Canada’s game is less than a week away from taking to the field.

But come this time in 2027, the way you take in the Canadian Football League will look significantly different.

“When you think about a media rights deal, this is transformative for this league,” Calgary Stampeders president Jay McNeil told the media Thursday morning following news the CFL had inked a lucrative multi-year broadcast rights agreement.

The league says the deal “will redefine how fans across Canada and around the world access and experience Canadian football.”

It includes an extension with existing TV partners, and bringing on new partnerships with streaming service DAZN, and extended coverage on YouTube.

Several sources say the deal is six years in length, valued at $500 million — equating to a roughly 60 per cent increase in yearly revenue over the existing contract, which expires at the end of the 2026 season.

“There’s no doubt about it … it has an immediate impact on every team’s bottom line,” McNeil said.

The new deal would mean each of the nine current CFL franchises would split nearly $8 million in annual earnings — opening the door for a larger league salary cap that could allow teams to attract and retain more high-end talent.

“The [CFL collective bargaining agreement] has a tie to the gross revenues. And so this is a significant increase to gross revenue, so the salary cap will be impacted by it,” McNeil said.

It’s a significant boon for a league that has come under criticism since commissioner Stewart Johnston took the job in April 2025.

At the time, Johnston told Global News that seven of the league’s nine franchises lost money during the 2024 season, citing the need for the league to “focus on the business of the game.”

Since then, the CFL has announced a series of significant changes to both gameplay and, more recently, the league’s playoff format, which faithful fans have debated as a step in either the right or wrong direction.

McNeil says the new deal shows the full vision behind those previous changes.

“Commissioner Johnston has done a great job of taking us to another level, and we’re excited about where we’re going,” he said, adding that he’s spoken to Stampeders season ticket holders who were confused about some of the recent format changes.

“One of the messages I had [was] hopefully having more announcements coming up, and hopefully that gives you some insight into the full picture of what we’re trying to achieve as an organization.”

What can fans expect?

The league says the new deal will “unlock new [audiences], deliver world-class entertainment and put the CFL in prime position for its next era of growth.”

The biggest change from the agreement is the addition of DAZN — billed as the world’s largest exclusive sports streaming platform.

Starting in 2027, DAZN will hold exclusive rights for one regular-season game per week, beginning at 5 p.m. MT.

The deal also includes two playoff games broadcast exclusively on the platform — and not available on traditional TV channels fans have come to expect.

“[Our goal] is taking that legacy, respecting it and finding new ways to connect with a different fanbase, and grow the [CFL] outside of ways they’ve done previously,” DAZN Canada head Deidra Dionne said.

Dionne, who was born in Saskatchewan but grew up in Red Deer, Alta., joked that Saskatchewan Roughriders gifts are still a common occurrence at family holidays.

“My dad coached football in North Battleford and Saskatoon. I have fond memories every year of going to West final parties and getting together with the family.”

The platform is currently the home for National Football League streams in Canada and will add the CFL to its streaming platform, which includes MLS, the NFL and the NHL in dozens of international markets.

“To be able to invest in the [CFL’s] future is incredibly exciting for DAZN and for me personally,” Dionne said.

The newly named Saturday Night Football broadcasts will be exclusively produced by the company, Dionne says, bringing three-down fans a fresh look to their viewing experience, complete with new personalities.

“We want to be storytellers in this league; we want to create content across all our platforms. We will be additive to what [existing TV partners] have, not using their same broadcast crew.”

What does that mean for fans?

Currently, a monthly membership for DAZN starts at $24.99. More premium options come at a higher fee.

Longtime CFL personality and current Winnipeg Blue Bombers play-by-play voice Derek Taylor says that figure could be a challenge.

“[DAZN’s] coming in, saying, ‘We’ll be there every Saturday, but you have to pay us $25.’ Well, $150 to watch 21 regular-season games plus two playoff games … [will fans] really want to do that?”

Dionne says an exclusive CFL-only deal is certainly a possibility before the 2027 season kicks off.

“We haven’t aligned on pricing or packaging … but one of the things we’ve built our business on is a value for that subscription,” Dionne said.

But in a Canadian market that’s struggled to attract younger viewers, losing many of them — including the crucial 18-35-year-old male demographic — to the NFL, Taylor sees the opportunity.

“Streaming is reaching out to younger folks — younger than myself — who don’t have cable. There are CFL fans who have never had cable. Adding on DAZN to the ones they already have probably won’t be a big deal.”

Where does this leave the league?

Johnston has made sweeping changes in his 15-plus months on the job.

While team leaders such as the Stampeders’ McNeil say the vision is clearer, University of Concordia economist Moshe Lander says both opportunities and challenges will arise in 2027 and beyond.

“The fact they’re bringing on competition [for traditional broadcast partners is] good, because that usually ups the visual product…. That might convert the people who aren’t CFL watchers into being regular viewers,” Lander said.

Lander pointed at the NFL as an example, where diversification between several networks, including NBC, CBS, ESPN and Fox — and more recently, streaming services such as Amazon Prime and Netflix — has created a plethora of different broadcast styles and personalities to choose from.

He also believes YouTube can play a big role in enhancing the fan experience both before and after game day.

“Jerry Seinfeld once jokingly said, ‘You’re just cheering for laundry,’” Lander said. “The CFL hasn’t done a good job of building personalities as much as the NFL has, even as much as NCAA football has.

“In a traditional broadcast, there are only one or two people you can highlight and that’s the extent of it. But reality shows would allow you to see five, 10, 15 people…. If you want to watch them, you can do it here.”

Ultimately, Lander says the CFL will still have challenges with what he believes is its ultimate goal: turning eyes on screens, no matter how plentiful they are, into people in the seats of the CFL’s nine stadiums.

“We still have the NFL right on our southern border and Canadians are crazy about the NFL. Even as Canada becomes much more multicultural and diverse, I’m not sure [new Canadians] are going to latch on to the CFL as fast as they are to the NFL … if they’re going to watch North American football to begin with.”

As this deal gets underway, Talyor says the onus is on each of the league’s nine franchises to convert on that opportunity.

“You just have to get [fans] in the door the first time,” Taylor says. “Whether they come back again will depend on what kind of experience they want to have, and can they have it in your stadium.”

He points to the Blue Bombers — who turned a historic profit in 2025, selling out every regular-season and playoff game at its 33,000-plus seat Princess Auto Stadium — as the example.

“Do you want to watch the football game? OK, the football game is on. Are you not as interested in the football game and you’re interested in the party around it? Well, here’s several sections that will allow you to have whatever kind of time you want.”

Taylor believes the product is there — and this new deal presents the league’s next chance to showcase it.

“Those final three minutes of a CFL game might be the most exciting three minutes in sports. Once you get them there, they might never leave.”