CFL: Global players set to make history as season kicks off

TORONTO — As 2019 kickoff approaches, the Canadian Football League will make history this weekend when nine Global players take the field with their respective clubs.

The CFL has added one spot to the active roster and up to two on the practice roster as part of the new collective bargaining agreement, which will accommodate players who were selected in one of two international player drafts during the off-season.

On Jan. 14, 2019 the league held its first international draft in Mexico, where each team selected three players from the Liga de Football Americano Profesional (LFA) following the CFL-LFA Combine.

Three months later, after players from across Europe were invited to participate in the 2019 CFL Combine presented by New Era, the league held an additional draft for European players on April 11.

Players from across the world attended training camps this month, as the CFL 2.0 vision continues to take shape.

The CBA stipulates that each team roster must be made up of the following:

46 players on active roster, including:

3 Quarterbacks

21 Nationals

1 Global

1 Reserve

20 Internationals

Teams must have a minimum of one global player on the active roster and a maximum of two on the practice roster. The two Global players will not count against the practice roster limit, meaning if a team kept two global players, the practice roster would have 12 players.

The list of Global players on CFL rosters heading into Week 1 is as follows:

Montreal

Active Roster – Diego Rojas Kuhlmann OL Mexico

PR – Enrique Yenny K Mexico

PR – Juan Tamayo DB Mexico

Ottawa

Active Roster – Jose Maltos K Mexico

PR – Guillermo Villalobos WR Mexico

Toronto

Active Roster – Kimi Linnainmaa WR Finland

PR – Christian Hernandez LB Mexico

PR – David Casarrubias DL Mexico

Hamilton

Active Roster – Gabriel Amavizca Ortiz K Mexico

PR – Valentin Gnahoua DL France

Winnipeg

Active Roster – Thiadric Hansen LB Germany

PR – Sergio Sciaffino Perez DB Mexico

PR – Manuel Hernandez LB Mexico

Saskatchewan

Active Roster – Max Zimmermann WR Germany

PR – Rene Brassea OL Mexico

PR – Javier Garcia DB Mexico

Calgary

Active Roster – Andres Salgado WR Mexico

PR – Guillermo Calderon OL Mexico

PR – Asnnel Robo RB France

Edmonton

Active Roster – Maxime Rouyer LB France

PR – Diego Viamontes WR Mexico

PR – Jose Alfonsin DB Mexico

BC

Active Roster – Gerardo Alvarez WR Mexico

PR – Fernando Richarte WR Mexico

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