Earlier today we reported on the explosive news that the CFL was exploring opportunities for alignment with the new XFL ownership group.
Justin Dunk of 3DownNation caught up with CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie to get more details on the talks between the two organizations.
Kicking off the interview Ambrosie was asked how the conversations came about.
…we ended up having this conversation with the ownership group with the XFL… Somewhere in all of that we ended up reaching a point where we think there’s a common vision, a lot of common DNA. What we really wanted to do today was not have those discussions in the shadows, we wanted to have a more transparent conversation. – Randy Ambrosie
Dunk went on to discuss the rampant speculation and wanted to nail down the details. He asked if the leagues were looking to merge, the XFL having an interlocking schedule, looking at the types of possibilities we could see in the future.
Ambrosie responded by saying it’s too early in the conversation to know where this will head. He said what we’re talking about here is the two leagues have just started communicating. While talking with the players association in response to the news, he used an analogy around rather than bringing a cake to the party, there talking about building a cake.
As of now, according to Ambrosie, there are no expectations on this other than two two highly energized groups that see value in what each other does and how they help grow the game of football together and collaborate.
In response to a question on if this decision was around financial situations after being forced to cancel the 2020 season due to COVID Ambrosie didn’t say that was the main reason. Instead he sees the value in working together and of course financially it makes sense.
Ambrosie touched on his respect for the XFL and the XFL’s respect for them, and spoke on his correspondents with the remaining XFL executive team and said they have been a real pleasure to talk to.
Dunk, sticking with financials doubled down on the question asking Ambrosie if the CFL needs a partnership the XFL to survive or if the two leagues would operate on their own.
We’re entering into this conversation because we’re looking for a more bigger and successful CFL. We don’t know where that’s going to go. We’re not doing this out of a sense of desperation… We feel good about talking to them about collaborating to grow the game of football.
About the two different styles of gameplay and if we would see different rules brought into each of the leagues Ambrosie again leaned on the fact that the conversations have just begun.
Overall, this a great interview with a lot of great details from the 3DownNation crew, you can check out the full audio below.
How do you feel about the potential partnership between the CFL and the XFL? How do you think it will playout if they do decide to work together?
Let us know down in the comments below or join the conversation on Discord.
