Are you ready for CFL 2.0?
In a letter to fans, Commissioner Randy Ambrosie has outlined his vision for what the Canadian Football League will look like in the years to come.
Ambrosie writes “The CFL, like all businesses and all leagues, must evolve. It has to get bigger, better, stronger.”
To that end, the commish has introduced “four main pillars” – making the game better, growing internationally, developing market sensitive strategies, and getting more kids playing football.
The league has been continuously trying to better itself over the last numbers of years by enacting new rules to make games more exciting, and teams have also done a goof job of marketing in their backyard.
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Getting more young players to take up the sport will always be a challenge because, a) there are so many other options for parents and their children to chose from, and, b) many of those options are perceived (true or not) as safer than football because of its association with concussions and CTE.
To me, growing the game internationally is the most interesting pillar in Ambrosie’s four-point plan.
He recently took a trip to Mexico to meet with officials from the LFA, the Liga de Football Americano (or Mexican Football League), to discuss ways to grow the game globally.
While there is no formal agreement between the two leagues in place it is interesting to think about how the CFL could benefit from partnering with pro football leagues in places like Mexico, as well as Europe and Asia.
Ambrosie suggests “linking CFL teams to affiliated teams around the world” and “sharing the expertise of our coaches, officials and staff.”
I’m all for making the game better and bringing the best talent to the CFL, but how will the league measure its success?
I guess the only answer is an uptick in attendance and, of course, a boost league revenue.
While I like the thought process behind CFL 2.0, I’m tempering my excitement until I see some concrete plans from the league.
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