Re: Around the CFL - 2021
Email I got from the league this morning to season ticket holders:
March 10, 2021
Dear Season Ticket Holder:
Today the CFL is announcing that we have agreed to work with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and his fellow XFL owners to identify opportunities for the leagues to collaborate, innovate and grow the great game of football across North America.
As a season ticket holder, you are one of the CFL’s most supportive and dedicated fans, and I want you to hear from me what this means for the league and for fans.
First of all, these discussions will not affect the upcoming season. We hope that, as the pandemic wanes, the league will get the green light to resume play with a full season in 2021.
These talks with the new owners of the XFL are aimed beyond that. With a shared desire on the part of both leagues to give the sport we all love new energy and excitement and make sure it thrives for years to come.
While the XFL doesn’t have a long history like ours, they do share our passion for football. Dwayne Johnson, who was a member of the Calgary Stampeders after playing at the University of Miami, is proud of his ties to the CFL and his family’s Canadian roots. He knows and loves our game and our passionate fans. His fellow owners, highly successful entrepreneur Dany Garcia and sports industry leader RedBird Capital, share his excitement about what working with the CFL could mean.
So, while we don’t know what collaboration or partnership might look like, we do know it’s at least a conversation worth having, to see what ideas we can come up with to promote and grow the game here in Canada, across North America and abroad. We want to share the excitement of Canadian-style football that fans like you know well.
We’re proud of our game and cherish the deep connections our fans have to it. We look forward to seeing what possibilities our discussions might uncover, and to sharing those with you as the process unfolds.
In the meantime, our focus in on returning to the field to play CFL football this year.
Football has been played in Canada under the CFL banner since 1958, but the Grey Cup has been part of our country since 1909. The bond between football and Canadians has never been stronger, and our goal, always, is to respect and strengthen that bond. That is why I’m writing to you today.
Thank you for being there for the CFL. We can’t wait to get back on the field – and we’re so looking forward to seeing you back in the stands.
Yours in football,
Randy Ambrosie, Commissioner Canadian Football League
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"When you're playing good football, it's good football and if you don't have good football, then you're not really playing good football" - John Madden