Randy Ambrosie first took over leading the Canadian Football League in June of 2017, and since then the league has been growing and expanding to new markets since then, but the league is facing a new challenge. With this new challenge comes new stresses, but is Ambrosie fit to handle them, or is he just mishandling them, period?
Ambrosie went before a council of Members of Parlament to ask the Canadian Federal Government for funds to help the CFL operate during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ambrosie was asking for a minimum of $30 Million, but hoped that the league could receive a total of $150 Million if the league was not able to play a game in 2020 due to the pandemic. Ambrosie was criticized by the Members of Parlament for not involving the players in his proposal or even consulting them about what they would need in terms of finances in this uncertain time. If Ambrosie is not going to involve players in this process he is going to have issues going forward, and not just in terms of the pandemic.
And then it started to break down. On June 16, the CFLPA announced it would be filing a grievance about unpaid bonuses. It was also announced that the CFLPA had yet to hear from the CFL regarding the 2020 season. The Canadian Press had this to report on June 16, 2020:
Executive director Brian Ramsay tweeted Thursday the CFLPA hadn't received "concrete ideas regarding a 2020 collective agreement from the CFL, as was promised, nor concrete direction about opportunities for a 2020 season."
Five days later, the union says it continues to wait.
"We are awaiting a 'guiding principles' statement as well as its implications from the CFL," the union said in a letter issued to its membership. "We are also preparing to return to collective bargaining negotiations (commonly called CBA negotiations) with the CFL soon."
This is not a good thing for the CFL. This shows a divided, ununified league, and if Abraham Lincoln taught us anything, one should be that "a house divided against itself cannot stand." That is the CFL right now, not to the point that MLB has been, but it is on track to get there. Ambrosie is not consulting the Players Association when he should. He has not consulted the players before going to the Members of Parlament, he consulted the Players Association on reopening facilities after the decision was made to open them.
Ambrosie was a player himself, and he is not looking out for the players at this time. The players are the league's most valuable asset, no players, no football, it's as simple as that. Ambrosie is not consulting the lifeline of the league.
In a statement, the CFL released on behalf of Ambrosie, there were some contradictions made by Ambrosie. Ambrosie claimed that
"One example is our ongoing work with the Canadian Football League Players’ Association asking the federal government to change the criteria for its wage subsidy program so that our players are fully eligible. Together with the CFLPA, we’ve written to [the] government explaining the circumstances and asking for the changes."
This is false, the Players Association claims Ambrosie has not consulted them in talks with the Federal Government and was criticized for not including them by the Federal Government. The other portion I wanted to note in Ambrosie's statement was this:
"We are strongly committed to working positively with our players and to always trying to build a better relationship. Only by working together can we reach our goal: to come out of this pandemic, and out of 2020, having done all we can to secure the strongest possible future for the CFL, its players and all of us who love and support this wonderful league."
The ending of this statement is the hammer hitting the nail. This spot-on, but there is a qualifier, the commitment to working positively with the players. That needs to happen, if it doesn't then the CFL is in some serious permanent trouble.
Ambrosie, we need you. Don't screw this up.
La Cheeserie, Littles
Fight On, Sleepers
Black Lives Matter
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