Back Canadisc fōtþōðer ANG كرة قدم كندية Arabic فوتبول كندى ARZ تۆپی پێی کەنەدی CKB Kanadský fotbal Czech Pêl-droed Canadaidd Welsh Canadian Football German Καναδικό ποδόσφαιρο Greek Kanada piedpilko Esperanto Fútbol canadiense Spanish
 | |
| Highest governing body | Football Canada International Federation of American Football |
|---|---|
| Nicknames | Football, gridiron football |
| First played | November 9, 1861 at University College, University of Toronto |
| Characteristics | |
| Contact | Full |
| Team members | 12 a side |
| Type | Outdoor |
| Equipment | Football |
| Glossary | Glossary of Canadian football |
| Presence | |
| Olympic | No |
| Part of the American football series on the |
| History of American football |
|---|
| Origins of American football |
| Close relations to other codes |
| Topics |
Canadian football, or simply football (in Canada), is a sport in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete on a field 110 yards (101 m) long and 65 yards (59 m) wide, attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's end zone.
American and Canadian football have shared origins and are closely related, but have some major differences.
Rugby football, from which Canadian football developed, was first recorded in Canada in the early 1860s,[1] taken there by British immigrants, possibly in 1824.[2] Both the Canadian Football League (CFL), the sport's top professional league, and Football Canada, the governing body for amateur play, trace their roots to 1880 and the founding of the Canadian Rugby Football Union.
The CFL is the most popular and only major professional Canadian football league. Its championship game, the Grey Cup, is one of Canada's biggest sporting events, attracting a large television audience.[3][4]
Canadian football is also played at high school, junior, collegiate, and semi-professional levels: the Canadian Junior Football League and Quebec Junior Football League are for players aged 18–22, post-secondary institutions compete in U Sports football for the Vanier Cup, and seniors in the Alberta Football League. The Canadian Football Hall of Fame is in Hamilton, Ontario.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
1860swas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Wallenfeldt, Jeff; Augustyn, Adam; Moreau, Nicholas; Shepherd, Melinda C.; Tikkanen, Amy (2023-02-10). "Canadian football". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2023-05-19.
- ^ Zelkovich, Chris (1 December 2009). "Grey Cup a ratings champion". The Toronto Star. Toronto, Ontario. Retrieved 23 December 2009.
- ^ Chris Zelkovich, The Great Canadian ratings report: Drop in Grey Cup audience follows CFL's downward trend, Yahoo Sports, 2 December 2014