The professional league of Canadian football, with (at last count) eight teams: the British Columbia Lions, Calgary Stampeders, Edmonton Eskimos, Saskatchewan Roughriders, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, Toronto Argonauts, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and Montreal Alouettes. The Ottawa Rough Riders folded a couple of years ago; there will be a new franchise there eventually, but perhaps without the traditional Riders name. Then maybe a Halifax team will be added someday. A brief US expansion (the horror!) failed.

The CFL is currently experiencing something of a renaissance. After years of Canadian teams folding and the failed push into the US, attendance and interest is up, and new franchises are entering the league. Ottawa will re-enter next season as the "Renegades", and there are rumours of a Maritime team (most likely located in Halifax) and possibly a second Quebec team (out of Quebec city). As a sign of how good things are going, this weekends Grey Cup game in Montreal (of all places) is sold out (mainly on the expectation that the Alouettes would make it, which they didn't).

With Canadian NBA, MLB, and NHL teams dropping like flies (because of poor attendance and the weak dollar) it's nice to see something as traditionally Canadian as the CFL flourishing.