Fans are ecstatic to finally have the CFL back in 2021

There’s exciting news in Canadian sports as of late, particularly Canadian professional football. CFL governors have come to an agreement with the League’s Player’s Association, granting permission for the 2021 season to officially kick off in August.

Since the CFL is one of the most important areas of professional athletics in the country, there’s no doubt that local fans are looking forward to its final return.  In this article we outline everything to know about the 2021 CFL comeback season.

All About the First Game

August 5th kickstarts the CFL’s comeback season, nearly 21 months after the Hamilton Tiger Cats took on the Winnipeg Blue Bombers for the Grey Cup in November of 2019. The two will go head-to-head in an epic rematch competition that is set to welcome fans back to the stands.

This game is going to be undoubtedly heated, especially considering that the two franchises last met at the end of 2019 for the Grey Cup Championship at the McMahon Stadium in Calgary. Here, Winnipeg crushed Hamilton 33-12 with running back Andrew Harris being crowned the game’s Most Valuable Player and quarterback Zach Collaros throwing for an impressive 170 yards.

This year’s opening day is special for more than one reason, but it also is a time for the Tigers to get their shot at revenge against an organization who managed to steal the Grey Cup glory right under their noses.

Further Scheduling and Season Set Up

Following the opening day there are still a handful of intense football matchups for fans to look forward to. This year will feature 14 regular season games to be played over the course of 16 weeks, with everything leading up to the Championship which will be hosted at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario. This was a slight amendment from the previous 18-game schedule that the CFL had in 2019.

With four teams in the East Division and five in the West who play each other equally, the franchises will have ample opportunity to prove themselves worthy of the prestigious silver chalice come November. There is no doubt that this is one of the most exciting, highly anticipated years that the league has seen in decades. Not to mention the fact that now Canadian citizens can legally bet online, allowing CFL fans to interact with their favourite teams and players from the start of the season all the way up to the gripping three-week playoff period. These two things combined are ingredients that make for one entertaining, fresh season of professional football.

Teams to Watch

Although the CFL consists of only nine franchises, much less than that of its U.S. counterpart, the league still contains a variety of impressive football talent- including many who have also had memorable career stints with some NFL organizations.

Of course, the top team to watch is last year’s Grey Cup victor, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. After a season where they managed to go 11-7, the championship winning team has mostly remained completely intact, causing other teams in the league to fear the Big Blue. What’s curious is that their Championship opponents, Hamilton, actually had a better season record than them, going 15-3 in 2019. Both organizations, along with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, Montreal Alouttes, and Calgary Stampeders are all ones to look out for.

A referee watches a play from the side lines during a past CFL match

When is the Grey Cup?

The 2021 CFL season structure will consist of regular season games being played from Weeks 1-16, then Semi-Finals from each division followed by Finals, with everything culminating in the Grey Cup match. A competition deeply rich in history, this year’s Championship will be the 108^th time the game has been played. A trophy that has evolved greatly over the years, two undecided teams will battle it out in hopes of attaining it on Sunday, December 12^th.

For fans looking for the full list of games and their venues and dates, they can check out this list which details every match and its location, as well as links to purchase tickets.

Fans should keep in mind that tickets can be purchased in a variety of different options. For example, single game tickets are available for those who would like to attend one match up but not commit to an entire season membership, whereas season tickets can be bought using payment plans and give individuals access to every competition. There’re also group tickets which fans the chance to snag deals on certain games when they attend with 10 or more fellow supporters.