Editing Canadian Football League (section)

==Players and compensation== <!-- "Negotiation list" redirects here -->

=== Salary cap (2025) ===

According to the new collective bargaining agreement, the 2025 salary cap was scheduled to be set at $5,650,000. However, on February 5, 2025, the league announced that the salary cap would grow by $412,365 to reach $6,062,365 (or $134,719 per active roster spot).<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tremblay-St-Gelais |first=Guillaume |date=2025-02-05 |title=2025 SALARY CAP INCREASE DRIVEN BY 2024 LEAGUE REVENUE GROWTH |url=https://press.cfl.ca/2025-salary-cap-increase-driven-by-2024-league-revenue-growth |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=the Canadian Football League |language=en}}</ref> The increase was driven by the revenue growth sharing model which first went into effect in 2024, but this was the first year that it impacted the salary cap. The cap excludes unlimited non-football related services payments and preseason and playoff bonus money. The minimum player salary will be set at $70,000, which remains unchanged since 2023. It was reported that the revenue growth was not determined until the last week of January and the CFL Player's Association was required to determine how they wanted the money applied, with options including increases to the salary cap, playoff bonuses, training camp stipends, and pension contributions. The timing of the announcement was questionable since the free agency negotiating window had begun three days prior with teams operating with the old salary cap figure. [[Canadian Football League Players' Association|CFLPA]] executive director David Mackie stated, "A reported $18-million boost in league revenues triggered the cap increase. The current collective bargaining agreement between the league and union, reached in 2022, contains a revenue-sharing formula."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Press |first=Dan Ralph The Canadian |date=2025-03-27 |title=New CFLPA executive director David Mackie says there's plenty of work to do |url=https://www.pentictonherald.ca/sports/national_sports/article_0f6a7426-ae1c-5102-abde-6c1ebc98acc6.html |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=Penticton Herald |language=en}}</ref>

===Salary cap (2024)===
According to the collective bargaining agreement, the 2024 [[salary cap]] was at least {{CAD|5,585,000}} (or {{CAD|124,111}} per active roster spot).<ref name=CBA-3DN>{{Cite web|url=https://3downnation.com/2022/05/26/details-of-the-cfls-new-cba-salary-cap-increases-ratio-changes-and-guaranteed-contracts/ |title=Details of the CFL's new CBA: salary cap increases, ratio changes, and guaranteed contracts |publisher=3DownNation |date=May 26, 2022}}</ref><ref name=CBA-NP>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/football/article-cfl-commissioner-ambrosie-feels-new-deal-provides-benefits-for-both/ |title=CFL commissioner Ambrosie feels new deal provides benefits for both CFL and players |publisher=[[The Globe and Mail]] |date=May 28, 2022}}</ref> This was the first season that players received revenue sharing, which was set at 25% for the 2024 season (or cap increase of 2.78% for every dollar increase).{{clarify|date=December 2024}}<ref name=CBA-3DN/> The salary cap is officially announced in late April every year as well as fines from the previous year. As was the case in [[2023 CFL season|2023]], the minimum player salary was set at {{CAD|70,000}}.<ref name=CBA-3DN/><ref name=CBA-NP/>

===CFL operations cap (2024)===
{{As of|2024|alt=As of the 2024 season}}, CFL teams have a {{CAD|2,500,000}} operations caps which limits the number of people per team drawing salaries for football operations to 11 coaches and 25 total people in total. That includes the general manager as well as scouts, video personnel, and equipment staff.<ref name=CBA-RLP>{{cite news |first=Darrell |last=Davis |title=Darrell Davis: Oft-maligned spending cap actually helps the CFL |url=https://leaderpost.com/sports/football/cfl/saskatchewan-roughriders/darrell-davis-oft-maligned-spending-cap-actually-helps-the-cfl |publisher=Regina Leader-Post |date=January 24, 2024 |accessdate=June 23, 2024 }}</ref> For the 2025 season, the CFL Maximum Salary Expenditure Cap (SEC) is $6.062 million per team, a $412,365 increase over the minimum required increase in 2025. A schedule for the annual increases to the cap is laid out in the CBA.<ref>{{Cite web |title=FAQ about Compensation on CFLdb |url=https://cfldb.ca/faq/compensation/#:~:text=For%20the%202025%20season,%20the,laid%20out%20in%20the%20CBA. |access-date=2025-04-29 |website=cfldb.ca}}</ref>

===Historical player compensation and revenue===
The CFLPA agreed to include a provision allowing the CFL to enforce a [[salary cap]] in the 2002 [[Collective agreement|Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA)]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.prosportsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/cfl-cflpa_cba.pdf|title=CFL/CFLPA Collective Bargaining Agreement|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210717133741/https://www.prosportsgroup.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/cfl-cflpa_cba.pdf|archive-date=July 17, 2021|url-status=live}}</ref> but the league began enforcing it only from the [[2007 CFL season|2007 season]] ($4.05&nbsp;million per team) onward. The cap was raised to $4.2&nbsp;million in the [[2008 CFL season|2008 season]] and remained at that level for 2009.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.globesports.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090114.wsptcfl0114/GSStory/GlobeSports/?page=rss&id=RTGAM.20090114.wsptcfl0114|title=CFL salary cap won't change|agency=Canadian Press|date=January 14, 2009|work=Globe and Mail |location=Canada |access-date=January 14, 2009}}</ref> Financial penalties for teams that breach the cap are set at $1 to $1 for the first $100,000 over, $2 to $1 for $100,000 to $300,000 over, and $3 to $1 for $300,000 and above. Penalties could also include forfeited draft picks.<ref name="CFL Salary Management System">{{cite web|url=https://www.cfl.ca/page/game_salary_man |title=Salary Management System |access-date=December 27, 2014 |publisher=CFL.ca |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150121005347/https://www.cfl.ca/page/game_salary_man |archive-date=January 21, 2015 }}</ref> On June 29, 2010, a new collective bargaining agreement was ratified that raised the salary cap to $4.25&nbsp;million for the [[2010 CFL season]] and continued to increase by $50,000 each season until [[2013 CFL season|2013]].<ref name="CBA2010">{{cite web |url=https://www.cfl.ca/article/media-backgrounder-new-cba |title=New CFL-CFLPA CBA at a glance |access-date=August 1, 2010 |publisher=CFL.ca |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703091944/http://www.cfl.ca/article/media-backgrounder-new-cba |archive-date=July 3, 2010 }}</ref> In [[2014 CFL season|2014]], a new [[collective bargaining agreement|CBA]] was ratified and the salary cap was raised to $5&nbsp;million per team, with that amount increasing again by $50,000 each year until 2018.<ref name="CBA2014"/> As per the 2019 collective bargaining agreement, the [[2021 CFL season|2021]] [[salary cap|salary expenditure cap]] is scheduled to be $5,350,000 and with the minimum team salary set at $4,750,000.<ref name="New CBA details">{{Cite web|url=https://3downnation.com/2019/05/15/what-we-know-about-the-new-cba/|title=UPDATED: What we know about the new CBA|website=3DownNation|date=May 15, 2019 |language=en-US|access-date=January 31, 2021}}</ref><ref name="Lalji with details">{{Cite web|url=https://www.tsn.ca/new-cfl-collective-bargaining-agreement-will-be-three-year-deal-1.1306171|title=New CFL collective bargaining agreement will be three-year deal |website=TSN.ca|date=May 15, 2019|publisher=TSN|access-date=November 4, 2019}}</ref><ref name="CBA2020">{{cite web|url=https://3downnation.com/2020/01/07/the-comprehensive-cfl-collective-bargaining-agreement/|title=The comprehensive CFL collective bargaining agreement|first=Justin|last=Dunk|quote="Collective Bargaining Agreement"|publisher=3DownNation|via=Canadian Football League|date=January 7, 2020}}</ref>{{rp|page=90}} The salary cap number was subject to increase as players now have revenue sharing of 20% from broadcast deals (outside of [[The Sports Network|TSN]] and [[ESPN]]), but since the league did not play in [[2020 CFL season|2020]], the cap number will likely be static.<ref name="Lalji with details"/><ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=90}}

For 2010, the minimum team salary was set at $3.9&nbsp;million while the minimum player salary was set at $42,000.<ref name="CBA2010"/> With the new CBA in 2014, the salary floor was raised to $4.4&nbsp;million per team with increases of $50,000 per year, and the minimum salary was raised to $50,000 per year.<ref name="CBA2014"/> The average salary per player in 2014 was {{CAD|96,000}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbc.ca/sports/football/cfl/some-cfl-players-not-happy-with-concessions-made-1.2669144 |title=Some CFL players not happy with concessions made |access-date=December 27, 2014 |publisher=CBC.ca}}</ref> A new collective bargaining agreement was signed in 2019 that set the minimum annual player salary at $54,000, with that number increasing to $65,000 for National and American players in 2020.<ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=33}} In 2019, [[Mike Reilly (quarterback)|Mike Reilly]] and [[Bo Levi Mitchell]] were the highest paid players in the CFL after signing contracts in February 2019 for average yearly salaries of over $700,000.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://3downnation.com/2019/02/12/details-of-bo-levi-mitchells-contract-with-the-stampeders/|title=Details of Bo Levi Mitchells contract with the stampeders – Article – 3downnation|date=February 12, 2019|work=3downnation|access-date=January 31, 2021}}.</ref> Players designated as global players (see player designations) are paid the league minimum by rule and may have a portion of their salary sent back to their original home league as part of a partnership with the CFL.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://torontosun.com/sports/football/cfl/barnes-mexican-players-who-make-an-active-cfl-roster-will-hand-over-10-of-salary-for-a-scholarship-fund |title=Barnes: Mexican players who make an active CFL roster will hand over 10% of salary for a scholarship fund &#124; Toronto Sun|date=May 20, 2019}}</ref>

Player compensation is not tied to league revenue, which remains a [[trade secret]]. Only the four publicly held teams in the league reveal their financial information, as those companies are required to do so under Canadian law. As of 2013, prior to Ottawa's rejoining the league (at which time Toronto, which is partially owned by a public company, was still fully private), estimates of the CFL's revenue varied between $150&nbsp;million<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hodgson |first1=Glen |first2=Mario |last2=Lefebvre |url=http://www.conferenceboard.ca/reports/briefings/bigleagues/briefing-1.aspx |title=The pro sport market in Canada |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130910061944/http://www.conferenceboard.ca/reports/briefings/bigleagues/briefing-1.aspx |archivedate=September 10, 2013 |publisher=Conference Board of Canada |accessdate=June 21, 2013 }}</ref> and {{CAD|200&nbsp;million}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/cfl-55-yard-line/percentage-league-wide-revenues-did-cfl-players-2013-224954281.html|title=What percentage of league-wide revenues did CFL players get in 2013 under the old CBA?|website=Ca.sports.yahoo.com|date=June 9, 2014 |access-date=January 13, 2018}}</ref> As of 2019, five of the CFL's nine teams (including all three community-owned franchises) are profitable, and four operate at a loss; those four teams lose more than the five profitable teams, resulting in a net loss of approximately {{CAD|20&nbsp;million}} overall.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/29147853/cfl-commissioner-says-canceling-season-likely |title=CFL commissioner says canceling season likely |agency=Associated Press |work=ESPN |date=May 7, 2020 |access-date=July 7, 2021 |url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200507224414/https://www.espn.com/espn/story/_/id/29147853/cfl-commissioner-says-canceling-season-likely |archive-date=May 7, 2020 }}</ref>

===Player designations===
Players in the CFL carry nationality designations referring to their country of origin: '''Nationals''' ("a Canadian citizen at the time of signing his first contract, was classified as a non-import prior to May 21, 2019, was physically resident in Canada for an aggregate period of five years prior to reaching the age of 18, or played football for a minimum of three years at a [[U Sports football|U Sports]] institution, was draft eligible in 2021 at a minimum, and has graduated with a degree at that institution"), '''Americans''' (non-National and non-Global players, almost exclusively used for United States citizens), and '''Globals''' (any player who does not hold Canadian or American citizenship and does not qualify as a National in any other way).<ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=44}} In prior versions of the CFL CBA and league rules, National players were known as non-import players and American players were known as international (2014–2018) and import (before 2014) players, with the criteria to qualify as a non-import player being more restrictive.<ref name="CBA2014"/> Global players were introduced in [[2019 CFL season|2019]].<ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=44}}

National players enter the CFL through the [[CFL Draft]] or free agency. Global players enter the CFL in a similar method as national players, with exclusive drafts held only for eligible players. American players are typically inducted by way of the ''negotiation list'': any team can lay unilateral claim to up to 45 players that have never played in the CFL at any given time (each team must make at least ten of those names public as of 2018), with no limit on how long a player can be held on the list and no limit on how old the player must be (thus CFL teams can claim players not yet eligible for the [[NFL draft]]). Once a player on a negotiation list expresses formal interest in joining the CFL, that team has up to ten days to offer a contract (usually a league-minimum, two-year contract) to retain the player's rights.<ref>{{cite web|first=Dave|last=Naylor|url=https://www.tsn.ca/the-enduring-mystery-of-cfl-negotiation-lists-1.981621|title=The enduring mystery of CFL negotiation lists|work=[[The Sports Network|TSN.ca]]|date=January 29, 2018|access-date=June 9, 2018}}</ref> Other than the names that are made public, the full list of names league-wide are a secret held from the general public and even from the other teams, with teams only finding out if a player is on another team's negotiating list if the league office tells them.

===Roster limits===
In 2006, the active roster limit was increased from 40 to 42, in 2014 it was again increased to 44, and in 2016 was increased to 46.<ref name="CBA2014"/><ref name="global1">{{Cite web |url=https://www.cfl.ca/2019/06/11/global-additions-set-make-history-week-1/ |title=Global additions set to make history in Week 1|date=June 11, 2019}}</ref><ref name="razzleroster">{{cite web |url=https://razzledazzle.cfldb.ca/razzle/cfl-roster-makeup/ |title=CFL Roster Makeup — A CFLdb Razzle Document }}</ref> An unlimited number of players may be put on a team's disabled, injured and suspended lists.

As of [[2021 CFL season|2021]], each team must abide by the National/American/Global ratio rule, which requires teams to have two quarterbacks, two Global players, and a maximum of 20 American players (excluding quarterbacks) with a minimum of 44 total active roster players and a maximum of 45.<ref name="global1"/><ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=69}} Each team will also have one player of any nationality on the reserve roster who receives the benefits of being on the active roster, but may not play in a game.<ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=69}}

Through the 2018 season, [[quarterback]]s, of which a team was required to carry three on a roster, were not allowed to be counted toward the national player requirement nor the starter requirement, which put Canadian quarterbacks at a disadvantage compared to other positions in being hired by a CFL franchise.<ref name="global1"/><ref>{{cite web|url=https://ca.sports.yahoo.com/blogs/cfl-55-yard-line/canadian-qb-marc-mueller-speaks-against-cfl-quarterback-070806107.html|title=Canadian QB Marc Mueller speaks out against the CFL's quarterback ratio rule|date=April 23, 2012|work=Yahoo! Sports Canada|access-date=August 6, 2015}}</ref> This rule was changed in 2019 whereby teams had two roster spots for quarterbacks and a third quarterback counted in the ratio.<ref name="Lalji with details"/><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tsn.ca/cfl-teams-to-carry-one-global-player-on-roster-this-season-1.1306793|title=CFL teams to carry one global player on roster this season |website=TSN.ca|date=May 16, 2019|publisher=TSN|access-date=May 16, 2019}}</ref><ref name="New CBA details"/> Additionally, a National quarterback would be considered one of the club's National Starting Players as long as he remains on the field at the quarterback position.<ref name="CBA2020"/>{{rp|page=72}}

Teams are additionally allowed up to 10 national or international players (with a minimum of one national if there are less than seven players or two nationals if there are at least seven players total) on their [[practice squad]] roster and may expand it to 12 if the team carries the maximum allowed two global practice squad players, though they are not required to do so.<ref name="CFL Salary Management System"/><ref name="global1"/><ref name="razzleroster"/> Every year, the practice squad roster is temporarily increased in size to 15 following the start of the [[National Football League]]'s season to accommodate for the influx of cut NFL players.<ref name="razzleroster"/> Unlike players on the active roster, players on the practice squad may be signed at any time to another team's active roster without compensation to the player's original team.<ref name="razzleroster"/>

===Labour representation===
CFL players are represented by the [[Canadian Football League Players' Association]] (CFLPA). Each team elects two players to the CFLPA Board of Player Representatives, which meets once per year. Every two years, it elects an executive Board of Directors.<ref name="Organization of the CFLPA">{{cite web |url=http://www.cflpa.com/index.php?module=page&id=5014 |title=Organization of the CFLPA |access-date=December 3, 2006 |publisher=CFLPA.ca |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061102095157/http://www.cflpa.com/index.php?module=page&id=5014 |archive-date=November 2, 2006}}</ref>