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John Woods \/ THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES<\/p>\n
CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston said he\u2019d like to see a 10th team join the league by 2030. <\/p>\n
No chat with the commissioner would be complete without mentioning the possibility of expansion.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a topic that will never go away until this nine-team league finally welcomes a 10th franchise into the fold. The CFL has been stuck with the odd number since the Ottawa Redblacks were born in 2014.<\/p>\n
\u201cI would love to see a 10th team join us by 2030. I think that\u2019s a great date to focus on,\u201d Johnston said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think most who\u2019ve been following the league have known that we would love to get to a 10th team. I\u2019m no different.\u201d<\/p>\n
For what it\u2019s worth, his predecessor Randy Ambrosie said back in 2022 that he foresaw the league expanding by 2027 which, obviously, isn\u2019t happening. Johnston wouldn\u2019t discuss which markets have shown serious interest, but Halifax and Quebec City are the two that often get talked about. Nothing will change on this front until one of them has a stadium that\u2019s suitable for CFL action.<\/p>\n
\u201cStadium issues continue to be the number one problem to solve,\u201d said Johnston.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there are a couple of areas across the country where there\u2019s some opportunity. We certainly continue to receive a significant amount of inbound interest from individuals who are interested in being a part of our league. We\u2019ll continue to have those conversations, and I\u2019ll certainly update you as soon as I can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Playoff format<\/p>\n
While no immediate changes are being made, Johnston revealed that the league is open to the idea of tweaking the current six-team playoff format.<\/p>\n
Currently, the top three teams in both the East and West divisions qualify \u2014 unless there\u2019s a crossover team. The No. 1 seeds receive byes to the division finals at home which puts them just one win away from reaching the Grey Cup.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe know that in many other leagues there\u2019s been an introduction of different playoff formats, play-in games, mid-season playoffs, new playoff formats. We talked about our playoff format and how the Grey Cup is the single biggest annual championship in our country,\u201d Johnston said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne area we\u2019re focused on is: how do we have our single biggest championship where a team can possibly win only one game and make it to that championship? And can that be solved?\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnston wouldn\u2019t divulge any more info on the matter than that.<\/p>\n
No pushback on rule changes set to take place in 2026 and 2027<\/p>\n
If you were hoping to hear GMs and coaches brought their pitchforks to Calgary to protest the upcoming rule changes prepare to be disappointed.<\/p>\n
Everything that was announced in September is going through whether people like it or not.<\/p>\n
As a refresher, starting in 2026, missed field goals will no longer elicit a rouge and a new 35-second play clock will start once the previous play has been whistled dead. In 2027, the goal posts are being moved to the back of the end zone, the end zone is being shortened to 15 yards, and the field will shrink to 100 yards which will eliminate the 55-yard line.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was asked whether there had been any pushback that I had heard so far this week, and there hasn\u2019t been,\u201d said Johnston.<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t go around polling everybody, but there hasn\u2019t been (pushback). We\u2019ve just had great discussions on what we\u2019re doing moving this league forward.\u201d<\/p>\n
They\u2019re also going to be patient. Whether the new rules make the game better or not in 2027, Johnston won\u2019t jump to any conclusions after one year. When the rules were originally announced, the league estimated that they would lead to 60 more touchdowns per season.<\/p>\n
\u201cCoaches need time to adjust, players need time to adjust,\u201d Johnston said.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo matter which way our game goes, you\u2019re going to need to build a sample of seasons to understand where the trends are leading, and then this is what these winter meetings do. We look at trends, and we see how we anticipate where they\u2019re going to go, and are there any tweaks we need to make to adjust for those.\u201d<\/p>\n
Goodbye ties<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWinnipeg Free Press | Newsletter\n\t<\/p>\n
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The CFL rules committee \u2014 which features Blue Bombers head coach Mike O\u2019Shea \u2014 has proposed the league gets rid of ties.<\/p>\n
They\u2019re recommending starting this year, if a regular-season game remains tied after two rounds of overtime, the game should then be decided by the two teams taking turns attempting to score from the opposition\u2019s three-yard line until one team successfully converts and the other does not.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo one likes a tie,\u201d said Johnston.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s only been four regular-season contests that have ended in a tie since 2016, but two of those happened in 2024. The committee\u2019s recommendation needs to be approved by the league\u2019s board of governors which will most likely happen by the end of March.<\/p>\n
winnipegfreepress.com\/taylorallen<\/p>\n
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Taylor Allen Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree\/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor<\/a>.<\/p>\n Every piece of reporting Taylor produces is reviewed by an editing team before it is posted online or published in print \u2014 part of the Free Press\u2018s tradition, since 1872, of producing reliable independent journalism. Read more about Free Press\u2019s history and mandate<\/a>, and learn how our newsroom operates<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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