CFL SEASON IN JEOPARDY

NFL / CFL / Football

Written by Joel Lefevre

The league and CFLPA fail to reach an agreement with the CBA set to expire

A 16-hour meeting on Friday did little to bridge the gap between the CFL and the Players Association when it comes to reaching a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

Source (Background Photo/s): CFL.ca

As a result, the 2022 season could be on hiatus with both sides reportedly far apart on several key issues.

Training camps are scheduled to open on Sunday, and it is unclear when both parties will return to the bargaining table as the CBA expires at 12:01 am on Sunday.

Players with the Edmonton Elks, Calgary Stampeders, and Montreal Alouettes will still report to training camp as they are the only teams who are not in a legal strike position.

CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie released a letter stating:

“We know you’re looking forward to a CFL season that starts on time and includes a full schedule of games. To get there, we need a new collective agreement with our players, one that creates a new and positive partnership. Today we presented an offer to the CFLPA that will meet this goal. We have communicated this offer directly to players this afternoon. We want to share this information with you, as well.”

Some of the issues that the Players Association is not on board with include $18.9 million in proposed increases to the salary cap, believing that the net gains from that could be much lower. A return to padded practices with no additional safety protection is another concern coming from the players union. You can read the entire letter from the commissioner and the league’s proposed changes to a new deal here.

The only ever CFL strike took place in 1974 though the labour dispute was resolved before the beginning of that campaign. In 2020 the entire season was cancelled due to COVID resulting in estimated financial losses of between $60 to $80 million.

The 2022 regular season is scheduled to begin June 9, as the Alouettes visit McMahon Stadium to face the Stampeders.