OT: CFL Cancels 2020 Football Season
No Canadian Pro Football, as the CFL just called off the entire 2020 season this afternoon.
https://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/cfl-cancel-season-pandemic-1.5689252
The league had delayed the season earlier this summer because of Covid-19. Because of the pandemic and now also because of financial concerns, the decision has been made to wait until the summer of 2021 to resume play.
No Grey Cup for the first time in over 100 years.
August 17th, 2020 at 1:41 PM ^
Yeah, that seems bad at first, but that’s only 75.78 U.S. years.
August 17th, 2020 at 1:56 PM ^
Now that's a good laugh regardless of your humor metric...
August 17th, 2020 at 2:39 PM ^
I'm sure that the cancellation announcement came with an extremely polite, self-effacing apology.
August 17th, 2020 at 4:35 PM ^
Brav-freaking-o.
August 17th, 2020 at 1:42 PM ^
Sacre bleu! A (sans) Grey day indeed for football lovers.
August 17th, 2020 at 1:55 PM ^
So the Toronto team did all that exercise and preparation for.... 'Naut???
August 17th, 2020 at 2:50 PM ^
Aaargh! That was bad!
August 17th, 2020 at 2:54 PM ^
So their activities ARGOing for NAUGHT?
August 17th, 2020 at 1:56 PM ^
Both CFL fans in the US are going to be pissed
August 17th, 2020 at 5:05 PM ^
the 4 of them in Toronto are pretty hurt too
August 17th, 2020 at 1:59 PM ^
I've been looking for an excuse to burn my Argonauts jersey...
August 17th, 2020 at 2:06 PM ^
That's too bad, I've been enjoying CFL the past few summers as I start to get excited for the stateside season. It's a different game for sure but as a football lover it's fun to watch. Most of the QB's are "ohh...THAT's where that guy went" types, former US Power 5 players who didn't last long in the NFL.
Canada has had way more success containing COVID than we have in the US, but given that the average CFL player makes a fraction of what their NFL counterparts do, I fully understand not being able to take the risks of playing a season.
August 17th, 2020 at 2:17 PM ^
Canada has had 124k cases, the US has had over 5 million.
Yet the CFL is cancelling, while the NFL is still planning on playing with no announced plans for a league wide bubble and no league wide ban on in-person fans.
The phrase "whistling past the graveyard" is not supposed to be literal.
August 17th, 2020 at 5:07 PM ^
its worth noting that even with Canadian home grown player rules, there remains a plurality of Americans who make up the league. So some of it is about getting the players to Canada in the first place
August 17th, 2020 at 2:29 PM ^
If a tree falls in the forest, and there's nobody around to hear, does it make a sound?
August 17th, 2020 at 2:30 PM ^
The CFL also decided to punt on the season. They just did it on 3rd down.
August 17th, 2020 at 2:36 PM ^
Oh, Canada...
August 17th, 2020 at 2:58 PM ^
Good call! No need to put forth all the effort to go on strike for Bennigans coupons and free bubble gum.
August 17th, 2020 at 3:06 PM ^
But bigger endzones allow for more social distancing.
August 17th, 2020 at 3:34 PM ^
You know it's serious when Canada cuts American Football.
August 17th, 2020 at 3:50 PM ^
No surprise from these folks. Heck, the US/Canadian border shut down keeps being extended. Plus the CFL doesn't have the revenue generation that the NFL has.
August 17th, 2020 at 3:58 PM ^
It's smart, and the shutdown is going to continue for a long while. More than 90% of Canada's population lives within 100 miles of the American border and thus that area of the country is much more densely populated than most of the US. Given how poorly we've done relative to the rest of the world, it would be insane for them to allow Americans in now.
I feel bad for all the UM students who are missing out on their 19th birthday in Windsor.
August 17th, 2020 at 5:11 PM ^
this also has a lot to to with the federal government declining to give them a large interest free loan. The cfl didnt have a plan for how to run the league this summer/fall. This is probably it for the CFL as outside of a few cities it isnt a draw. The MLS outdraws it in the three largest cities in the league. It may come back but I doubt it would be with all the current teams
August 17th, 2020 at 6:27 PM ^
It's alright the beer sucks up there anyway.
August 17th, 2020 at 8:04 PM ^
Bummer.