A CFL Agreement with the Mexican Football League?

[jerrym]

After a visit to Mexico, CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie says a deal between the CFL and the Professional American Football League of Mexico (LFA) is possible but has not been formalized yet. This could involve bringing the best Mexican players into the CFL under a new category called "global player".



“There is a lot of passion on both sides for the idea of a partnership between the CFL and LFA,” the league said in statement. “But there is no agreement in place and none has been reached. Lots of details remain to be worked out.”
The Mexican league, enthusiastic about a partnership, held a press conference with Ambrosie Wednesday night in Mexico City. ...


“Our plan in the short term is to welcome some of the very best players from Mexico into our great league under a new category ‘global player,'” Ambrosie said during the media availability. “We’ve been talking to our governors, our teams, our players about the opportunities that this would create to expand the game of football, to bring to Canadian football and players from around the world to excite them and thrill them.”
A number of times during the press conference, Ambrosie refers to an agreement with the LFA as if it’s a done deal.
“We have an opportunity today to begin a project together as partners to expand international football, to grow the game of football both here in Mexico and in Canada and around the world,” Ambrosie said. “This partnership is the first of what we plan on being an alliance between our two great countries, our two great leagues and the potential for that alliance to expand all around the world.”
But the league now says that’s not the case.

http://3downnation.com/2018/10/04/cfl-no-agreement-mexican-football-league/

[AngeloV]

Growing our game is great, but I don't see how this really does anything for the league.

[OV Argo]

Growing our game is great, but I don't see how this really does anything for the league.


I don't get the point of this either AV. Not like Mexico is going to be producing talent that would be upgrades over the talent now in the CFL (at least highly doubtful anyways) . And - it's an ultra minor sport in Mexico so WTF does Ambrosie feel hooking up the historic CFL with some dinky little league a thousand miles away is going to accomplish ? CFL fans will rush to see some Mexican "Global" players ???; the Mexican TV market is going to produce record viewing #s to boost the CFL ???

Some of the BOG types running the CFL don't seem to get it about marketing the CFL in it's homeland. Get to a 10 team league; and start promoting and respecting Canadian talent that can stock the CFL. The notion of "international football" is garbage/nonsense; that would be American football that Canadian football would be expected to comply with = hor$e$hit.

[AngeloV]

Some of the BOG types running the CFL don't seem to get it about marketing the CFL in it's homeland. Get to a 10 team league; and start promoting and respecting Canadian talent that can stock the CFL. The notion of "international football" is garbage/nonsense; that would be American football that Canadian football would be expected to comply with = hor$e$hit.

Yeah, agree especially with this part. I don't see the CFL surpassing or even coming close to the popularity of the NFL worldwide. At least Ambrosie has made a 10th team a priority. Overall, I like what he has done, but I don't get what he's trying to accomplish here. Maybe I'm missing something here, which is entirely possible.

[Argo57]

I don't get the point of this either AV. Not like Mexico is going to be producing talent that would be upgrades over the talent now in the CFL (at least highly doubtful anyways) . And - it's an ultra minor sport in Mexico so WTF does Ambrosie feel hooking up the historic CFL with some dinky little league a thousand miles away is going to accomplish ? CFL fans will rush to see some Mexican "Global" players ???; the Mexican TV market is going to produce record viewing #s to boost the CFL ???

Some of the BOG types running the CFL don't seem to get it about marketing the CFL in it's homeland. Get to a 10 team league; and start promoting and respecting Canadian talent that can stock the CFL. The notion of "international football" is garbage/nonsense; that would be American football that Canadian football would be expected to comply with = hor$e$hit.

Agree OV, this is a bit of a joke IMO.
As Angelo said the NFL’s worldwide popularity is almost impossible to rival so I don’t see what the CFL has to gain from this?
How about expanding the roster eligibility for a couple more Canadian players per team who I am willing to bet are vastly superior in talent and training to any Mexican player that maybe available.

[Mightygoose]

Don't look too much into this as trying to get Toronton's Mexican community to watch the CFL or getting Mexicans to watch the CFL in big numbers.

This is about player development. With the start up of the AAF and the possibility of the XFL in 2020. In the history of all these spring leagues, there have never been 2 of them running at the same time. Many will question the longevity of these leagues and rightfully so, but the league would be foolish to dismiss them. It will as it will create more opportunities for players. Especially ones that are currently called internationals


On the other hand, the game of gridiron football has lots of room to grow internationally. Why not tap into other parts of the world to bring in new talent? As for the national ratio, sure they could raise it but how many quality Canadians are out there that are in game shape? Well a growing league in another part of the world needs players to fill out their rosters. In 3 short years, they have grown from 4 to 6 and now to be 8 teams in one 2019. A nice place to send some Canadian born players to compete and be in better game shape than being ages out of college for X number of years.

Growing the game is just as important as growing the business, so I applaud this move. At the same time, I don't see why they have to create a global player designation. Why not just considering Mexican players internationals?

[jerrym]

The CFL will sign a letter of intent with the semi-pro Mexican Liga de Futbol Americano (LFA) on Friday, according to Commissioner Randy Ambrosie. He is also looking at the possibility of working with the Ligue de Football Professionnel in France.



“It just lays out the framework of our relationship,” Ambrosie said. “The idea was, ‘Can we bring the best players from Mexico to the CFL and can we send (Canadian) players there to continue to develop their skills and through that come back and play in the CFL? I’d love to see how do we get our world-class coaches to help them? Can we invite them to our training camps? Can we go there and do some coaching clinics? It’s all about sharing resources and then it’s going to lay out an opportunity to potential play a CFL game or games in Mexico.” ...

By signing the letter of intent, Ambrosie said the prospect of staging a CFL regular-season game in Mexico City next year will take a big step towards becoming a reality. And for now, Ambrosie said he’s setting his sights on staging one game there in 2019. “We’ll focus on one super successful game,” he said.

But Ambrosie isn’t done with taking the CFL globally. He said he’s also spoken with officials of the Ligue de Football Professionnel in France about the two leagues working together.

Ambrosie’s desire to take the CFL internationally comes at a time when the league is heading into an uncertain off-season. The CFL and CFL Players’ Association will begin collective bargaining talks in the New Year with the present deal set to expire in May. Last time around, negotiations got testy before an agreement was hammered out and this time around bargaining is expected to be contentious. Also this season both Toronto and Montreal struggled at the turnstiles, while questions remain whether owner David Braley will sell the B.C. Lions. But Ambrosie doesn’t apologize for making growth a CFL priority.

“Growth is a solution and those three markets are a really good place to start,” Ambrosie said. “Those cities aren’t national cities but international cities and let’s use world juniors as an example.
“World juniors have an average minute audience rating of almost 3.1 million fans while the Memorial Cup, which is unbelievably good hockey with the same players basically, but the domestic version of that game has an average minute audience rating of 280,000 fans. There’s an attraction for people to be interested in international events and you only have to look at the power of the Olympics, Ryder Cup and World Cup. These things drive fan interest.”

The CFL is looking to grow in Canada as the Maritime Football Limited Partnership is working to secure an expansion franchise for Halifax. Ambrosie reiterated the biggest challenge that group faces is the construction of a suitable stadium. ...

Earlier this month, the NFL moved a game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Rams from Mexico City to LA due to unsuitable field conditions at Estadio Azteca. But Ambrosie said it’s too early for that to be a concern for the CFL.


http://3downnation.com/2018/11/22/35375/

[jerrym]

On Friday the CFL and the Mexican Liga de Futbol Americano (LFA) signed a letter of intent to work together on several projects. I am glad to see the Canadian game go international. I just hope that the planning and execution is better than the previous expansion into the US.


“This is the first step towards increasing the CFL’s international footprint and we are happy to take that step with our friends at the LFA,” said Randy Ambrosie, Commissioner of the CFL.

Oscar Perez, Chief Executive Officer of the LFA, added: “As a young and growing league, the LFA looks forward to working with the CFL to grow football in both Mexico and Canada.” Alejandro Jaimes, Commissioner of the LFA, added: “We have much to learn from a league about to play its 106th championship and we are confident we also have much to offer.”
While not a binding contract, the letter of intent does list projects the leagues are jointly planning, including:

A CFL scouting combine in Mexico City this winter for LFA players.
Increased co-operation and sharing of resources.
The possible playing of CFL games in Mexico in the future.
“There are so many possibilities, including possible Spanish language CFL broadcasts in Mexico, a Spanish version of the CFL’s popular Football Frenzy video game and merchandise agreements,” Ambrosie said. “Someday, LFA teams may be aligned with CFL counterparts. But we have a lot to work out and learn first. This is a wonderful opportunity to develop a blueprint we can use to also develop positive ties with more of the leagues in the more than 30 other countries that play gridiron football.” ...

A special Spanish-language broadcast of TSN’s production of the game will air live on ESPN3 in Mexico. Mexican sportscaster Aaron Soriano will do the play-by-play with current Toronto Argonauts rush end Frank Beltre providing the colour commentary.
https://www.cfl.ca/2018/11/23/cfl-lfa-sign-letter-intent/

[gilthethrill]

Ambrosie touched on the fact that is for developing Canadian kids after university. Only thing is, young Canadian (sorry, National) players have been going to Europe to continue their careers for quite some time. I don't recall many, if any have returned to play in the CFL as the level in those countries at this time is not very high.

Besides all the best talent will sign with the AAFL anyway🤔

[doubleblue]

IMO this has to be about expanding the viewership of the CFL. Maybe getting some Canadian kids some playing experience. Who is going to pay their salaries? The CFL or the Mexican teams. How many Mexican players are they going to find better than any American import.
Or is Randy thinking about expanding the CFL rosters by adding a Mexican players or two. So lets see 3 QB's, 21 Canadians, 20 Americans and 1 or 2 Mexicans for a game day total of 45 or 46. So how are the Mexican players going to be slotted into the ratio? Oh we'll worry about that later, after a new TV deal is signed in Mexico. :)

[jerrym]

The Liga de Futbol Americano Professional (LFA) has announced that it will hold a combine on January 12-13 in Mexico City for players hoping to play in the CFL next season. Not coordinating the announcement with the CFL may create problems and there could be even bigger problems with the CFL Players' Association over bringing these players into the league.



Two representatives from each CFL club will work with the LFA staff to determine players of “export quality.” The next day, there will be another “draft” in which players will be selected “for each of the Canadian teams.”Sources say that the general managers from all nine CFL teams will be in attendance. ...

The LFA has also sent invite letters to players. “As you have probably heard, the LFA recently signed a collaboration agreement with the CFL through which we will be having a series of joint activities,” it reads in part. “The first of them will be a combine to recruit Mexican talent to be taken to play professionally for the Canadian teams.”
Of course, the event hasn’t been officially announced by the CFL and there was some, uh, confusion the last time the LFA got out in front of its Canadian partners.
(http://3downnation.com/2018/10/04/cfl-no-agreement-mexican-football-league/)
Nonetheless, this looks to be the next step after CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie and LFA officials Oscar Perez and Alejandro Jaimes signed a letter of intent (http://3downnation.com/2018/11/23/cfl-lfa-sign-letter-intent-grow-football-canada-mexico/) at November’s Grey Cup to work together on several projects, including playing a CFL game in Mexico City. TSN has reported (https://www.tsn.ca/good-chance-cfl-plays-two-games-in-mexico-next-season-1.1202839) that there is a “very real possibility” the CFL will play two regular season games there in 2019 but there is no game in Mexico on the schedule released this week.
(http://3downnation.com/2018/12/20/complete-2019-cfl-schedule/)
The letter of intent is not a binding contract between the two leagues but an agreement to increase co-operation and share resources.

It will also be interesting to see what the CFL Players’ Association has to say about the addition of Mexican players, particularly with the current collective bargaining agreement slated to expire in May 2019.

http://3downnation.com/2018/12/22/mexican-league-says-holding-combine-put-players-cfl/

[paulwoods13]

Not coordinating the announcement with the CFL may create problems and there could be even bigger problems with the CFL Players' Association over bringing these players into the league.


I think you may be reading too much into this. The fact the CFL did not formally announce this before invitations went out is no big deal, and as for the CFLPA having a problem with it, obviously anything can be discussed at the bargaining table. The league can't unilaterally change the CBA to (for instance) create a new category in addition to NATs and INTs. Ambrosie has made no public promises about any Mexicans actually playing in the league in 2019 and in fact pretty much implied during GC Week that it likely won't be happening, and that this tryout camp is mostly to assess the playing level of players from that league.

[gilthethrill]

I will be interested to see the test results and size of the Mexican players.

[jerrym]

Drew Edwards and Justin Dunk discuss the value of the league outreach to the Mexican league, the impact of the Mexcian combine on the CFL and whether it might blow up in the CFL's face because it looks bush league, starting at 25:10 of the podcast below.

https://soundcloud.com/3downnation/josh-gordon-cfl-sked-revisiting-2018-predictions

[OV Argo]

I will be interested to see the test results and size of the Mexican players.


Speedy Gonzalez runs a 3.6 forty - while being chased by El Pussy Gato ?

[jerrym]

Here's some more information of the combine and Ambrosie's international goals.



Mexico’s Liga de Futbol Americano Profesional is hosting a combine on January 13 for leading pros and university seniors who hope to play in Canada with a draft to follow on January 14.

Estadio Azul, a 33,000-seat stadium in Mexico City, will be the site of the combine as 45 athletes participate in the bench press (225 lbs), vertical jump, broad jump, 40-yard dash, 3-cone, short shuttle and positional drills as well as interviews with representatives of CFL teams.

“This is an exciting step forward for our partnership with the LFA,” said Randy Ambrosie, Commissioner of the CFL. “Over time, we want to expand the CFL’s international footprint, and grow the game of football everywhere, by giving the world’s top players access to our league and providing more young Canadians an opportunity to play and develop in other countries before possibly returning to play in the CFL.”

https://www.cfl.ca/2018/12/27/lfa-showcase-top-players-cfl-scouts/

[gilthethrill]

I think receiver ANDRES SALGADO GOMEZ has a good chance of being selected 1st over all if in fact a draft is held after the combine.

[AngeloV]

I think receiver ANDRES SALGADO GOMEZ has a good chance of being selected 1st over all if in fact a draft is held after the combine.

Is he the master of the hurricanrana?

[OV Argo]

Wonder if this is Ambrosie's brainchild alone or if some BOG types were on board.

The idea may be well intentioned somehow, but it's basically daft and whacky IMO. Does Ambrosie actually believe people in other parts of the world are actually going to start caring about and following Canadian football ? WTF? - give your head a shake pal. And the Mexican minor football program may well produce a few real good pro talent players, but i have some doubts it would be much at all. Why no focus instead on promoting Canadian talent and marketing the game wayyyyyyyyy better in your home country?

[Argo57]

Wonder if this is Ambrosie's brainchild alone or if some BOG types were on board.

The idea may be well intentioned somehow, but it's basically daft and whacky IMO. Does Ambrosie actually believe people in other parts of the world are actually going to start caring about and following Canadian football ? WTF? - give your head a shake pal. And the Mexican minor football program may well produce a few real good pro talent players, but i have some doubts it would be much at all. Why no focus instead on promoting Canadian talent and marketing the game wayyyyyyyyy better in your home country?

I must admit I don’t get the whole thing myself, plenty of good Canadian players who get no chance to play pro.
Why not simply scout the Mexican league if your looking to expand your talent base and give any players that show promise a tryout?

[ArgoGabe22]

I don't think it hurts to help improve the Mexican league with a partnership, by holding a combine, maybe hold clinics but end it at that. I don't see this helping the CFL at all.

[AngeloV]

I have no problem with it. If they can find a hidden gem through this, that would be great. As long as there are no guarantees of roster spots, there is no downside here.

[doubleblue]

Most teams could use a speedy Gonzales.

[ArgoRavi]

Wonder if this is Ambrosie's brainchild alone or if some BOG types were on board.

The idea may be well intentioned somehow, but it's basically daft and whacky IMO. Does Ambrosie actually believe people in other parts of the world are actually going to start caring about and following Canadian football ? WTF? - give your head a shake pal. And the Mexican minor football program may well produce a few real good pro talent players, but i have some doubts it would be much at all. Why no focus instead on promoting Canadian talent and marketing the game wayyyyyyyyy better in your home country?


I must admit I don’t get the whole thing myself, plenty of good Canadian players who get no chance to play pro.
Why not simply scout the Mexican league if your looking to expand your talent base and give any players that show promise a tryout?

Part of this initiative is to provide Canadian players with an opportunity to play elsewhere and further develop their skills before taking a shot at the CFL. It is an important part that isn't getting the attention it deserves.

[gilthethrill]

Part of this initiative is to provide Canadian players with an opportunity to play elsewhere and further develop their skills before taking a shot at the CFL. It is an important part that isn't getting the attention it deserves.

Canadian players are free to play pro in leagues over in Europe and other countries too Ravi, without an official partner ship. In some cases they play overseas, but never step onto a CFL field.

[Argo57]

Part of this initiative is to provide Canadian players with an opportunity to play elsewhere and further develop their skills before taking a shot at the CFL. It is an important part that isn't getting the attention it deserves.

Import ratio limits how many Canadians will play in the CFL, seems like a stretch that Canadian players who have played Canadian university or NCAA football will enhance their skills in the Mexican league?

[gilthethrill]

Import ratio limits how many Canadians will play in the CFL, seems like a stretch that Canadian players who have played Canadian university or NCAA football will enhance their skills in the Mexican league?

I wonder how many Canadian players will be allowed on Mexican rosters? The LAF PA has some work to do.

[OV Argo]

I wonder how many Canadian players will be allowed on Mexican rosters? The LAF PA has some work to do.


I wonder how many Canadians will be hired to be GMs and coaches in the Mexican league; they could then keep pushing for more Canadian players on rosters there, and tell Mexican QBs to take a hike. ;o)

[jerrym]

The inaugural CFL draft of Mexican players on Monday will be carried out in a different manner than traditional CFL drafts. For finishing last the Argos, will have 9 balls in the selection bin, the Als will have 8 balls, down to one for the Grey Cup champion Calgary Stampeders. Will any of these players play in the CFL?



The length of Monday’s draft itself has yet to be determined, and will be influenced by the level of talent on display at Sunday’s player combine at Estadio Azul.

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Fifty-one Mexican players from the country’s lone professional league and university ranks will work out for CFL scouts and staff. They will perform a 225-pound bench press, vertical jump, broad jump, 40-yard dash, three-cone, short shuttle and positional drills. They will also be interviewed by CFL team personnel.
“Once the coaches and GMs have had a chance to do their assessment we’ll sit down as a group and determine how many rounds of the draft there will be,” said Ambrosie.

“We are thinking of two different categories. We want the teams to draft players they think can potentially come to training camp and make a difference on a CFL roster this year. And the second group will be a group of young men who might not be ready to come to a CFL camp this year but this would allow the teams to create a relationship with these young men and it might connect them to their coaches and start a discussion about some development requirements around getting bigger and stronger, and working on techniques that would help these players get better.”
The original plan had been for the nine CFL teams to draft up to two players each. It now looks far more likely there will be four players chosen per team, for a total of 36.

The positional breakdown of the 51 combine invitees is as follows: 12 receivers, 10 defensive linemen, seven DBs, six LBs, five offensive linemen, four kickers, three RBs, three QBs and one fullback.
Receiver Aldo Narvaez is the smallest player on the combine list, at five-foot-six, 154 pounds. Offensive lineman Dario Martinez is the biggest, at six-foot-two, 330.

https://torontosun.com/sports/football/cfl/fun-element-cfl-set-for-inaugural-draft-of-mexican-talent

[jerrym]

Ambrosie discusses the CFL-LFA partnership, arguing that some Canadian players could develop in international leagues, as well as having Mexican and other international players come to the CFL. Chris Jones thinks some Canadians could build a career starting out in the CFL while Ed Hervey comments below on a kicker he thinks might make it the CFL.

One concern I have is that a minimum CFL salary would be a great income for someone for Mexico, possibly enabling the CFL to replace or threaten to replace a Canadian on the bubble with a Mexican willing to take a lower salary if this works out over time, although that is a big if.



Ambrosie is hoping that the LFA partnership can give those nationals that might be on the cusp of a CFL career a chance to continue playing, gain experience and come back to Canada better for it.
He points to conversations he had with UBC coach Blake Nill and University of Montreal coach Danny Maciocia about so many young Canadian players’ football dreams dying if they didn’t make it to the CFL.

“What’s been happening in these conversations with football federations from around the world is we are talking very seriously about this two-way flow of players,” Ambrosie said. “Canadian kids having a chance to go out and play, whether it be after junior or after college and continue their love (for the game), but then the best players from these leagues around the world having an opportunity to come and play in our league. That’s really been at the core of this strategy as it’s been developing.” ...

Fresh off of extending his contract with the Saskatchewan Roughriders through 2020, Chris Jones said the idea of Canadian development is something he’s lobbied for for years.
“We have a few Canadians that are young, developmental-type guys on our practice roster,” Jones said. “I wish we had five more spots. I’ve advocated trying to add five more spots just for Canadians to try to develop the Canadian talent. If they would allow those kids like an Emmanuel Adusei (https://www.cfl.ca/players/emmanuel-adusei/163207/), a Mathieu Breton (https://www.cfl.ca/players/mathieu-breton/164062/), we’d allow those guys to go down to Mexico and play where they can stay in a uniform and (get to) block and tackle. I would think regardless of who’s coaching them, that’d have some kind of residual effect on them.”

There will be at least one face that’s familiar to the talent evaluators this weekend. Kicker Jose Maltos is from Monterrey and played at the Universidad Autonoma de Nuevo in northeastern Mexico, close to the US-Texas border. He attended the BC Lions’ training camp in 2018 and was one of the final cuts. He also spent time with the New Orleans Saints in 2013.
“He was very good with us and it was just unfortunate for him when it got to the game situations that he was a bit shaky,” Lions GM Ed Hervey said. Torey Hunter, the Lions director of player personnel and player development, put the 27-year-old on the Lions’ radar. He was primarily an extra body at camp to keep then-Lions kicker Ty Long (https://www.cfl.ca/players/ty-long/162883/) fresh. He was very good and we’d invite him back, possibly,” Hervey said. “He’s definitely going to be one of the ones worth giving a shot to because he’s got a strong leg and he kicks with distance. I think if he gets a couple more cracks at it he’ll be able to make a name for himself.”
https://www.cfl.ca/2019/01/12/oleary-mexican-combine-opens-doors-cfl-lfa/

[OV Argo]

Canadian players are free to play pro in leagues over in Europe and other countries too Ravi, without an official partner ship. In some cases they play overseas, but never step onto a CFL field.

Yep, they have been for years & years; I guess Ambrosie doesn't get this. This baby of his is very mis-placed thinking IMO and a pipe dream. The CFL and Canadian game needs wayyyyyyyy more focus and strengthening in it's own country. No other country that has any interest in gridiron football is going to give a rat's @$$ about Canadian ball when they have been force fed American football and the massive NFL hype machine. And if there is some outstanding talent in Mexico just better than and dying to replace current Canadian talent that doesn't make the CFL now (and in come cases doesn't even get a try-out in the pro league in their own country) and is willing to travel a 1000 miles to get here, Id love to see ANY real proof of this. What a load of garbage IMO.

Ambrosie and some CFL BOG myopics could now be holding a Combine / all-star game up here, in their own country, and featuring top draftable Canadian talent (those from U Sports and US college ball, plus some Junior ball stars) - to showcase and shine a light on top young Canadian football talent that is so lacking now; instead of this Mexican fiasco / pipe-dream.

[paulwoods13]

I don't recall anyone suggesting that Mexicans would be considered NATs, and I'm certain that wouldn't happen without being collectively bargained, so I'm really not gonna worry about Canadian players being "replaced."

[gilthethrill]

Any idea where the results of the Mexican Combine can be found? I thought CFL.ca would have that information.

[jerrym]

Any idea where the results of the Mexican Combine can be found? I thought CFL.ca would have that information.

I couldn't find detailed results but I did locate a little info on results.



Octavio Gonzalez helped his cause by posting the best result in the bench press: 33 repetitions. Wide Receiver Gerardo Alvarez of the LFA’s Dinos, located in Saltillo, posted a time of 4.65 seconds in the electronic 40 yard dash. Diego Viamontes, a wide receiver with Mexico City’s Mayas, posted the top time in the shuttle: 4.20 seconds.

https://www.cfl.ca/2019/01/13/lfa-athletes-put-paces-cfl-teams-combine/

[jerrym]

Here's some comments from David William Naylor on the Mexican draft.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Consensus from talking to CFL coaches and GM’s at Mexico City combine: of the 50 players here, roughly a half-dozen would not look out of place in a CFL camp, another dozen could be developed into camp-worthy players and roughly 30 have no CFL pro potential. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CFL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CFL</a></p>&mdash; David William Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSNDaveNaylor/status/1084563242469474304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The elephant in the room on the CFL’s international vision is just where would these players fit on a roster? New spots or taking existing spots? That ought to be an interesting conversation with the CFLPA. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CFL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CFL</a></p>&mdash; David William Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSNDaveNaylor/status/1084615558191071232?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>




<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">The CFL is strongly considering holding another international combine during the current off-season, this time in Germany. There’s a lot still to be determined about this international strategy but it is definitely happening. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CFL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CFL</a></p>&mdash; David William Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSNDaveNaylor/status/1084605693250990080?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Mexican college teams are stronger than pro teams here because most of the best college players never turn pro. Having a path to the CFL they believe would change that, thus strengthening the domestic pro game in Mexico. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CFL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CFL</a></p>&mdash; David William Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSNDaveNaylor/status/1084553112722042881?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 13, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">I certainly understand those skeptical of the CFL’s international vision. But the fact is there is no obvious way to significantly grow revenues within Canada. The league has been trying that for 30 years.<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/CFL?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#CFL</a></p>&mdash; David William Naylor (@TSNDaveNaylor) <a href="https://twitter.com/TSNDaveNaylor/status/1084608660112924674?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 14, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[jerrym]

Here's a list of who was drafted. One notable difference from the CFL's own draft is that only one OL was taken in the first 11 draft picks, perhaps not surprising considering the size of the average Mexican. Also, unlike the CFL draft, the Argos who will pick first in the CFL draft, picked fourth because this was based on a lottery system described in post #29.



ROUND 1

<tbody style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">
OVERALL
CFL TEAM
PLAYER
POSITION
TEAM


1
EDM
Diego Jair Viamontes Cotera
WR
Mayas


2
OTT
José Carlos Maltos Diaz
K
Fundidores


3
MTL
Enrique Gerardo Yenny Romero
K
Borregos ITESM Tol


4
TOR
Uriel Martínez Bernal
DE
Tigres UANL


5
HAM
José Humberto Noriega Montiel
WR
Artilleros


6
SSK
Rene Francisco Brassea Valenzuela
OL
Fundidores


7
BC
Octavio Noé Gonzalez Chapa
DL
Fundidores


8
WPG
Sergio Shiaffino Pérez
DB
Dinos


9
CGY
Andres Salgado Gómez
WR
Condors

</tbody>
ROUND 2

<tbody style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">
OVERALL
CFL TEAM
PLAYER
POSITION
TEAM


10
EDM
Daniel Carrete Landeros
LB
Dinos


11
OTT
Guillermo Alberto Villalobos Zanabria
WR
Mexicas


12
MTL
Diego Rojas Kuhlmann
OL
Borregos ITESM Tol


13
TOR
Jose David Casarrubias Santiago
DE
Leones UAMN


14
HAM
Omar Alejandro Cojolum Delgado
RB
Mayas


15
SSK
Carlos Sebastián Olvera Rivas
WR
Aztecas UDLAP


16
BC
Fernando Richarte Martinez
WR
Dinos


17
WPG
Eduardo Manuel Hernández Reyes
S
Aztecas UDLAP


18
CGY
Oscar Hugo Silva Reta
K
Dinos

</tbody>
ROUND 3

<tbody style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border: 0px; outline: 0px; vertical-align: baseline; background-color: transparent;">
OVERALL
CFL TEAM
PLAYER
POSITION
TEAM


19
EDM
Jose Alfonsin Romero
DB
Artilleros


20
OTT
Maximiliano Soto Esquer
DE
Borregos ITESM Mty


21
MTL
Juan Manuel Márquez Tamayo
CB
Aztecas UDLAP


22
TOR
Chistian Alejandro Hernández Delgado
LB
Fundidores


23
HAM
Luis Humberto López Tinoco
RB
Condors


24
SSK
Francisco Javier García Ramírez
CB
Fundidores


25
BC
Gerardo Elias Alvarez Ovalle
WR
Dinos


26
WPG
Gabriel Amavizca Ortiz
K
Lobos BUAP


27
CGY
Guillermo Caldéron Leal
DL
Aztecas UDLAP

</tbody>


https://www.cfl.ca/2019/01/14/mexicos-top-talent-selected-cfl-lfa-draft/

[jerrym]

Dan Barnes discusses some of the players selected below.



“If there is one guy out of this whole thing who ends up playing in the CFL, that’s great,” said the Ottawa Redblacks head coach. “And you never know. I think that’s what’s kind of fun about it, finding those players who come out of nowhere and all of a sudden they start contributing.”
That one guy might be Gerardo Alvarez. If anybody runs a 4.6-second time in the 40-yard dash on grass, Hervey said with the knowing smile of a man who has been through enough of these dog and pony shows, you’ll hear it.
Sure enough, near the end of the morning testing session, Alvarez ran a blazing 4.64 and sent up a joyful chorus of whoops from Liga de Futbol Americano Profesional officials and the smattering of fans who watched the proceedings from the lower bowl at Estadio Azul.
So the kid has straight line speed, and that’s something. He’s physically fit, too. He can jump and move laterally. And he can catch the football. He was named the top receiver in the LFA in its inaugural 2016 season. (Alvarez was selected 25th by BC) ...

Humberto Noriega got a glowing reference from his former university coach Eric Fisher and was seen chatting with Calgary’s head coach Dave Dickenson. ... But Noriega came up with a left leg injury and wasn’t at his best on Sunday. He was the top receiver in university ball for three years, set a national record with 68 receptions in nine games, won three national titles, and went on to play with the Artilleros of the LFA. He’s been a practising lawyer for a year. (He was selected fifth overall by Hamilton). ...

Octavio Gonzalez, a D lineman and fine physical specimen who impressed in one-on-one drills. (selected seventh overall by BC)

Kicker Carlos Maltos was in the B.C. camp last year, but lost a job to Ty Long. No shame in that, of course. (selected second overall by Ottawa)

https://torontosun.com/sports/football/in-search-of-that-one-guy-at-the-cfl-combine

[jerrym]

Ambrosie announced the league is carrying out discussions for CFL TV rights in Mexico. He also says we may have international franchises in the future and the CFL could become the "epicentre of international football". I'll believe the latter when it happens.



CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie told media members in Ottawa on Saturday morning that the league is in discussions for TV rights into Mexico.
“We went to Mexico for the scouting combine and the draft,” said the commissioner, who later met with select season-ticket holders at TD Place. “We had 87 million impressions generated that weekend. We were 15 minutes back in Canada when we had the first of two Mexican broadcast companies call and ask about buying our TV rights for the 2019 season. We’re actually in negotiations right now on what could be our first real international broadcast partnership, and that came out of Mexico. We could see very obvious tangible benefits. It will start small. How does that phrase go? From the smallest acorn, the mighty oak tree grows. You have to start somewhere.” ...

“Talk about things like the Premier League and how they’ve seen their entrance into the international world of soccer as opposed to what used to be a national league in England called the EFL, now we’ve seen some of the greatest rises in players’ compensation of any sport in the world,” said Ambrosie. “The Premier League wasn’t preordained to be the most important international soccer league in the world, they just decided to do something differently. I can’t imagine why we would think the CFL couldn’t sit in a similar spot where we decide to be the aggregator of all these nations that have football, create opportunities for Canadian kids to go play in these countries, bring the best of those players here, generate TV revenues around the world and ultimately to the benefit of all of our most important stakeholders — the players being one of those groups. I can’t really imagine I’d be doing my job if I wasn’t thinking about how to grow this game so the players could ultimately benefit.” ...

“We can ultimately be the epicentre of the international football community; maybe not as the Canadian Football League, but as the CFL,” he said. “We’re sitting in TD Place. If you went to the U.S. today and asked what the TD stands for, they don’t know — it’s just TD. The CFL will stand for whatever people want it to stand for. It will be a big international brand. It will be a place where people watch players from all around the world playing this super fun and super fast game. When’s the last time you saw a CFL game that was 3-3 at halftime. There’s no reason, in my mind, that the world, when shown how cool this game is, won’t embrace it. But we’re never going to know unless we try. We may end up playing a game in Mexico as early as 2020. I see a day where we might end up playing a game or two in Europe or other parts of the world. I definitely see a day where we think about broadcast ratings not through the narrow lens about how many fans watch here or in the U.S., but how many fans are watching our games internationally.” ...

“We had a group from Mexico express interest in buying a CFL franchise,” said Ambrosie. “One day, we’re going to wake up and we may have more than one or two internationals who own a franchise in the CFL.
“In business, I think about risk and reward. The opportunity to be a big international league should be evaluated by the risk that it creates. We went to Mexico for that scouting combine — our friends in Mexico were our hosts — it cost us the plane tickets to get down there. If this TV contract works the way it will, we will have immediate return with almost no risk. That’s a good business model.
“(Bringing international players to the CFL Combine in two weeks is) very low cost to us. The potential we get two, three, five, seven kids out of that group that could become CFL stars could create a high opportunity. If one of these kids comes from France or two come from Germany or there’s one from Finland, do you think their fans might want to tune in and watch our great game? This answer is yes. This model has a very big potential return with a very low risk. When you start talking about putting franchises out in the world, that starts to change your risk profile. I’d just as soon right now stick in this quadrant. Let this play out, build some momentum in this quadrant for a while, then maybe one day we’ll say there’s an opportunity to do it differently. ...


“It’s not good to have a 50-year season-ticket holder mad at you, and I said, ‘Can I ask why?’ He said, ‘Well, my dad’s just mad you’re putting a team in Germany.’ I said, ‘OK, we can probably put that to rest, we’re not planning on having a team in Germany, at least not for the foreseeable future.’ ”
​https://ottawasun.com/sports/football/cfl-2-0-could-get-early-payoff-with-mexican-tv-contract

[doubleblue]

Read somewhere 5 million was being mentioned for the Mexican TV rights to the CFL games. That's half a million more for each team than they have now. Not big but if half of that went to the salary cap it would be big for the players. Especially after they were getting just 50,000 a year added each year from the last contract.

Randy mentioned possible International CFL teams down the road. Right away one starts thinking how the ratio would work in say Mexico or Germany where ever. A Mexico team would have X number of Nationals from Mexico as starters?

The same with a European team?

How long before the NFL would try and horn in if this becomes a success?

[paulwoods13]

I don't expect to see a CFL team in Mexico or Europe in my lifetime, and I hope to live for many more years.

[1971GreyCup]

Perhaps the idea would be more similar toUEFA or Champions League-like tournaments? Top European, Canadian and Mexican teams competing? Could be easy to do, revenue generating and not messing with structural issues of any of the existing leagues. European, Mexican and Canadians would understand the concept as well.

[paulwoods13]

Perhaps the idea would be more similar toUEFA or Champions League-like tournaments? Top European, Canadian and Mexican teams competing? Could be easy to do, revenue generating and not messing with structural issues of any of the existing leagues. European, Mexican and Canadians would understand the concept as well.

Except, as I've noted before, all those leagues play American rules football on American-sized fields.

[1971GreyCup]

In the past and present, leagues have come together with differing rules and stadiums sizes. Easiest example might be MLB. Use rules and stadium configuration of the home team. Canadian teams would have a natural advantage as most play American rules growing up and highest level players play by the same rules in the NCAA and/or international tournaments.

To grow revenues from foreign sources the CFL would have to accommodate these leagues.

Now I don’t know how you integrate Aussie style football?

[paulwoods13]

But what does it become when played abroad under American rules? Certainly not a tournament with much, if any, meaning for the brand of football that has existed in Canada for more than a century. It becomes a CFL team playing an exhibition game under significantly different rules than it normally plays under. I have a hard time seeing how that constitutes a true Champions League. Might be a nice new source of revenue, but it should not be oversold.

[CFLfan]

But what does it become when played abroad under American rules? Certainly not a tournament with much, if any, meaning for the brand of football that has existed in Canada for more than a century. It becomes a CFL team playing an exhibition game under significantly different rules than it normally plays under. I have a hard time seeing how that constitutes a true Champions League. Might be a nice new source of revenue, but it should not be oversold.

It's about getting a Mexican TV deal, not about expanding teams into Mexico or anywhere else. It's like the NFL having TV deals with CTV and Mexican TV and European TV, the intention is not to expand into these countries.
I can understand the Commish going to Mexico or Europe to try to get TV deals, we don't need expansion or to play exhibition games anywhere else.
We can't even play pre-season games in other cities in Canada and draw a crowd, I was at Guelph for the Ottawa game and in Quebec city in 2015 for the Montreal/Ottawa pre-season game - pathetic attendance for both. Don't forget Fort MacMurray too.

[jerrym]

The league's attempt to internationalize the CFL will face a major test during the combines.



The league is bringing 18 “global” players to Toronto to participate in the testing as part of Ambrosie’s CFL 2.0 initiative. The combine will be the first opportunity to see a large group of these players perform against some CFL-calibre prospects. Should they struggle by posting low testing numbers or getting schooled in the one-on-ones, it will raise more questions about the legitimacy of Ambrosie’s initiatives which hinges, at least in part, on the ability of global players to actually play.The early results were not particularly encouraging. In January, the league held a combine in Mexico that produced six players who would “not look out of place at CFL training camp (https://3downnation.com/2019/01/13/mexican-combine-produces-six-players-who-would-not-look-out-of-place-in-a-cfl-camp/).” Faint praise indeed. One CFL GM made it clear he didn’t see the trip as worth the effort.
(https://3downnation.com/2019/01/12/brock-sunderland-finally-said-what-weve-all-been-thinking-about-the-cfl-in-mexico/)
Ambrosie and the league seem determined to see this through, however. Justin Dunk reported last week that the CFL is looking for designated “global” roster spots and TSN’s Dave Naylor has outlined his idea (https://www.tsn.ca/a-solution-to-the-cfl-2-0-roster-question-1.1276955) on how rosters could be structured going forward. Given Naylor’s close ties with the league there’s a solid a chance Naylor’s vision looks a lot like Ambrosie’s vision.

That plan would see global players competing for roster spots currently occupied by national players, a tacit admission the globals will not be able to take jobs from Americans based on merit alone. After all, there’s absolutely nothing stopping a player from Mexico or Norway or Germany earning a spot as an international under current CFL rules. ...

The gamble for the CFL is taking roster spots from Canadian players in order to accommodate global players; it risks alienating the league’s hardcore audience, the one that actually understands the roster rules and importance of the ratio. For those folks, Canadian content is a foundational element in their support for the CFL.
If global players can’t compete against the CFL’s top prospects – and we’re not even talking about established national players here – it will raise new questions about the legitimacy and viability of CFL 2.0.

On the flip side, if the global players perform well this weekend, it will give strength to Ambrosie’s argument that there is an untapped pool of quality players across the globe that the CFL would do well to take advantage of.
https://3downnation.com/2019/03/22/this-weekends-combine-will-put-cfl-2-0-to-the-test/