Taylor Shire
Regina Leader-Post
With less than a month to go until training camps open across the Canadian Football League, it’s time to get ready for a new football season.
And this year, there are some new rule changes that are going to be implemented in the CFL game before more drastic changes are rolled out in 2027.
What are the new rules for 2026?
Last September, CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston unveiled several changes that will be phased out over the next two seasons in the hopes of creating a better pace of play and more aggressive play calling.
The rouge, a uniquely Canadian rule, is undergoing a change this season as the CFL has modified how and when the single point will be awarded.
Beginning in 2026, a single-point rouge will no longer be awarded for a missed field goal attempt, punt or kickoff that goes through the back or side of the end zone.
However, a single point will still be awarded if a returner catches the missed field goal, punt or kickoff and elects to take a knee in the end zone or gets tackled. This ensures no game will be decided by a ball that sails through the end zone.
The amount of time between plays is also changing in 2026.
For several years, the CFL has used a 20-second play clock that starts when the referee whistles in the play once the ball has been placed at the correct spot on the field following the previous play.
Beginning this season, the CFL is introducing a 35-second play clock that will automatically begin as soon as the previous play has been whistled dead. That means a team will have 35 seconds from the point a player is downed until they need substitute, huddle, line up and snap the football for the next play. Previously, teams could substitute at their own pace as some officials were more lenient of when they would blow the new play in.
The league said this rule will help create a more consistent game flow, as teams and officials now must ensure no seconds are wasted between plays.
“I’m excited about it because I think it’s going to (add) little bit more plays,” Saskatchewan Roughriders quarterback Trevor Harris noted on a recent media availability. “Because, I think from what I’ve been told at least, the average time between plays was more than 35 seconds.
“So I think it’s going to increase the amount of plays. And so, if you’re watching a 60-minute football game, you’re going to see more plays and that’s exciting. Less wasted time and I’m fired up about it.”
This season, all CFL stadiums are also mandated to have team benches on opposite sides of the field. This change should help speed up player substitutions and eliminate “unnecessary interactions between opposing teams” according to the league.
What changes are happening in 2027?
If the rule changes happening this season are minor, the changes happening in 2027 are major.
Beginning in 2027, goalposts will move from the goal line to the back of the end zone. This change is intended to open up the middle of the field to allow offences to operate more freely without having an obstruction. It will also allow punters more space to boot the ball out of their own end zone.
While this change will allow offences to target the middle of the field more often, it will also have a major impact on field goal strategy. With the goalposts moving to the back of the end zone, the scoring range for a field-goal attempt will move that much closer to the other team’s end zone.
This change leads into the second major rule change in 2027 as the end zones are shrinking by five yards as they will be 15 yards deep next year instead of the current 20-yard depth. That means teams will need to drive the field 15 yards further in order to have the same field-goal attempt length as they will have this season.
For example, if a drive stalls out at the 30-yard line, a team would attempt a 37-yard field goal, as the ball is typically snapped back seven yards to the holder. In 2027, that same drive that stalled out at the 30-yard line will now be a 52-yard field goal attempt.
In 2027, the league is also shortening the entire field by 10 yards from 110 yards to 100 yards meaning midfield will be marked by a 50-yard line instead of the traditional 55-yard line. The 65-yard width of the field is not changing.
tshire@postmedia.com
