CFL

The Canadian Football League (CFL) is the premier level of competition in Canadian football. Featuring 9 teams from cities across the country, the CFL is enjoyed by fans throughout Canada and the wider North America region.

📜 CFL History and Evolution

Canadians began to play rugby football in the 1860s, and the Canadian Rugby Football Union was founded in 1884. Several provincial and regional groups began to emerge, and with time, the gameplay started to diverge from its origins in rugby.

The turn of the 20th century saw a particularly significant moment for Canadian football, as the introduction of the Burnside rules transformed the sport into the gridiron game it remains today. These rules were first put into practice in 1903, adopted by the Ontario Rugby Football Union. New regulations included the reduction of players per team from 15 to 12, the creation of a “snap-back” system from the line of scrimmage, and the requirement for teams to travel 10 yards over 3 successive downs in order to keep possession of the ball.

The Grey Cup – the most prestigious trophy in Canadian football – was donated by the Governor General the Earl Grey in 1909, to be awarded to the winning team in the Senior Amateur Football Championship of Canada. During the first half of the 20th century, however, the eastern Interprovincial Rugby Football Union (IRFU or Big Four) and the Western Interprovincial Football Union (WIFU) evolved into professional leagues, and by the 1950s there was no place for amateur teams in the contest for the Grey Cup.

The IRFU and WIFU joined together in 1956, forming the Canadian Football Council. In 1958, this umbrella group was reorganised into the Canadian Football League, and just over 20 years later, the Eastern and Western Conferences officially merged to become the East and West Divisions of the CFL.

💯 CFL Scoring & Format

The Canadian Football League comprises 9 teams, split across 2 divisions. The East Division includes 4 teams, representing Hamilton, Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto. The West Division features 5 teams, representing Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, and Winnipeg.

The CFL season begins with 3 weeks of preseason exhibition games before the 21-week regular season. Each team plays 2 preseason games, followed by 18 regular season games. Each team plays 2 games against each of the other 8 teams in the league, plus 2 additional games against divisional opponents, with the matchups rotating each season. Every team receives 3 bye weeks.

Teams earn points over the course of the season, with 2 points awarded for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss. At the end of the regular season, the playoffs determine the year’s champions. Each division hosts semifinals and a divisional final, and the winners of each final qualify for the Grey Cup. The team that wins the Grey Cup is named CFL champion.