Why aren't CFL pre-season games televised?

Question

the NFL are, so why not CFLs? They get paper coverage and radio broadcast but yet TSN/CBC/SPNET don't show them on TV?

Answer 1

Who would watch them?  Who watches that football minor league up there in the fifty first state anyway?  Preseason, regular season, or snicker snicker Post season?

Come on you guys can't even win the Stanley Cup.

At least you guys win Curling in the Olympics eh?

Answer 2

The national CFL contract only covers regular season and playoff games. Some preseason games are televised, but only if they actually carry some importance (if they're held at a neutral site stadium for example). They usually shown only on local broadcast and community cable channels, and only on rare occasions are they shown nationally. The preseason game held in Halifax, NS, two years ago was broadcast on TSN.

Answer 3

I Think It Might Be That There Is A Lack Of Funding For It And The TV Stations Can Only Cover So Many Games Per Year.

Answer 4

It's the network contracts. Also note that not all NFL preseason games are aired, just some of them. Neither does the NFL necessarily have higher quality football -- they just have a more established, wider, and bigger fan base, and pay players more money; they are the more "glamorous" league. Actually, to play in the CFL you must be quite more adaptable, faster, and specialize in more than one position in order to really be a stand out player due to the differences in American and Canadian football. I've been watching both for a very long time, and have family members play in both leagues, so I can say this with conviction. =)

Answer 5

Because the NFL is higher quality football.  People want to watch it.

Answer 6

It's because the CFL doesn't have as big of a fan base as the NFL. The NFLis extreemely popular in the U.S.A. and  is America's most popular sport league. People go crazy and would be willing to sit down and watch a pre-season game, just to see the team play.

In Canada it's a  little different. Hockey is easily number 1 in Canada, and it has a huge fan base, so naturally, they have televised pre-season and sell out crowds for it. The CFL may be Canada's 2nd most popular sport, but it's not nearly popular enough to put pre-season games on TV. Barely anybody would want to watch it and it would end up losing a lot of money.

But Toronot versus Montreal was a strange game yesterday. Safeties, missed field goals, those were practically all of their points.

Answer 7

i dont know, why do we only get the championship game here in the states, eh?

Answer 8

Because they don't get enough fans out to support the team in the beginning of the season, so by them not showing the pre-season games live at home, they think they will bring out more fans to the stands. NFL has a huge fan base world wide, the CFL is lucky if they have a fan base at all(unless its the playoffs). Hockey is still the only sport in Canada that can sellout and show pre-season games live on the tv. It sucks but thats the CFL for ya..

Here in Edmonton we only get to see the away pre-season games on tv and the home games are blacked-out, because they rather the whole city be there then watch it on tv. JERKS.LOL.

Answer 9

I don't really want to NFL pre-season games either.  Also, they have too many of them.

Answer 10

cause not enough people go to preseason games, sooo, if you want to watch your team a few weeks before the actual season, ... you have to pay $$$