Another new season of Canadian Football beckons and it is the start of a “New Era”, both on and off the field. This year, like any other year, sees athletes joining new teams from fellow CFL clubs and others crossing the border to play in the oldest Gridiron Football league in the world. In addition to this, a new collective bargaining agreement between the League and the Canadian Football League Players’ Association (CFLPA) is in place. This agreement is designed to give players more rights like healthcare, and working visas for the American players, to allow them to get jobs in Canada during the off-season. There is also a new era in terms of CFL gameday attire as the league switches from Adidas as their official supplier to Canadian brand, New Era. This season also sees for the first time an influx of players from Europe moving to the CFL, thanks to the agreement the league struck with leagues across Europe including in Germany, France, Austria and the Scandinavian countries. A number of the footballers who have moved include Max Zimmerman from Germany to Saskatchewan and Kimi Linnainmaa from Finland to play for Toronto. There is also a number of Mexican players who join the league after an agreement between the CFL and the league in Mexico. With all the various changes the CFL introduced during the closed season there is plenty to look forward to and see the effect of the new strategy that the Commissioner has developed. East Division Hamilton Tiger-Cats The Ti-Cats had a mixed end to the season under Head Coach June Jones, and they’ll be wanting to buck this trend in the 2019 one. However, Jones has moved into another role within the team to allow his assistant Orlondo Steinauer to take over after he sparked interest in a number of CFL teams for their head coach vacancy. Hamilton’s record last season saw them finish with an 8-10 record which got them into the play-offs, but they went into it on poor form with three losses. However, in the games where they showed glimpses of promise last season this was mainly down to quarterback Jeremiah Masoli and receivers Brandon Banks and Luke Tasker getting the yards on the board. They have also tightened up defensively with the additions of Rico Murray (Ottawa) and Ja’Gared Davis and Tunde Adeleke from Calgary. All of this and it is easy to see why they are the favourites for the East division this year. Questions will remain whether the Ti-Cats have the depth and quality to be able to win the Grey Cup this time around, but I am sure they will give it their best shot and stand a chance of progressing to the Grey Cup. Montreal Alouettes After years of struggle in recent times, Montreal will be hoping that their fresh rebrand (new badge) will do the trick as they look to advance to the end of season play-offs for the first time since the 2014 season. However, the franchise is currently undergoing a period of uncertainty having recently parted with coach Mike Sherman as well as the ongoing takeover saga, which seems to be never ending. Sherman has been replaced by Khari Jones, who has past coaching experience with other CFL teams but this will be his first Head Coach role so it is uncertain to see how they will do. However, one bit of exciting news is that the Alouettes have undergone a major rebrand in the off-season which may (or may not) help them this season. This includes a new badge and a new kit design. This bit of positivity may be short lived depending how the first bit of the season goes, but many fans will just want them to be challenging again. The glimmer of hope may lie in the hands of WR DeVier Posey who joins from BC Lions and has won the Grey Cup with Toronto, Running Back Jeremiah Johnson, while their defence is in the hands of Bo Lokombo. The main issue for the Als for the past 5 or so years is their QB situation, especially now Johnny Manziel has left for pastures new, which many see as a blessing. Anthony Pipkin (seems the favourite) with Vernon Adams and Matthew Shiltz awaiting their opportunity. However all three are inexperienced to be the starting QB. Nevertheless, they will be relying the inexperienced Antonio Pipkin to make the plays. Another long, hard season may await. Ottawa Redblacks Having impressed over the past few seasons by reaching 3 of the last 4 Grey Cup’s, Ottawa have surpassed expectations since forming the franchise in the capital. However, with a loss of key personnel over the off -season like Wide Receiver Greg Ellingson going West to Edmonton, the Redblacks may find this season a struggle. In addition to this they lost Diontae Spencer (WR) who left to pursue opportunities in the NFL, which he has quite rightly earned. These losses in personnel have seen Rick Campbell to be fairly active since the end of last season. Quarterback Jonathon Jennings arrived from the West Coast in Vancouver as the replacement for Trevor Harris and to add tough competition to Dominique Davis who is learning on the job. The Redblacks did manage to re-sign East division All-star Defensive Back Jonathan Rose, which was seen as a major plus for a side that lost so many talented individuals during the February free agency. Looking ahead to this season, I think Ottawa may find it tough going with Hamilton looking stronger, a resurgent Toronto and with Montreal who will be determined to give their fans something to cheer about this year. I am of the view that they may miss out on the play-offs. Toronto Argonauts After a poor end of season last year, the Argos cut ties with 2017 Grey Cup winning coach Marc Trestman, appointing Corey Chamblin from the backroom and there is a ton of positivity around. Chamberlain has put his own stamp on the team bringing in players from across the border as well as a number of home-grown Canadians. The most notable is Wide Receiver Derel Walker from Edmonton Eskimos, who is a three-time West division All-star side and one-time Grey Cup champion. Also, the Argos have acquired quarterback Brandon Bridge who joins Toronto from West division team Saskatchewan Roughriders having been used in rotation the last couple of seasons. Bridge will compete with James Franklin and McLeod Bethel-Thompson for the starters spot with veteran Ricky Ray having retired. As well as the additions, Toronto have been able to tie down key personal such as James Wilder JR, who was instrumental in the team winning the Grey Cup in 2017 in the Wide Receiver position. The Argonauts will be outsiders for the Grey Cup in 2019, but I believe that they will improve on their showing last year and get to the end of season play-offs. West Division
BC Lions BC are the talk of the town so to speak this season after signing quarterback Mike Reilly from Edmonton. Riley is seen as one of the showcase athletes within the league and will be pivotal to the Lions success if they are to go all the way this year. Reilley’s CFL record speaks for itself with a total of 148 touchdowns and over 27,600 passing yards. The Vancouver based franchise has recruited massively in the off-season, determined to win their first Grey Cup since 2011. These additions include controversial Wide Reciever Duron Carter who is certain to add some flare to the team and Vancouver native Lemar Durant who arrives from Calgary having recorded 102 receptions for 1280 yards and eight touchdowns in his 3 years with the Stampeders. In addition to their player recruitment they have recruited a new coach too with DeVone Claybrooks coming from Calgary Stampeders, where he held the Defensive Coordinator position, replacing the retiring Wally Buono. There’s a lot of positivity around the team given the recruitment they have undertaken and positioned as one of the favourites this season, but being the favourites comes extra pressure. Will they be able to live up to the hype? Calgary Stampeders The Stampeders best bit of off-season business was the re-signing of Grey Cup winning quarterback Bo-Levi Mitchell and this will be the season that he can prove that he is the elite QB that so many believe that he is. Questions will remain over his fitness, however when he is 100% there is very few defensive players who can stop him as proved last year when Calgary lifted the Grey Cup. Mitchell’s record last season included 5,124 passing yards and 35 touchdowns from 18 games which made it one of his best seasons in the CFL. Another factor that many will watch with interest his how Calgary’s defence fairs as that is seen as their weakness, impacted further with the loss of Canadian All-star Alex Singleton who went to pursue NFL opportunities. However, they have added defensive pair Courtney Stephen and Fraser Sopik to try and rectify this issue. If Mitchell can stay fit and the Stamps can tighten up defensively then I am sure another Grey Cup may be heading their way. It will be tough though. Edmonton Eskimos After missing out on the play-offs last season Edmonton will be looking to bounce back, however they may find it difficult after losing star quarterback Mike Reilly. Despite Reilly moving on Head Coach Jason Maas has been able to recruit Trevor Harris from East division side Ottawa, who will bring plenty of experience with him and link up well with the Wide Receivers (DaVaris Daniels and Tevaun Smith). Harris has been one of the driving forces in Ottawa which saw them win a Grey Cup and reach two other finals in their short history as a franchise. The Esks were also able to recruit Harris’ teammate, Greg Ellingson from Ottawa, and the wide receiver will provide an excellent target for Harris to throw touchdowns to. The fanbase in Edmonton will be wanting major improvements from last season with the team finishing bottom of the West division and subsequently missing out on the play-offs with a 9-9 record. With these additions I believe that this is possible, although I doubt their credentials to go all the way. A play-off spot should be a certainty though. Saskatchewan Roughriders Arguably the best supported team in the CFL, helped largely due to them being the team of the province, so expectations will be high. General manager and Head Coach Chris Jones decided to leave the team in the off-season in order to take up a role in the United States, so this has allowed the Roughriders to freshen up their backroom to the relief of some. In comes rookie coach Craig Dickenson who is one of four new backroom incomings as the departing Jones held four roles with Saskatchewan during his time there. Having underachieved during Jones’ time in Regina there will lower expectations on them this year, especially with a rookie coach, which may favour them and allow them to thrive. Craig Dickenson looks set to bring an attacking style to the team which would make a change from the defensive style under Jones. Saskatchewan, like a number of other teams in the CFL, have quarterback issues with limited options and their main starter Zach Collaros is very injury prone. His likely replacement at QB should Collaros succumb to injuries is Cody Fajardo, who has previously won the Grey Cup with Toronto and showed considerable promise while he was there. The transition from Jones to Dickenson will be an interesting watch for the neutrals, but I think that this season is all about building on the foundations led by Jones ready to go forward in the future. Winnipeg Blue Bombers The Blue Bombers have gradually been building over the last few years to create a Grey Cup winning side and some believe that 2019 could be their year that they break a 29-year duck. Winnipeg’s last Grey Cup came in 1990 and are the team on the longest run without winning the trophy. The Blue Bombers possess one of the best quarterback and receiver pairings in the league with Matt Nichols and local Canadian Andrew Harris providing excellent link up play. In fact, they had the top scoring attack last season in the CFL with Chris Matthews out wide having a major impact for the Bombers last season in the Endzones. Furthermore, as last season showed they have additional options in the offence with Kenny Lawler and Rasheed Bailey providing depth which any Grey Cup winning side needs to have. Their defence will be an interesting watch too with more speed making them a much tougher opposition than previous, coupled with players like Adam Bighill and new edition Willie Jefferson. Pressure will be on Winnipeg to break the hoodoo, but I think that they may lift the trophy this time around.
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A few years ago, I wrote an article detailing why the league should start playing some games abroad bringing games to Europe after the success of the NFL series in London. This may soon become reality for CFL fans, although not in Europe, after rumours about plans to play two games next year in Mexico. The belief is that these games could attract up to 50,000 which would be fantastic news for the CFL in broadening their brand on the international stage as well as benefitting their teams, specifically the ones who will take part in this experiment. One team that has been mooted is the Toronto Argonauts which does seem like a sensible suggestion given their struggles to attract a crowd to their home games in what is a sport-mad city. This move would help grow their popularity with international fans and if this proves to be a success may attract a bigger audience back in Toronto.
If these games in Mexico prove to be a resounding success, then I would love to see the CFL bring games to the UK after the NFL has been a huge success here. Alternatively, the CFL could reach out to Germany or the Netherlands, for example, given the popularity of the NFL and the history they had with the now defunct NFL Europe franchises. Of course, one factor that needs to be considered is the size of pitch which tends to be bigger than a lot of European Football (Soccer) stadiums. However, CFL would be able to fit into stadiums that accommodate rugby, meaning there are numerous possibilities in Europe to host CFL games which would allow the CFL to break down barriers and enter a new market. Think about it. Imagine if the new franchise in Halifax (in this instance, the Atlantic Schooners) play at Murrayfield in Scotland which is their rugby stadium. It is a great venue and it makes sense giving that the team is from the Nova Scotia area, which of course translates as New Scotland, so it does have history. Also, it is worth pointing out that Murrayfield has previously hosted NFL with ex-NFL Europe team Scottish Claymores playing a number of seasons in the city of Edinburgh, (So Scotland’s capital city welcoming CFL would not be an issue.) This would act as an alternative to London hosting the NFL, giving people an opportunity to see a different sport in another part of the UK. Another option for a host city in the UK to have a CFL game would be Milton Keynes as the stadium within the city has hosted rugby games in the past, including a number of games from the 2015 Rugby World Cup, so the city has the infrastructure to handle major sporting events. If the CFL is to reach out further and increase brand awareness, then games across various countries can only help rather than hinder. Also, I believe that if they manged to increase their fanbase in other countries, thus leading to increased sales in merchandise and over time more investment from numerous sources, might see wage increases for the CFL athletes. More money for the players within the league is paramount to increasing the reputation and attracting more players to have a sustained career in the CFL. Of course, these internationals will not rival the NFL but would be a great way to showcase their product and show people what they’re missing out on. The 2018 Grey (106th) sees Calgary Stampeders take on Ottawa Redblacks in what will be a repeat of the 104th Grey Cup that took place in Toronto where the Redblacks emerged victorious, claiming their 1st Grey Cup. Below I have picked out 4 players who I believe will be the difference maker for their respective sides in the game in Edmonton, and if it’s anything like their encounter two years back it’s sure to be a competitive one. Diontae Spencer (Ottawa Redblacks) Having initially been impressed with him when he came to the CFL under the Toronto Argonauts, his game has come into its own during his time at the Ottawa Redblacks. Spencer looks like he’s enjoying his time in the capital too with the energy he brings to the pitch as well as his creative touchdown celebrations which encompass what the CFL is all about. The 26-year-old international receiver is what many would describe as a Quarterbacks dream, especially Trevor Harris who is Ottawa’s QB and the two have previous history from their time together at Toronto. This is shown in his form this year with his statistics backing this up, with Spencer getting 81 receptions this year which betters any of his previous seasons as well as getting over 1,000 rushing yards. Additionally, the Wide-Receiver got more touchdowns (with 7 so far) compared to his past seasons. Spencer has tons of pace and I expect him to use it to good effect if Ottawa are to win their second Grey Cup in only their 5th year as a franchise. Trevor Harris (Ottawa Redblacks) Like Spencer, Harris is another former Argonaut who has found his home at Ottawa too and has been the number one Quarterback since Henry Burris retired at the end of the 2016 season. He’s probably one of the most sought-after and reliable QB’s in the league and his stats back that up. 2018 will be the most games Harris has played in the season which is great for his team and teammates, knowing they have got a QB who’s match fit. This season, Harris has played 17 (more including the play-offs) and got 22 touchdowns in the process, which despite it being down from 30 in 2017 it still makes 2018 the 3rd best for the 7-year CFL veteran. 2018 has seen Harris record his best stats when comes to passing yards, reaching over 5,000, thus setting him up nicely for Edmonton. Harris’ form this year is one of the reasons why the Redblacks have reached the Grey Cup and if he is to walk out of Edmonton on Sunday night with his second Grey Cup ring then his form will need to be replicated for one last time this year. Bo-Levi Mitchell (Calgary Stampeders) The international Quarterback has made Canada his home since arriving in the Alberta province back in 2012. He has a lot to show for it too with numerous individual accolades, most notably appearing in 3 CFL West All-Star teams (2015,2016 & 2018), CFL All-Star in 2016, the MVP of the Grey Cup in 2014 as well as the team accolade of winning the Grey Cup in the same year. Furthermore, Mitchell will be making his third consecutive Grey Cup appearance (dating back to 2016) on Sunday and not many QB’s, past and present, can say they have achieved that. This season the Texas native has achieved at total of 356 passing completions making this his second best CFL season in his 7-year career. This is not bad considering he’s only had 585 attempts, meaning this has been one of his most consistent seasons. In regard to this being an impressive season, Mitchell has racked up 35 touchdowns so far, making this his best year yet for touchdowns. Interestingly, Mitchell has similar stats to the Redblacks’ Harris for passing yards (over 5,000), so it will be worth watching who comes out on top. Alex Singleton (Calgary Stampeders)
Seen as one of the biggest rising stars in the Canadian game, the American-born Line-backer has come along way since his rookie season and his loss in the Grey Cup to Ottawa in 2016, then the subsequent los t Toronto last year will only spur him on further. Singleton had another impressive year for the Stampeders getting into the CFL West All-Star and matching the same number of tackles (123 to be precise), albeit he didn’t gain as many sacks as the previous season. Despite that he did manage to force two extra fumbles than in 2017 and forcing fumbles will be key if Calgary are to come out of Sunday’s showdown in Edmonton victorious. Still only 24, Singleton brings much more to the game as seen in his six Special Teams sacks this season which just like causing fumbles, these too will be key if the Stamps are to win this years Grey Cup, especially if the game is to be a tight one. Recently there has been a lot of talk regarding a new CFL franchise in the Atlantic region with Halifax seemingly being given the go-ahead to have a franchise ahead of other candidates like Moncton, but why can’t a place like that have one too? I make this point as Halifax is in a different province than Moncton, with Halifax being in Nova Scotia while Moncton is in News Brunswick, thus there potentially being a market for both. If you live in Moncton you are probably unlikely to go and watch a game in Halifax and vice-versa. The obvious question when approaching a subject like this is whether or not there is a market for it. I believe that there is one, since if you look back at past Atlantic Touchdown games in Moncton one was a sell-out. Moncton has a population of approximately 70,000 which makes it the second largest city within the Maritime Province, putting them 78th in the most populous city list in Canada and a long way behind cities which currently host a team. This could prove a drawback, especially if you compare it to Halifax which seems likely to be the 10th franchise. It currently sits 14th and has a population of over 400,000, so the likelihood of a sell-out increases in that scenario. Moncton may have a low population compared to the other active CFL franchises, but I believe that this still makes them a viable candidate. Just look at Green Bay in the NFL for example who have just over 105,000 population which is slightly better than Moncton and, yet they have an average attendance of 78,092 (ESPN, 2017) for 2017, thus giving them the second highest average behind Dallas. In my view this outlines the potential a place like Moncton could have if they were awarded a team in addition to the Halifax franchise. If Moncton do get a team along with Halifax this would be a massive boost for the CFL as this would create a rivalry which could eventually blossom in the Atlantic region. Moncton also holds an advantage over other potential CFL sites as they already have a stadium meaning they would not have to spend time and money finding a suitable site, however they would be required to improve on their current stadium. For example, they would need to increase the capacity up to the required 25,000 by the CFL as well as undertaking renovation work in the surrounding area in order to improve infrastructure and the ease of access on matchdays. Below I’ve inserted some statistics why Moncton should be considered for a CFL franchise in the future. · In 2014, KMPG ranked Moncton as the lowest cost location for business in Canada (Moncton, 2016). · Moncton is known as the hub of the Maritimes with more than 1.3 million people living within a 2.5-hour drive (Moncton, 2016). · Moncton added more than 25,000 jobs to its workforce since 1990 (Moncton, 2016). The three statistics above show the following; 1) With Moncton being ranked as the lowest cost to setup a business it underlines that the city would be a perfect place to start a profit making CFL franchise, 2) With Moncton being the hub for the region there would be no better place to host a franchise should the league want one in the Atlantic region, 3) By creating a CFL franchise there would be potential job growth as shown in bullet point 3 with more than 25,000 jobs being created in 26 years. In conclusion, I believe Moncton would be a perfect candidate for a CFL franchise in the near future, considering the past success of the Atlantic Touchdown games as well as the future growth the city may continue to experience. Furthermore, 1.3 million people live within a few hours drive of Moncton, making it acceessible toa huge fan base. The city is also styling itself as an entertainment hub, so the addition of a CFL team could attract more fans in the 18-34 range as well as young families.
You may look at the title of this blog and you may be puzzled, well fear not, let me explain. The initial thought of this piece was provoked by the recent talk of a 10th franchise in Halifax and it got me thinking why can’t anywhere in Canada have a team without needing a set of wealthy investors? I’m of course talking about places which may lack the complete infrastructure in order to put a bid together, such as funding / ability to build a stadium or just lack of capable investors. This could apply to places like Moncton (talked about but seems unlikely) or Windsor, or perhaps unlikely places such as Fort McMurray or St John’s of Newfoundland. I’m not saying all these places should start crowdfunding tomorrow. I’m talking about if you have some Canadian Football fans in an area where they are desperate to bring a CFL team too they could start crowdfunding and see what happens. The great thing about crowdfunding is until the amount is met you don’t have to pay, meaning no commitment from anyone for a while to be honest you will need to raise a lot to fund a team’s operations. These costs will include things like a 25,000-capacity stadium, 55 player roster along with various backroom staff and other costs. One of the appealing things about crowd funding from a league perspective is that it would open up the league to a global audience as anyone in the world could invest. Potentially you could get 50,000 shareholders worldwide which would be great for the CFL and help them target new customers. Crowdfunding a sports team is a fairly new idea, but one which has been tried before. About four years ago Spanish football side (soccer) Eibar now in La Liga, were struggling financially and needed a way to raise cash in order to avoid going out of business. They successfully did so and doubled their revenue in the process to over €1.2 million and today they have over 11,000 shareholders in something like 60 different countries. This just illustrates the power of crowdfunding and why I think it should be under consideration in the CFL in order for fans to achieve dreams of their city hosting a team as well as the ability for the league to expand their international fanbase.
An excellent and enlightening book by Steve O’Brien looking at the entire history of Canadian Football and how it has survived many turbulent times. O’Brien lays out in great detail various decisions by the league which have had both a positive and negative impact on the league such as the brief US expansion in the early 90’s, but have helped shape the CFL to what it is today nevertheless. The book is divided in to chapters each picking up an event or time period which has help shape the league, while the chapters towards the back of the book look more at the Canadian culture. There are quotes from CFL greats like Doug Flutie to add an extra element and personal experience to the book too. I would highly recommend this book for anyone who is interested in the history and prestige of Canadian Football and the CFL and who wants to learn more. As an English fan of the CFL I would also recommend to international fans who either are keen fans or just have a passing interest in the league as this book acts as a great educational tool which offers great insight. Furthermore, this is one of only a few books which focuses on Canadian Football available (and arguably the best at dissecting the history of CFL), so a rarity too. Overall, fantastic research by O’Brien in order to put this book together and leaves it open for a potential follow up as the league has gone through a number of changes since it’s publication. Whether you’re a die-hard of CFL or just a general fan of Gridiron football this books for you. Although please appreciate that it looks at events as opposed to being full of statistics.
UK: The Canadian Football League: The Phoenix of Professional Sports Leagues (Revised Edition) CAN: The Canadian Football League: The Phoenix of Professional Sports Leagues (Revised Edition) I initially had the thought of doing a type of brand analyse of the CFL or clubs within after being inspired from some work I did during my undergraduate days at Hull University which included applying some of the framework (as seen below) to a Manchester United case study (football / soccer). So now I have decided to apply the framework to the Toronto Argonauts which I thought was particularly interesting after their recent Grey Cup victory coupled with the change in ownership within the last 2 years. First up is the Business model canvas which is used by organisation to show the organisations current business model as well a template for developing new ones. It’s a visual chart which outlines an organisations customers, activities, infrastructure and value proposition. Below is Porter’s 5 Forces model which is a tool which was developed to analyse the various competition facing the organisation from an outside point of view. It’s useful for organisations to use so they can formulate a strategy. External analysis Porter’s 5 forces The SWOT analysis looks at the strengths, weaknesses opportunities and threats which face Toronto Argonauts as an organisation. SWOT is a very useful tool to use as points can simply be bullet pointed, yet they can help an organisation carve out a strategy. From my perspective it is useful to layout exactly what an organisation has at its disposal with everything stripped back (strength and weakness), once you’ve done this you begin to see the opportunities to grow while taking into account potential threats. SWOT Internal analysis The VRIO analysis stands for Value, rarity, cost and organisation (ability). This is an excellent tool when examining any organisations internal environment. VRIO The Resource & Capability model assesses the relative strengths of the resources and components through ranking them in a table, then on a chart. It shows what the importance of each resource and capability is and what the current strength of each one is. R&C Model Concluding the brand analysis, it is clear that Toronto have areas where they require improvement in terms of reaching out to the wider international fanbase more as well as growing their fanbase within the city, like improving attendance. However, they have grown their brand since the ownership change and especially over the last year which saw coaching and GM changes. Their recent Grey Cup success will go further to strengthening the Argos brand along with any further success which may follow in the near future.
The post-season may only be a couple of weeks old but it’s already time to look at, or at least talk free agency and what we might expect from it. Each of the nine teams each face a variety of different scenarios in the upcoming free agency with some like the Edmonton Eskimos facing a list bigger than your child’s Christmas list to Santa, while the Hamilton Tiger-Cats have perhaps the easiest job as they only have 17 players in total entering the free agency. Although Hamilton still face other problems with wanting to bring in the right blend of quality to improve for next season whilst trying to keep hold of lead receiver Brandon Banks, which is appearing to be problematic at the time of writing. Meanwhile, Eastern sides Ottawa and Montreal face other problems in terms of the amount of free agent Nationals they may have (12 and 15 respectively), meaning they need to focus on tying up the Canadian depth while bringing in quality needed to improve on this year. Ottawa will need to concentrate their attempts on building up their defense given the amount of points they conceded, while Montreal have a massive task as they need to improve in numerous areas. The other Eastern side and recent Grey Cup champions, Toronto Argonauts arguably have the easiest task going into the free agency where their main aim should be to tie up most of their stars from this year, including quarter-back Ricky Ray, star receivers SJ Green and DeVier Posey and National backs Matt Black and Jermaine Gabriel. The question facing the Argos will be how much of the budget they will be willing spend on retaining the players. Regarding the West, each of the five teams have different scenarios facing them with Edmonton facing potentially the most upheaval with a total of 37 free agents while Winnipeg face the least disruption with only a total of 19 free agents including only just 5 National players. The Blue Bombers free agency will be about tweaking here or there as their core is decent, while their main aim will be strengthening enough in order for them to get past the divisional semi’s. Edmonton will want to tie down their main core of free agents including key offensive players Brandon Zylstra, Derel Walker, Vidal Hazelton. Also, they will want to sign-up some of their Canadian talent which includes 17 players, whilst wanting to attract some talent from the other teams. Meanwhile the BC Lions have seen some changes in the background with Buono focusing solely on coaching duties with Ed Hervey taking on GM duties with his first task most likely being keeping hold of Emmanuel ‘The Manny Show’ Arceneaux. Saskatchewan face a similar issue in trying to re-sign a star receiver of their own with Duron Carter being one of the players of the season. Chris Jones is slowly building the Roughriders up, so I would expect that he’ll try to re-sign the majority in order to keep that cohesion. The other West side Calgary have a big task too with 27 free agents, including 12 Nationals with one being the highly talented and probably sought-after Jerome Messam which I’m sure Dave Dickenson will want to keep. Expect him to reshape in this free agency as he will need to reflect on two straight loses in the Grey Cup and can find a team to bring back success to Calgary. So, who do I think will be the main movers? Brandon Bridge Canadian quarterbacks are rare in the game especially talented ones and Brandon Bridge fits that description. He had some outstanding plays last season when called upon in Saskatchewan and I would expect that to continue, however Bridge will be looking for more exposure as a starter and with Kevin Glenn and Vernon Adams vying for that spot too it may be difficult to nail down. Since his Montreal days, Bridge’s stock has been growing. I think it could be time for him to come back to the East, specifically his native Ontario and test himself with the Toronto Argonauts. However, I believe this move hinges on a number of factor’s, the first one being what would happen to Ricky Ray (who is also a FA) as retirement is talked about but may play on for another year, in which case Bridge could play understudy for one year before taking on the starter role in 2019. The other factor is stability and whether Bridge feels he would benefit more sticking in Saskatchewan or twisting in Toronto. Jeremiah Masoli Another one of the 11 quarterbacks potentially up for grabs, Masoli leaving Hamilton could be fairly likely. Despite playing in the majority of the Ti-Cats games (12/18) in 2017, he is effectively back-up to Zack Collaros, who was injured for parts of last season and is under contract for 2018, so could be pushed back to the bench again. This could become even more apparent if Hamilton bring in Johnny Manziel which seems increasingly more likely as the days go, meaning Masoli would effectively become third choice which is something he would not want. So, the question is where next? Well I think BC Lions may come calling in order to offer support and competition for young starter Jonathon Jennings who had a mixed season in 2017. This move would look more likely too if back-up quarterback Travis Lulay announces his retirement, meaning more chance of game time for Masoli. Diontee Spencer
Impressive over his two years in Toronto and even more so during the last season in Ottawa where he recorded a total of over 900 yards and 6 touchdowns. The main talking point surrounding Spencer is which side of the boarder he might be playing with rumoured NFL interest shown in him. If he did get a move to the NFL this of course would rule the wide-receiver out of free agency, but if he were to stay in the CFL where would he go? I would say he has numerous options as no doubt the Redblacks will want to keep hold of him in their quest to bring the Grey Cup back to the capital in 2018. The only thing stopping him from staying would be salary as he would require an increase given his rising stock in the game. The majority of other CFL sides may be interested with the final decision coming down to stability of the team and how good their QB is. I became interested in Canadian Football about 3 and a half years ago given the rise of popularity of the NFL, but to be slightly different I chose a different route (although I must note that I did see some games on TV about 12 years ago when Setanta Sports (remember them?) held the rights). Immediately after following the various relevant Twitter handles and liking the various Facebook pages I ordered various books which would help give me a greater insight and understanding into ‘Canada’s game’. These books were the ‘Grey Cup encyclopaedia’ which gave details of the most memorable Grey Cup games of the past such as; legendary player turned coach leading his beloved Argos to the 92nd Grey Cup triumph, funnily the last Grey Cup played in Ottawa till this year’s 105th, or how could any forget the 50th Grey Cup which became known as the ‘Fog Bowl’ of 1962, plus many others which I could list. The other one was ‘The Canadian Football League: The Phoenix of Professional Sports Leagues’ which documented the growth of Canadian Football as well as the struggles the league faced throughout various years. The point is after reading both books I began to appreciate further the rich heritage and culture attached to the Canadian Football and the CFL. In addition to this, I felt a passion and a connection to the sport which I have with the likes of football (soccer), rugby, tennis and field hockey, the latter which I used to play. I then started to look out for results of teams and see how good each of the 9 were, I researched the best players for the teams, taking an even deeper interest, finding players like Edmonton’s Mike Reilly, Bo Levi Mitchell and Jon Cornish of Calgary, Ottawa’s Henry Burris and Darian Durant of Saskatchewan as well as Toronto duo Ricky Ray and Chad Owens, the list could go on. The question you’re probably asking yourselves now is “well, go on, who do you support/follow?” or if you’ve seen the title “why the Argos?”. Well let me explain; In the back of my mind I did have a team in mind to begin with before delving in to the various bits of research and the team was Toronto Argonauts. So why the Boatmen? Firstly, I do have some relatives who live in Canada, Ontario to be more specific and the area where they’re from within that is closest to Toronto as opposed to Hamilton or Ottawa. So, this did give me some sort of connection which is what I want from any sports team rather than just picking the team which has the most silverware, however I wanted more than just this. Secondly, my dad once told me about a time when he went to a CFL (when he was visiting the relatives mentioned) back in 1985 (I think) at the old Exhibition Field in Toronto as the Argonauts played host to the BC Lions. The final point which made up my mind was not anything to do with outside influences, it was a decision based on my football team Notts County. Let me tell you why; Most of you who read this probably will not have a great deal of interest in football (or soccer as you call it), but Notts County is the oldest professional football team in the World, formed in 1862, so it made sense if my CFL team was the oldest too (formed in 1873) as I like history. Plus, I did take in to account which team I would most likely go and watch (logistics) if I am lucky enough to be able to visit the beautiful country sometime in the future, maybe even a Grey Cup? In Toronto or failing that one in Hamilton featuring the Argonauts, as they’re due a Grey Cup in their city? Right?
Having been a fan of CFL for roughly 3 years and given it is the build up to the Grey Cup I thought I would write an article aimed at trying to address how the league can reach out to fans beyond Canada and the United States. If you may recall I did write an article a couple of years back with a similar title which focussed on the league expanding, games abroad and a console, which some progress has been made on a number of these points. Earlier this week the CFL announced that it had held positive talks with investors from Halifax in Nova Scotia about becoming it’s tenth team, which in my view is what the league is and has been crying out for. The region does have a history of CFL football (sort of) having been awarded franchise in 1984 called the Atlantic Schooners, although it never came to fruition and to this day remain undefeated as the saying goes. Nevertheless a 10th team in the Atlantic region does seem a strong possibility and I believe it will have a positive impact both in Canada and globally. Why? Well the main reason is public interest would broaden with a team based in an area which does not and has technically not had any professional Canadian Football. Therefore, fellow CFL fans and non-fans would be intrigued to see how a new team does, much like the way they were taken in by the introduction of the new-born again Ottawa franchise. Regarding the impact abroad, I think there would be similar intrigue mainly due to the expansion meaning more teams, meaning an opportunity for more teams to win the Grey Cup, both resulting in increased competition. All this would be appealing to international fans like myself and something which each of the CFL franchises could exploit, a point which I will get on to shortly. The point of having an increased number of teams in the league means there’s likely to be an increased amount of revenue courtesy of the TV and media deals which would obviously be beneficial to both the CFL and its teams. My personal view is the expansion into Halifax and to take the league up to 10 should only be the start as I believe the league could have a maximum of 16 teams (although that would be a long way down the line if it were to happen), but 12 should be the desired target which the league should aim for. Now let me explain the point I made above how the CFL and its franchises can exploit international fans, such as myself. Firstly, the league could launch some sought of digital network (we’ll call it CFL network just to work with) which would be like the widely available NFL network, this allows international NFL fans to watch games and various other content for a yearly subscription fee. It is worth noting that for this season the CFL did introduce something similar in collaboration with one of their partners which gives fans an option to pay either for a single game, a season ticket for their team or for every game of the 20-week season. However, the limitations with this is that it is unavailable to people like myself who currently live in a country where a sports provider holds the CFL rights, so I’m able to watch it but unwilling to take out another sports subscription just for the game. Although I have seen a CFL game this year as I was able to watch Hamilton @ Toronto in week 1 due to living in the Netherlands at that point. The matter of fact is this should be available outside North America, regardless of right holders as more fans would have access to it with the likelihood of an increased viewership. For me personally, I would quite happily pay the $70 for the season pass (the cost of this season’s) or even $100 if necessary, which would result in extra revenue for the league. Another way which the CFL and Its teams could exploit fans globally is the wider availability of merchandise. Those of you who follow me on twitter know how I feel about this, but it perplexes me how different each of the team’s policies are regarding merchandise. Some teams like BC Lions ship worldwide and charge, while others including both Grey Cup 105 competitors Toronto Argonauts and Calgary Stampeders only ship within Canada and the US. By having a policy of shipping worldwide it’s an easy way to increase their global fanbase as followers of the CFL would find this attractive and a way to buy loyalty. The reason why I believe this is so important is that sport consumers and customers nowadays are basically walking billboards for teams with the customers (fans) displaying their team’s colours which equals free marketing. The cycle then continues as other people see a sports fan displaying a team’s customers and become curious, which then leads to them making a purchase and so the process continues. For example, if I was wearing some Toronto Argonauts gear it leads to others questioning it, much like what has happened in the NFL with the growth of various fanbases here in the UK which can be attributed partly due to the wider availability of merchandise. Also, I’m guessing some Canadians who live in the UK are followers of the CFL and specific teams, but this policy means that they are unable to get merchandise too. Recommendations From that I’ve come up with some recommendations for the CFL to possibly use in order to increase the popularity of the league globally and increase its brand awareness. Some I’ve mentioned already such as the need for the league to expand as this would help grow interest and a more lucrative TV deal as the league would be seen as stronger. The league expansion is more a long-term goal, so this is not something the CFL needs addressing immediately, apart from try and continue the work to secure a franchise for Halifax. Other recommendations include launching a CFL Network which would give fans worldwide exclusive content as well as the ability to watch every single game live throughout the season. If the CFL chose to do this, they could increase revenue streams and speaking myself I would quite happily pay a fee to give me this content as opposed to paying a subscription fee to a sports channel just specifically for CFL. I believe this would be possible outside North America as from speaking from a UK point of view I’m sure that no one subscribes to BT Sport specifically for CFL, meaning BT Sport would not lose out on anything should CFL make a network available within the UK. The other recommendation I would make in response to teams and the league making merchandise available to a wider market is if at all possible is for the CFL to launch a CFL Europe shop much like the NFL’s. If this was achievable it would give access of CFL merchandise to a much wider audience, thus expanding the brand. Although this would probably be somewhere down the line as the CFL would probably hold back (and I don’t blame them) till the CFL has a bigger presence in Europe. Nevertheless, the point I’m making is that there are many more fans out there who would like a slice of the CFL pie but are unable to get any.
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