As the Canadian Football League and the CFL Players' Association begin negotiating towards a new collective bargaining agreement, reports have surfaced that suggest the potential for a reduction in the league's Canadian content.
There are growing concerns that the CFL may be considering changing the number of starting Canadians on each team from seven to four, an issue the CFLPA would thoroughly oppose.
"This is a Canadian game and it gives Canadians opportunities to come in and play," said Canadian wide receiver Paris Jackson of the B.C. Lions. "I feel that the Canadian level keeps on going up every year and I don't see why they should change it."
While the possibility exists that the issue was raised as a bargaining chip that the league can concede later on in the collective bargaining process, the concept of fewer Canadians has caused some to voice their concerns.
"It's very important to keep Canadians at the centre at a focal point of the Canadian Football League, because it's our game," stated B.C. linebacker Javier Glatt, a native of Calgary, Alberta. "This is our league, it's been around for almost 100 years and it's very important to continue to promote Canadian players in the CFL."
Glatt represents a large number of homegrown CFL players who attended a Canadian University before entering the league through the Canadian Draft.
"The kids that are recruited to [CIS] programs want to play in the CFL," explained the University of Calgary Dinos' head coach Blake Nill. "I think that coaches go after the kinds of individuals who have the potential to play in the CFL because they only make their programs better."
CFL general managers claim the issue with finding quality Canadian talent only arises later in the season once injuries have taken their toll. With an expansion franchise in Ottawa expected to be arriving in the near future, that search for talent north of the border will only become more difficult.
The CFLPA has long been opposed to reducing the number of Canadians on a roster, which has caused teams to now push towards getting rid of the league's designated import rule. The rule restricts three American players per team to playing on special teams or replacing an import starter (they cannot start).
Abolishing the rule wouldn't affect the number of Canadians on each roster, but it would increase the competition they face for earning starting spots, since 20 of the 24 starters could potentially be Americans.
Currently the breakdown of starters allows for one quarterback with no designation, 16 import players, and seven Canadians (non-imports). The current number has already been lowered from the mid-1990's when teams carried 10 Canadian starters.
- with files from CFL Insider David Naylor and TSN Reporter Farhan Lalji