MARQUEE MOMENTS HIGHLIGHT 2017 CFL SCHEDULE IN CANADA’S 150TH YEAR

TORONTO – The Canadian Football League’s 2017 schedule will do its part to ensure Canada’s 150^th birthday year is full of fireworks.

It explodes out of the gate with marquee matchups on CFL Kickoff Weekend, June 22^nd-25^th:

• Darian Durant debuts as the Alouettes’ quarterback in Montreal against his former teammates the Saskatchewan Roughriders on the first Thursday Night Football of the summer
• Friday Night Football will see the defending Grey Cup Champions the Ottawa REDBLACKS host Bo Levi Mitchell and the Calgary Stampeders in a rematch of last year’s classic overtime Grey Cup game
• The Edmonton Eskimos travel to British Columbia to face the Lions in a matchup of two of the league’s most exciting pivots, Mike Reilly and Jonathon Jennings on Saturday
• The Hamilton Tiger-Cats and Toronto Argonauts renew one of the oldest and fiercest rivalries in all of sport on Sunday afternoon at BMO Field

Click here for the entire 2017 CFL Schedule. 

Canada Day Weekend this year promises to be red and white and green all over, with the Riders officially opening the new Mosaic Stadium on July 1^st against their traditional foes the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. The REDBLACKS will travel to Calgary to complete an early season home and home series with the Stamps, the Alouettes head to Edmonton and the Lions head east to Toronto.

Mark’s Labour Day Weekend delivers the classic clashes CFL fans everywhere love: the REDBLACKS are in Montreal, the Bombers return to Saskatchewan, Edmonton visits Calgary and the Tiger-Cats host the Argos.

As the Shaw Road to the Grey Cup runs through the final weeks of the season and teams jockey for all-important playoff positions, nine of the final 12 games feature key divisional match-ups, including Saskatchewan at Calgary in Week 18 and Hamilton at Ottawa in Week 19. Week 20, the final weekend of the regular season, will see Montreal at Hamilton, Winnipeg at Calgary, Edmonton at Saskatchewan and Toronto at BC.

The Eastern and Western Semi-Finals will be played on Sunday November 12^th, the Eastern and Western Finals take place Sunday November 19^th, and the 105^th Grey Cup presented by Shaw will be contested at Ottawa’s TD Place Stadium on Sunday November 26^th.

“On the heels of one of the greatest Grey Cup games ever, and heading into a very special year for Canada, we’re really excited about the emerging stories and matchups in the upcoming season,” said Jeffrey L. Orridge, Commissioner of the CFL. “As the country gears up to celebrate Canada’s 150^th birthday, we invite all CFL fans everywhere to join in the fun all season long.”

Season tickets and multi-game packs are now on sale for the 2017 season. Single game tickets will go on sale June 1st. Visit CFL.ca/tickets for more details.

In Canada, all CFL games are broadcast in English on TSN and all Alouettes games and select other CFL games are broadcast in French on RDS. In the United States, ESPN carries CFL games; a US broadcast schedule will be released in the days ahead.

The CFL preseason schedule kicks off June 6^th with the Lions visiting Calgary and concludes June 16^th with the Riders in BC.

The build up to all of this action includes the biggest offseason event in the league’s history: CFL Week in Saskatchewan, from March 21st-26^th. It will feature the league’s top stars and coaches, a fan festival, multiple media days, a Canadian Football League Hall of Fame VIP reception, the CFL Combine for prospects from U Sports and the NCAA, and much more.

The CFL Draft is set for May 7^th. Training camps for CFL teams open May 28^th.