The Canadian Football League represents the highest level of football outside of America and has been a mainstay on the Canadian sporting scene since 1958.
A total of nine franchises, one from each city in Canada, participate in the CFL and are divided into two conferences. Four teams do battle in the Eastern Conference and five teams in the Western Conference.
The entire premise of the competition is to win the Grey Cup - all nine teams begin the season aiming to get their hands on the prestigious trophy. To find out more about CFL betting lines, the history of its teams, and much more, check out our CFL betting breakdown below.
There are several notable differences between the NFL and CFL - however, we have broken down the top three discrepancies below:
CFL teams can field 12 players on the pitch at any one time. That’s opposed to the NFL, where only 11 players can take to the field.
Scoring. An extra point is up for grabs for the kicking team in the CFL. It occurs if a field goal is missed or the football is punted and the receiving team cannot exit their end zone. This is known as a single point.
Less downs. The NFL allows for four downs per possession, while the CFL limits teams to three downs. Fewer opportunities to score a touchdown makes for more aggressive tactics.
There are several other nuances - but those are the main differences between the two.
There are nine franchises in the CFL - each from a different city. Check out the full list below:
We have cherry-picked three facts to give you a brief overview of every CFL team.
The CFL Regular Season runs from June and lasts for 21 weeks, including 18 games and three bye weeks. The goal is to finish as high as possible in the league to garner the best advantage heading into a six-team Playoff scenario.
Teams can climb their respective divisions by improving their win percentage. The higher the win percentage, the likelier they are to finish at the top of the pile.
Once the regular season has finished, teams do battle in the CFL Playoffs for a chance to make the Grey Cup final.
The Playoffs comprise the top two teams from each division qualify and two teams with the next two best records, regardless of division. The top two teams in each division will bag the first and second seeds respectively. The team with the next best record gets the third seed in the home division, while the final qualifier gets the third seed in the remaining division.
The first seeds in each division receive a free passage to the semi-finals.
The CFL Grey Cup is the most prestigious trophy as part of the CFL - it crowns the overall champions. It’s Canada's largest annual sports and television event and attracts millions of viewers.
Here is the list of all-time CFL champions since the tournament was launched back in 1909. Please note, we are not including champions that are no longer active in this list.
The regular CFL season will run from 10th June until 29th October, while the Playoffs will run from November 6th until November 13th. The final will take place on November 20th.
The CFL represents hundreds of pre-match and in-play betting opportunities for Canadian football fans, and a healthy dose of ante post bets too.
Check out some examples of the types of CFL betting trends below.
You can find the latest odds for all CFL games on LeoVegas Sport!
It’s as easy as pie on mobile and desktop devices! To bet on the CFL with LeoVegas Sport, simply head to our attuned search function and type in CFL. Click on the result and you will be taken directly to the CFL betting page.
Looking for a betting suggestion ahead of season? We have earmarked three for you below. Please only bet what you can afford to lose. Odds can change throughout the season.
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