Hence the larger-sized field.
The Canadian football field is 110 yards long and 65 yards wide, compared to 100 yards by 53-1/3 for the American. The end zones on the Canadian field are anywhere from 15 to 20 yards deeper, while the goal posts stand on the goal line instead of in behind the end zone.
In fact, a ton of rules are different:
• In the Canadian game, teams have only three downs (instead of four) to convert a first down.
• A team can field 12 players (instead of 11) at once.
• Instead of only one player in motion before the ball is snapped, the team can have all offensive backfield players (except the quarterback and a player at either end of the offensive line, usually a wide receiver) in motion.
• Prior to the snap, teams must be a yard from the line of scrimmage, (rather than a mere football length from each other).
• Punt returners cannot call for a fair catch, but the kicking team has to allow a five-yard comfort zone around the return man until it is touched by the receiving team.
• A missed field goal or a punt touchback is worth one point, provided the return team cannot advance the ball out of their end zone.
• A receiver can only be bumped by a defender a yard beyond the line of scrimmage (rather than five yards allowed).
Although a lot of the rules in the CFL might seem silly (awarding a point for missing a field goal for example) they all work towards keeping the action moving as much as possible. In a close game, a missed field goal or a non-returned punt from the end zone can make the difference between winning and losing, so there is more of a likelihood of a runback attempt. Teams kicking field goals have to be prepared for that because they can and do result in touchdown returns.
The NFL game emphasises a slow and methodical approach of ball control, gaining ground in small increments with the occasional big play. The Canadian game can see a team go the length of the field in three plays. That's not to say there isn't a running game in the CFL, because there is, there's just more emphasis on rollouts then drives straight up the middle.
Article comments
1 - Matthew T. Sussman
Sounds like college football is the same as CFL, what with all the side to side running, spread attack.
Oh, and Chuck Ealey owned all.
2 - STM
I can't work out why you don't play a proper bloody game, all of you. There is only one code of football that is worthwhile either playing or watching.
That sport is Rugby, and is the one all the other oval-ball sports are derived from (except for that Melbourne abomination, Australian Football).
Rugby in its pure form (the 15-man game) is still the game they play in heaven.
You don't know what joy you are all missing.
3 - STM
It'd also be interesting to know BTW what The Canadian Rugby Football Union and Rugby Canada think of the fact that the Grey Cup was stolen from them and given to a game that looks way to much like American Football for my liking.
What an absolute disgrace!
4 - STM
Helmets. Padding. Forward passes (tsk tsk). Different teams for attack and defence (We wouldn't want them having to make a few tackles and get tired, would we, the poor dears).
Not a cauliflower ear or a decent set of boot*-rake scars or a proper broken nose among them. Come on North America ... embrace a man's game.
PS *Why is st(u)ds a banned word??
5 - Matthew T. Sussman
Ah, I always love it when someone from another country tells me that my nation's favorite sport is dumb.
6 - S.T.M
Come on Matthew. That's a piss poor response mate ... you've barely had a nibble on the bait. You can do much better than that old boy!
Jokes aside, I really DO wonder what Rugby Canada and the CRFU think about the fact the Grey Cup, a prize donated by a former Governor-General to be awarded to Canada's top RUGBY team, is now being handed out to a sport that now only barely resembles rugby and looks suspiciously like that other hybrid abomination played in North America which also has neck-to- knee padding, helmets, separate teams for attack and defence in case anyone gets too tired and forward bloody passes. The aforementioned Grey would no doubt be turning in his grave at the Americanisation of his beloved Canada.
So come on North America ... get that silly protective clobber off, learn how to cop a good smack in the mouth during a football match, have the same players tackling AND attacking and harden the f.ck up!
You are in grave danger of turning into a pack of sheilas. Hurry, you don't have much time.
7 - alessandro nicolo
STM, without that equipment getting hit by 300 pound super athletes would, well, hurt. In any event, the game evolved that way and we North American like it just fine. I am completely disinterested in getting into a futile debate about such things. I appreciate rugby for what it is even though I barely comprehend it. But that doesn' lead me to dismiss it. I know the Brits hang on to traditions and that's fine but football is revered in these parts. As for the CFL, the only shame is that Canadians don't support it. In fact, I plan to write a piece about this shortly.
8 - Richard Marcus
Alessendro
Thanks for that, its nice to see someone paying attention to what the article was about. The grey cup was never awarded to rugby teams - always rugby football, which in Canada was different from you refer to as Austrailian rules football and rugby.
When the first game of football was played in the late 1880's in Montreal it was called rugby football because it used some of the rules of rugby - no forward pass for example- but was a different game in that it used down linemen and the ball was whistled dead at the end of a play.
Suss, I've heard people make the comparison between CFL and the American college game before and although the motion rules are simillar, the game is still quite a bit different.
And yes Chuck Ealey was great - but Conradge Holloway and Tom Clements were still better.
9 - RJ Elliott
"The team in Saskatchewan " the Rough Riders " are probably the only publicly owned professional sports team in North America."
Hmm...I believe the Green Bay Packers are pretty close...
10 - Richard Marcus
RJ
When I was writing that line I did have some doubts hence the probably. I think its interesting the similarities between Green Bay and Saskatchewan - small markets that are increadibly loyal to a team, so much so that the community ensures their survival. In these days of sports big business those types of franchises may seem a little hokey to us urbane urban folk on occasion, but I think they reflect all the best elements of sports.
I wish there were more publicly owned teams.
Richard
11 - STM
Allesandro Nicolo wrote: "I am completely disinterested in getting into a futile debate about such things."
Well, that's good mate, because I am just taking the piss. Interesting that Richard mentions Australian Rules Football, which is an abomination originating in Melbourne (Bleak City) in the 1800s for cricketers to stay fit over winter and now played mostly in the the heathen southern and western states of Australia by men in tight shorts and matching, fetching sleeveless tops of the sort favoured by my youngest daughter (who also has matching handbags and lipstick).
Thankfully, while they all go mad about it down there, it hasn't really caught on in the other two civilised eastern states of New South Wales and Queensland, where the two rugby codes are still the games of choice.
Aussie rules has no rules really and is simply a free-for-all stop-start melee. Because of their obsession with this game in Victoria, normal people hate going there in "football" season.
My question to them is usually, if it's so good, how come it hasn't caught on anywhere else. Needless to say, it has led to threats of physical violence and questions about my paternity.
On north-American-style football, I will say that I find it a snore-a-thon despite spending countless hours trying to work out the subtle nuances that might make it more interesting for the unitiated. I have tried hard but my conclusion: there are no subtle nuances.
However, as a former rugby league player, I do admire the athleticism of the players. But I still can't work out why you need separate teams for attack and defence.
Also (serious question), if Canadian and American football are so similar but one goes largely unsupported, why not bite the bullet and combine the codes so that you've got one code encompassing the whole of North America?
And the best line in that story? Excitement is building in Winnipeg.
Someone should record it on camera just to prove it actually happened.
12 - RJ Elliott
Good article, btw... :)
13 - alessandro nicolo
STM, I love that. Good work. The rise of the NFL is a story onto itself. Hockey is byfar the most exciting sport from a purely entertaining standpoint. Yeah, my friends and I used to watch Aussie football and laugh our heads off it was so raw and insane. The question about the codes is a good one. The NFL itself is an amalgamation of a couple of leagues. The AFL had its subtle rules differences and it eventually merged with the NFL. The same with the AAFC 20 years before it. There has always been talk of Canadian teams joining the NFL - which is unlikely. It's a cultural thing and this is where it becomes convoluted. Canadians would scream bloody murder and would see it as a sign of given into to American culutral hegemony if the CFL were to ever join the NFL. Yet, Canadians don't support the CFL (except in some parts of the West) as much as they should. Another reason why the codes will not be codified is that the CFL offers a chance to American collegiate players (who make up the bulk of the lineups) a shot at playing football. Same with Canadian players. Just because they don't make the NFL doesn't mean they can't play. Still, the question has merit as the NFL has always borrowed from the CFL from the 'shotgun formation' to the 'man in motion' and so on. I believe the West Coast offense actually had its roots in the CFL too with the Calgary Stampeders. THe CFL is a neat, rebel, innovative league that has dies a thousand deaths. It's the oldest football (er, the North American version) league in the world. Canada is to America what Scotland is to England I suppose. The subtle differences is enough to keep the two separated.
Richard, I try.
14 - Sam
This is a great article. I am an Aussie who spent some time in Canada and later the US. I always found it odd that CFL and NFL were not playing the same game.
To all of you critics who have seen this as an opportunity to somehow drag in and denigrate Australia's national sport ..... I was born in Brisbane and spent most of my life living in Sydney and recently moved to Perth. The truth is that a lot of people in the northern states of Australia are scared to death that Aussie Rules will take over the country since the AFL has become a thriving national competition in the past decade. Having grown to love the game I can tell you that the sport is not just some "anomaly from Melbourne" - it is 150 year old (partly inspired by multiple sports including rugby) and has been played right across Australia for over 100 years - it may not be as popular as rugby in 2 states, but there are 8 states and territories in Australia making up over half the country's population and in almost all of them Aussie Rules is super popular just about everywhere else ... this is something that rugby couldn't dream of. Anyhow, these days the Brisbane Lions and Sydney Swans are the hottest tickets in town, whilst just about every rugby club outside of New South Wales and Queensland has dissapeared off the face of the earth.
What's more is that I had the suprising opportity to play Aussie Rules in Toronto. The game may never take off, like many American sports in Australia (besides basketball which had brief a honeymoon in the 1980s but has since shrivelled and died), but the point being is that it is no longer just a Melbourne or Australian game in this era of globalised sport, it is becoming a global brand that is also played by north americans. If you don't believe me, then go to Houston on Saturday 20th January and watch the USA Revolution take on Canada Northwind.
Back to topic, I probably prefer Canadian Football, but as the article says, the NFL is the hotter ticket. I wonder if a compromise rules game has ever been played. For the record, I also don't mind a bit of rugby - but in measured doses.
15 - CFLman
MONEY IS IN THE NFL BUT THE SHOW IS IN THE CFL !
One of your biggest problems is the small NFL field. Very talented but small football players have little chance in this league. But those exiting players are welcome in Canada. Like all players from the states, they have to adapt. Not all can, even if they where stars in college football or played years in the NFL. Of course you need fast and very mobile defense to stop them. You do not see in the CFL lineman that can’t run. Often you see those running 20 yards to make a bloc. Nearly every play it’s a battle for the field position. No such thing to watch a football untouched after a kick! Defense, offense and special teams are equally important in the CFL.
« I will like to point out how fast sometimes a CFL lineman can be. In the Winnipeg " Montreal game for example Dario Romero 300 pounds fellow ran after Kevin Glenn 189 pounds for a good distance and tackle him for a 2 yards lost. I couldn’t believe it! »
With only two downs to make ten yards, the offense is force to take chances. It’s a more open game. It’s very hard on quarterbacks. Not much place for error. CFL is a passing league. Wide field and the extra player makes defense reading more difficult. Passing on the wide side of a CFL field it’s very hard to master. To spread the defense, a quarterback has to do it. He cannot stay in his pocket all the time. He needs to throw from different places. Most of the CFL quarterbacks are mobile. Being a passing league and a bigger football field, it’s very hard on receivers too. They run a lot and have only 20 seconds between each play. In the first year in the CFL, former NFL players or those relieved from training camps, many have legs aches. Endurance is very important in the CFL. Lots of speed and very little time to catch your breath!
The NFL it’s all about the outside of the box. Lot’s of glamour, show of, but very little in the inside. That’s why in the Super bowls they talk more about the TV commercials and the half time show then the game by itself! NFL is very rich. For 16 years they support a 30 millions lost each year in Europe. Remember, they played the NFL’s style of football! If the show was that good, Europe will steel have football!
We all know with money you can sell anything to anyone! This is the real success of the NFL, not on the quality of the show. Dollar for dollar in this aspect, CFL outperformed NFL by far! The NFL is the most over-rated sport presentation in North America if not the world. The NFL survives on slick well done media hype. The game itself is boring when compared to the CFL or in fact U.S. College football. NFL can never replicate the CFL feel of excitement and authenticity.
CFL is the only pro sport left not being corrupted by money. I do not want to be honed by NFL and turn it to a circus. CFL game is a lot more entertaining, faster the players are not spoil brats. Many former NFL players don’t even make a CFL team. It is well under estimated league. Ask Joe Kapp, Dieter Brock, Tom Clements, Warren Moon, Doug Flutie, Jos Theisman, David Archer and Jeff Garcia to name a few.
« As an American (and huge CFL fan) we could only be so fortunate as to gain added exposure to your great league. The CFL is by far the most exciting brand of football out there - most Americans would be absolutely shocked with the quality of play. If the NFL and NCAA were to adapt a few of your rules» USA CFL FAN, on Nov 20, 2005, Michigantech.