The 2026 CFL preseason is underway with a full slate of games this weekend. I’m always happy to have football back – even if the games don’t really matter much to us fans. It’s safe to say that the coaches and players themselves get way more out of these matchups than we do.
Today, CFL teams play two preseason games each – one home and one away. However, teams used to play four preseason games. A four-game exhibition season can make for some long meaningless football from a fan’s perspective.
Here’s a Canadian Press article by Grant Kerr from 1985 bemoaning the lengthy preseason that saw fans pay regular-season prices to watch rather unexciting football often played by rookies and backups. There’s talk of an 18-game regular season and dropping the preseason games to two (which would be adopted the following year) and even giving a team a point in the regular season standings for a preseason win. An interesting idea that obviously didn’t gain any traction.
Sources:
The Regina Leader-Post, 25 June 1985
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