The Canadian audience has a choice of two different leagues, one is the National Football League (NFL) and the other is Canadian Football League (CFL). It’s essentially the same sport but what are the real differences between the leagues? Some might have a case to call them separate sports providing a number of facts. In this article by the team of experts at Casivo, which is the leading online casino comparison site in Canada, these are 4 big differences between NFL and CFL.
Field dimensions
The dimensions are the first difference that sticks out, while both fields being rectangular there are major differences in the dimensions for end zones and total field measures which makes the games a bit different in many aspects.
The CFL field is 150 yards long with end zones being 20 yards long each while the total field width is 65 yards long, compared with the NFL which has a total field of 120 yards with 10 yard end zones and a width of 53 yards. Since the field is bigger in the CFL there are typically fewer downs in the Canadian league, which makes teams have a bit more passing oriented offense compared to the NFL.
Player Salaries and Wages
As known by now, football is a lot about the money and the NFL is at the top of the circus. The average salary of a CFL player comes in at between $60,000-$100,000 all depending on position and experience, many of which hold a second job at the off-season to supplement their football career.
In comparison, the average player salary in the NFL is around $2.7 million dollars, while the player who holds the record for salary is Patrick Mahomes, his contract stands at an average of $45 million.
While there are plenty of differences between the leagues, the forms of betting on the leagues stays pretty much the same. Canadian punters’ favorite way of enjoying betting on both leagues, all of which can be done at Bet99 where players get an exclusive bonus by betting on CFL and NFL.
Number of Players on the Field
Although the CFL has a field dimension bigger than the NFL they are compromising this with fielding 12 players compared to 11, making the total number of players on the field 24 compared to NFL’s 22. Both of the leagues field the same positions in the offense, while the 12th player in CFL typically takes a backfield position.
Scoring
The scoring in both leagues is what is the most similar. A touchdown is six points, field goal three points, two points for conversion run and safety together with a kicked extra point.
An exception is the single point, known as Rouge, which only exists in CFL. One point is awarded to the team when kicking:
- The kicking team misses the field goal or punts the ball to go through the end zone and out of bounds without being touched
- The kicking team misses the field goal or punts the ball to go through while the receiving team doesn’t return it out of their end zone. The kicking team then receives a point.
Conclusion
There are many more differences that stand out between the different leagues, all while the game play stays somewhat the same, which makes the sports great for viewing on their own while not comparing too much.
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