{"id":430284,"date":"2026-01-24T13:13:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-24T13:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/430284\/"},"modified":"2026-01-24T13:13:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T13:13:15","slug":"cfl-records-10-million-in-revenue-growth-for-2025-increases-salary-cap-over-200000","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/430284\/","title":{"rendered":"CFL records $10 million in revenue growth for 2025, increases salary cap over $200,000"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Photo: Neil Noonan\/3DownNation. All rights reserved.<\/p>\n

The Canadian Football League has announced $10 million dollars in revenue growth for the 2025 season, pushing next year\u2019s salary cap up to nearly $6.3 million.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe energy around our sport has never been stronger,\u201d commissioner Stewart Johnston said in a statement. \u201cWe\u2019re seeing meaningful growth in fan engagement and revenue, and we\u2019re channelling that momentum back into the league. As our business expands, the players who make our game outstanding are sharing in the upside, reinforcing a model built for long-term success.\u201d<\/p>\n

In accordance with the collective bargaining agreement, revenue growth in excess of the baseline established in the previous season triggers a sharing formula with the Canadian Football League Players\u2019 Association. In total, defined league revenue has grown by $31 million over the 2022 baseline figure that was negotiated when the current CBA came into effect.<\/p>\n

The CFLPA has allocated the majority of their revenue share from 2025 to the league\u2019s 2026 salary cap, which will increase by $218,149 to $6,280,514. The 2025 salary cap settled at $6,062,365 after the revenue-sharing model was triggered for the first time.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur revenue-sharing model demonstrates what\u2019s possible when players and the League work collectively,\u201d CFLPA president Solomon Elimimian said in a statement. \u201cThis isn\u2019t just a number; it\u2019s an investment in our players\u2019 careers, their families, and the long-term health of the game. As the talent that drives fan interest, it\u2019s essential that player well-being continues to grow alongside the League\u2019s growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to the salary cap increase, the CFLPA has allocated an additional $50,000 per team towards preseason compensation for veteran players.<\/p>\n

According to the CBA, the CFL\u2019s baseline mark for defined league revenue takes into account income for the league itself and its nine franchises. It was first established in 2022 and is updated if revenues exceed the baseline in subsequent seasons, with that growth triggering revenue sharing with the CFLPA.<\/p>\n

For every dollar that revenue increased above the baseline in 2025, 27 cents could be allocated to the salary cap, which is then split evenly between all nine teams. However, the union has the option to take a portion of that money and apply it to direct forms of player compensation, which they have done with the preseason pay allotment.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis structure was the result of the players\u2019 determination and resolve at the bargaining table,\u201d CFLPA executive director Dave Mackie wrote in a memo to the membership. \u201cWe represent the talent that fans pay to see; it\u2019s vital that our members\u2019 compensation continues to rise as the league sees continuous growth.\u201d<\/p>\n

The salary cap<\/a> was altered by revenue growth for the first time in 2025, when it jumped from $5.65 million\u00a0to $6.06 million<\/a>. That 7.3 percent bump marked the second-largest salary cap increase in CFL history, though it was announced on the eve of free agency and came as a surprise to teams.<\/p>\n

Some franchises elected not to utilize the new funds initially due to the uncertainty, which later led to accusations that teams were stashing healthy players on injured reserve with \u201cload management\u201d designations to meet minimum spending requirements. Following a grievance filed by the CFLPA, the CFL granted each team a $50,000 salary cap exemption in order to ensure proper compensation for players on the active roster.<\/p>\n

The league committed to more information transparency with the CFLPA this offseason and firm deadlines in order to create greater clarity and announce the final salary cap number before the start of free agency. It appears they have delivered on that promise, with a week remaining before the opening of the communication window on February 1.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Photo: Neil Noonan\/3DownNation. All rights reserved. The Canadian Football League has announced $10 million dollars in revenue growth…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":430285,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[166835,166836,49,48,7028,174314,520,174315,527,2002,25278,134,28471,27803,82],"class_list":["post-430284","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-3down","tag-3downnation","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-canadian","tag-canadian-football-league-players-association","tag-cfl","tag-cflpa","tag-football","tag-league","tag-millions","tag-money","tag-revenue-growth","tag-salary-cap","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/430284","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=430284"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/430284\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/430285"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=430284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=430284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=430284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}