But the CFL venture disappeared from the public conversation when the COVID-19 pandemic arrived. Two affiliated companies behind the idea\u00a0\u2014 Schooner Sports and Entertainment and Maritime Football Limited \u2014\u00a0had their\u00a0registrations\u00a0revoked in the Registry of Joint Stock Companies<\/a>.<\/p>\n A July CBC News story highlighted how some fans were left wondering what happened to their money<\/a>. In late August, the proponents quietly launched the refund website<\/a>.<\/p>\n Dave Smith of Amherst, N.S., paid a $100 deposit to secure two seats. He said the proponents must have had contact information for people who made the deposits, so he doesn’t understand why they weren’t notified.<\/p>\n Transparency questions<\/p>\n “It’s kind of like, ‘Well, we did [set up the website] and we’ll tell a few people,’ but it\u2019s almost like, ‘Don’t say it too loud. We don’t want everybody coming for their money back,’ right?” said Smith.<\/p>\n While he welcomes the chance to get a refund, he also thinks the league should have been more transparent. He said he gets a weekly newsletter from the CFL and said there has been no mention of the refund website.<\/p>\n “Doing anything like that actually makes them look a little more responsible,” said Smith.<\/p>\n Jen Harris agrees. The Beechville, N.S., resident and her husband deposited $100 for two seats. She said the league actively promoted the Schooners.<\/p>\n “I think they owe us something to say, like, ‘This got really messed up and we were a part of it,'” said Harris.<\/p>\n The CFL has distanced itself from the Schooners’ operation, with a league spokesperson providing an 11-word statement to CBC earlier this year. “The season ticket deposits were collected by Schooners Sports and Entertainment,” the spokesperson wrote.<\/p>\n The league did not respond to requests for comment for this story.<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1762083131_64_default.jpg\")
A CFL fan wears an Atlantic Schooners jersey at a game between the Toronto Argonauts and the Saskatchewan Roughriders in Wolfville, N.S., in 2022. (Darren Calabrese\/The Canadian Press)<\/p>\n
![\"Three](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1762083132_39_default.jpg\")
Then CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie, centre, speaks at a 2018 press conference. Schooner Sports and Entertainment’s Anthony LeBlanc is shown on the right. (Darren Calabrese\/The Canadian Press)<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/1762083133_526_default.jpg\")
Jen Harris of Beechville, N.S., and her husband put down a deposit for two season tickets. She said the experience has soured her, but said her husband would still support another effort to bring a CFL team to Halifax. (Submitted by Jen Harris)<\/p>\n