvantage compared to other positions in being hired by a CFL franchise 162 165 This rule was changed in 2019 whereby teams had two roster spots for quarterbacks and a third quarterback counted in the ratio 166 167 168 Additionally a National quarterback would be considered one of the club s National Starting Players as long as he remains on the field at the quarterback position 169 Teams are additionally allowed up to 10 national or international players with a minimum of one national if there are less than seven players or two nationals if there are at least seven players total on their practice squad roster and may expand it to 12 if the team carries the maximum allowed two global practice squad players though they are not required to do so 146 162 163 Every year the practice squad roster is temporary increased in size to 15 following the start of the National Football League s season to accommodate for the influx of cut NFL players 163 Unlike players on the active roster players on the practice squad may be signed at any time to another team s active roster without compensation to the player s original team 163 Labour representation Edit CFL players are represented by the Canadian Football League Players Association CFLPA Each team elects two players to the CFLPA Board of Player Representatives which meets once per year Every two years it elects an executive Board of Directors 170 CFL Draft EditFurther information CFL Draft Eligible Canadian nationals usually from U Sports football domestically or American college football are drafted by teams in the annual CFL Draft The draft usually takes place in May and currently consists of eight rounds The first two rounds of the draft are usually shown live on TSN The CFL Combine formerly known as the CFL Evaluation Camp similar to the NFL Combine 171 precedes the draft A junior player in the locale of a team may be claimed as a territorial exemption and sign with that team before beginning collegiate play one recent example is when the BC Lions claimed Andrew Harris 172 Teams maintain negotiation lists of players they wish to sign as free agents League commissioners EditCommissioners Sydney Halter 1958 1966Keith Davey 1967Ted Workman interim 1967Allan McEachern 1967 1968Jake Gaudaur 1968 1984Douglas Mitchell 1984 1988Bill Baker tablenote 1 1989J Donald Crump tablenote 2 1990 1991Larry Smith 1992 1997John Tory 1997 2000Michael Lysko 2000 2002David Braley interim 2002Tom Wright 2002 2007Mark Cohon 2007 2015Jim Lawson interim 2015Jeffrey Orridge 2015 2017Jim Lawson interim 2017Randy Ambrosie 2017 present In 1989 the commissioner role was split into two positions Bill Baker held the title of President Chief Operating Officer Roy McMurtry Q C held the position of Chairman Chief Executive Officer When Baker resigned McMurtry continued as Chairman and CEO until Crump s appointment but did not serve as Acting Commissioner Between Donald Crump s resignation and Larry Smith s appointment Phil Kershaw held the role of Chairman but was not acting Commissioner See also Edit Sports portal Canada portalCanadian Football Act Canadian Football League attendance List of Canadian Football League mascots List of Canadian Football League records List of Canadian Football League seasons List of Canadian Football League stadiums List of Grey Cup champions List of professional sports teams in the United States and Canada Major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada Sports in Canada TSN Top 50 CFL PlayersReferences Edit League amp Club Milestones Canadian Football History PDF 2017 CFL Guide and Record Book PDF CFL Enterprises LP July 6 2017 Archived PDF from the original on October 29 2017 Retrieved July 21 2019 CFL Canadian Football League CFHOF ca Retrieved July 21 2019 a b c William Houston December 20 2006 Grey Cup moves to TSN in new deal Globe and Mail Toronto Archived from the original on September 30 2007 Retrieved May 18 2022 Canadian Football League Record Book 2011 Update PDF Archived from the original PDF on January 12 2012 Retrieved January 11 2012 CANADIAN FOOTBALL TIMELINES 1860 2005 PDF Football Canada Archived 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Randy s Word Talking CFL 2 0 October 3 2018 a b CFL could play two games in Mexico in 2019 TSN ca TSN November 2 2018 a b Florio Mike June 15 2018 CFL has its eyes on Mexico a b Randy s Word CFL on the international stage June 13 2018 a b CFL holds combine in Mexico City in effort to grow football worldwide sportsnet ca Retrieved February 5 2019 a b Randy s Word Welcome to Business Season December 12 2018 Ralph Dan January 14 2019 Eskimos select Diego Jair Viamontes Cotera with historic 1st pick in CFL LFA draft CBC The Canadian Press Retrieved February 5 2019 CFL reaches agreement with French American Football Federation CFL ca February 5 2019 Retrieved February 5 2019 CFL forms strategic partnership with German league CBC The Canadian Press January 31 2019 Retrieved February 5 2019 CFL signs deals with Nordic football federations Toronto Sun February 7 2019 Ambrosie hopeful for European broadcast deals this CFL season Toronto Sun February 11 2019 Italy becomes 9th international football league to join forces with CFL sportsnet ca CFL reaches co operative partnership agreement with Brazilian federation TSN The Canadian Press January 21 2020 Retrieved January 21 2020 Yokota Takashi Ikezawa Hiroshi December 28 2019 New CFL X League alliance spans the Pacific The Japan Times Online ISSN 0447 5763 Retrieved February 16 2020 25 Canadians set to play in Mexico s LFA in 2020 American Football International November 4 2019 Retrieved February 16 2020 How good is the X League Ninety Nine Yards American Football January 8 2020 Retrieved February 16 2020 First wave of Global players invited to the CFL Combine 3DownNation February 14 2020 Retrieved February 16 2020 Alouettes sold to the CFL 3DownNation May 31 2019 Montreal Alouettes new owners announced cfl ca Canadian Football League January 6 2020 Retrieved January 6 2020 CFL not to play shortened season in fall cfl ca August 17 2020 Archived from the original on August 18 2020 Retrieved July 7 2021 Heroux Devin April 21 2021 CFL delays start of season to August cuts schedule to 14 games cbc ca CBC Retrieved November 14 2021 CFL to explore opportunities for alignment with XFL owners Dany Garcia Dwayne Johnson and Redbird Capital XFL March 10 2021 Archived from the original on March 10 2021 Retrieved July 7 2021 A Statement From The CFL Regarding The XFL CFL ca Canadian Football League July 7 2021 Retrieved November 14 2021 Our talks with the XFL exploring the potential for collaboration and innovation have been positive and constructive While we remain open to finding new ways to work together in the future we and our XFL counterparts have jointly decided to not pursue any formal arrangements at this time Hamilton Tiger Cats History of the Montreal Alouettes CFL ca Retrieved December 4 2006 Staff TD Place Lansdowne Live www tdplace ca Retrieved November 18 2020 Toronto Argonauts Archived June 28 2013 at the Wayback Machine The Canadian Encyclopedia Retrieved on July 26 2013 MLSE ACQUISITION OF TORONTO 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Gliebermans September 17 2005 Archived from the original on September 17 2005 Barracudas bound for Shreveport The Gadsen Times January 7 1996 p D4 Retrieved July 7 2021 via Google Newspaper Archive Prigge Matthew J October 10 2016 Canadian Football in Milwaukee It Almost Happened Shepherd Express Archived from the original on October 1 2020 Retrieved July 7 2021 CFL Guide amp Record Book 2017 PDF CFL ca Canadian Football League Archived PDF from the original on October 29 2017 Retrieved July 14 2018 a b Saskatoon CFL team under discussion Ottawa CBC l February 1 2012 Retrieved February 1 2012 Walling The CFL will be coming east The Sports Network Archived from the original on June 29 2011 Retrieved February 18 2011 canada com Canadian news entertainment television newspapers free email and more Canada com Retrieved January 13 2018 The Canadian Football League The Phoenix of Professional Sports Leagues Steve O Brien Lulu Enterprises 2005 p 43 Cohon has Moncton on his mind National Post Canada Retrieved December 8 2008 CANADIAN FOOTBALL LEAGUE CFL s Touchdown Atlantic Newswire ca May 28 2010 Archived from the original on July 27 2011 Retrieved July 1 2010 CFL game in Moncton a sellout Canada CBC March 25 2010 Retrieved October 5 2010 CFL may take a time out from Moncton games Cohon says CBC Retrieved February 16 2015 In this article Cohon notes that the cost of necessary renovations would be CA 100 000 000 this number is very close to the projected cost of Hamilton s Tim Hortons Field which was built from scratch CFL Snaps Halifax wants right price to build football stadium Toronto Sun November 14 2015 Retrieved December 1 2015 CFL confirms discussions have taken place regarding Halifax expansion CFL ca CFL ca November 16 2017 Retrieved November 25 2017 a b Group makes very credible pitch for Halifax CFL franchise Article TSN TSN November 16 2017 Retrieved November 25 2017 Maritime Football Ltd agree to process for securing Halifax franchise TSN June 19 2018 Retrieved 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Schooners CFL ca CFL ca November 23 2018 Retrieved November 24 2018 Calvillo Alouettes hammer Renegades CBC Sports Online June 9 2003 Retrieved December 2 2006 Seguin Rheal Gordon Sean September 4 2008 Ottawa rejects proposal for CFL stadium at Laval The Globe and Mail The Globe and Mail British woman wants football franchise in Quebec City Montreal Gazette Archived from the original on May 11 2009 Retrieved July 9 2009 CFL road to Quebec City goes via Montreal Cohon CBC Sports Online November 26 2010 Retrieved June 20 2011 REDBLACKS and Als set to play in Quebec City CFL ca Archived from the original on August 16 2015 Retrieved August 6 2015 CFL Game Schedule Announced CFL ca February 14 2007 Retrieved May 21 2007 The Game cfl ca Archived from the original on October 22 2013 Retrieved November 25 2013 Partnership of champions CFL ca August 8 2005 Retrieved December 3 2006 Kelly Malcolm Argonauts corral Stampeders for Grey Cup on home turf CBC Retrieved November 26 2012 CBC News CFL 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2013 Retrieved January 5 2014 U S fans with cable will have to pay 5 month more to watch the 68 CFL games on ESPN Awful Announcing May 24 2018 Retrieved November 25 2018 CFL 2017 season to be livestreamed in more than 130 countries CFL ca June 16 2017 Retrieved November 25 2018 CFL broadcasters page Retrieved March 6 2008 CFL Gets Sirius CFL ca April 24 2006 Retrieved December 3 2006 SIRIUS Canada and CFL Extend Agreement CFL ca June 30 2009 Retrieved August 4 2022 Every Game on SIRIUS Satellite Radio in 2010 CFL ca June 22 2010 Retrieved August 4 2022 SiriusXM Canada to Carry Every CFL Game Through the 2023 CFL Season SiriusXM Canada Blog August 4 2021 Retrieved August 4 2022 CFL CFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement PDF Archived PDF from the original on July 17 2021 CFL salary cap won t change Globe and Mail Canada Canadian Press January 14 2009 Retrieved January 14 2009 a b Salary Management System CFL ca Archived from the original on January 21 2015 Retrieved December 27 2014 a b 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an active CFL roster will hand over 10 of salary for a scholarship fund Toronto Sun May 20 2019 Hodgson Glen and Mario Lefebvre The pro sport market in Canada Archived September 10 2013 at the Wayback Machine Conference Board of Canada Retrieved June 21 2013 What percentage of league wide revenues did CFL players get in 2013 under the old CBA Ca sports yahoo com Retrieved January 13 2018 CFL commissioner says canceling season likely ESPN Associated Press May 7 2020 Archived from the original on May 7 2020 Retrieved July 7 2021 a b Dunk Justin January 7 2020 The comprehensive CFL collective bargaining agreement 3DownNation p 44 via Canadian Football League Collective Bargaining Agreement New five year CBA ratified by CFL and CFLPA Canadian Football League June 13 2014 Naylor Dave January 29 2018 The enduring mystery of CFL negotiation lists TSN ca Retrieved June 9 2018 a b c d Global additions set to make history in Week 1 June 11 2019 a b c d CFL Roster Makeup A CFLdb Razzle Document a b Dunk Justin January 7 2020 The comprehensive CFL collective bargaining agreement 3DownNation p 69 via Canadian Football League Collective Bargaining Agreement Canadian QB Marc Mueller speaks out against the CFL s quarterback ratio rule Yahoo Sports Canada April 23 2012 Retrieved August 6 2015 New CFL collective bargaining agreement will be three year deal TSN ca TSN May 15 2019 Retrieved May 16 2019 CFL teams to carry one global player on roster this season TSN ca TSN May 16 2019 Retrieved May 16 2019 UPDATED What we know about the new CBA 3DownNation May 15 2019 Retrieved May 16 2019 Dunk Justin January 7 2020 The comprehensive CFL collective bargaining agreement 3DownNation p 72 via Canadian Football League Collective Bargaining Agreement Organization of the CFLPA CFLPA ca Archived from the original on November 2 2006 Retrieved December 3 2006 TransGlobe Evaluation Camp CFL ca Retrieved May 22 2007 Harris completes journey from bleachers to Grey Cup glory TSN ca November 28 2011 Archived from the original on July 28 2013 Retrieved November 28 2011 Further reading EditO Brien Steve 2005 The Canadian Football League The Phoenix of Professional Sports Leagues Lulu Press ISBN 978 1 4116 5860 8 Maher Tod 2012 The Canadian Pro Football Encyclopedia Every Player Coach and Game ISBN 978 0 9835136 3 6 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Canadian Football League Official Edit Official website French Website Canadian Football League Players AssociationMedia Edit TSN SLAM Sports Rogers Sportsnet Score MediaOther Edit CFLapedia Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Canadian Football League amp oldid 1137347174, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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