After months of discussion with the Federal Government, the Canadian Football League (CFL) announced today that there will not be a shortened season played this year. The league has been in talks with the Canadian Government the past few months in hopes to receive some funding to move forward with their shortened 2020 season.

Unfortunately, the Federal Government declined the CFL’s appeal for financial support, leading to the cancellation of this year's season. The league’s board of governors met on Monday to discuss if the lack of secure federal funding would mean an end to the hopes for a 2020 season, ultimately making the tough decision to cancel the already shortened season.

The league has now turned its attention to the future and looks forward to providing a “bigger, stronger, and more global CFL”. The league’s number one source of revenue is its fans. Without the ability to have crowds in the stands, the CFL would have lost a substantial amount of money.

CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie explained, “Even with additional support, our owners and community-held teams would have had to endure significant financial losses to play in 2020. Without it, the losses would be so large that they would really hamper our ability to bounce back strongly next year and beyond. The most important thing is the future of our league.”

The League approached the government back in April asking for up to $150 million in assistance due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Last month they asked for a reduced amount of $44 million in funds with the amount being further reduced to a $30 million loan request at the beginning of August. The $30 million, interest-free loan request was essentially the league’s last-ditch effort to secure government support for an abbreviated 2020 season.

This will be the first year the CFL hasn’t awarded the Grey Cup since 1919 when it was called off because of the First World War. The Grey Cup was even awarded while World War II was happening.

If the season was to be played, CFL teams would have played six regular-season games in Winnipeg, which would have acted as the CFL’s hub city where players would have isolated, much like NHL players.

Season ticket holders can expect to hear from their clubs soon with news on how they can apply their deposits to next season or other offers.