Global Combines offer optimism for future of international football

TORONTO — There’s no denying it now: The spot of football has gone global.

After successfully welcoming a slew of Global players to the Canadian Football League in 2019, the league is once again pushing to bring over more international talent as a part of the CFL 2.0 initiative.

On the latest episode of The Waggle presented by Sport Clips, Brodie Lawson and Donnovan Bennett discussed the CFL 2.0 initiative, the 2020 Global Combines, and the growth of the sport worldwide.

Episode 195: Going Global + Who are the Top 30 FAs?

EPISODE OVERVIEW: Brodie is back from her honeymoon and joins Donnovan to chat about the latest on CFL 2.0, the top 30 free agents about to hit the market, and the appropriateness of sweatpants in the office.

EPISODE RUNDOWN: How late is too late to say “Happy New Year”? (0:00); Global Combines continue (6:30); DJ on Global optimism (9:15);  Debating the Top 30 Free Agents (16:45); CFL Power Couples (31:45); Montreal assembles front office (40:33); Which CFL team will Meghan and Harry cheer for? (43:20); Objectionable conduct (45:50).

“Last year, I went to Mexico and Germany and had the chance to meet members of the federations there,” Lawson said. “I think what I appreciated the most is that there are so many guys that are trying to fulfill this dream.

“… In Mexico, they have clubs that are specifically meant for football, and after school all the way ‘til 9:00 at night, there are kids that are aged five to six all the way up to seniors in high school that are playing football.

“We were in these suburbs outside of Monterrey where this was happening and I felt so ignorant. You never think you know everything, but I thought ‘this is happening. And if this is happening here, then where else is it happening?’”

Over the last number of weeks, the CFL Global Combines have been taking place all over Europe.

On Monday, the Confederação Brasileira de Futebol Americano (CBFA), the gridiron football federation of Brazil, reached an agreement with the CFL to grow the game globally. With that agreement, they also became the first South American country to join the CFL 2.0 initiative.

There are over 18,000 registered players in the country that play in regional leagues and the first- and second-tier leagues in Brazil feature 30 teams.

CFL Commissioner Randy Ambrosie has championed the new initiative to grow the game worldwide and showcase more international talent north of the border.

It started with players from around the globe being invited to participate in the CFL Combine in Toronto last year. The first-ever CFL-LFA Draft took place in January 2019, where the top 27 players from Mexico were selected by the various CFL squads.

After that, the inaugural CFL European Draft was held in April. The top two selections from that Draft, Valentin Gnahoua and Thiadric Hansen, went head-to-head in the 107th Grey Cup presented by Shaw.

Both players played different roles for their squads in 2019, but Hansen had one of the most memorable plays of the entire year.

On a kick-off during the Grey Cup game, Hansen blew up the entire play, pushing blocker Mike Daly backwards into return man Frankie Williams for a big hit.

“I read the story of (Thiadric) Hansen, who made such a great play in the Grey Cup — throwing poor Mike Daly into the returner. He talked about going back to Germany and being recognized on the street,” Bennett said. “He really wanted to be the face of the global players. He was one of the 17 that dressed, but he didn’t just dress for numbers.

“He was a huge contributor on special teams, as we saw in the Grey Cup. He got some time on defence, with five tackles, two forced fumbles and a sack, those are impact plays.”

During Grey Cup week this past year, every nation that was a part of the initiative descended on Calgary to form the International Alliance of Gridiron Football on Nov. 22.

“We are each stronger when we all work and build and dream together,” commissioner Ambrosie said in a statement. “Our intention is not to replace or infringe upon any existing governing body, as we deeply respect the work already being done on the game’s behalf.

“Our mission is to create a new forum where we can develop new ways to grow our game to our mutual benefit.”

Heading into the 2020 campaign, the league has also expanded the number of Global players that teams must carry. Of the 46 individuals named to a roster, there must be a minimum of two Global players.

The league announced their Global Combines back in November, and after the first two took place in Finland and Sweden, respectively, we’re now winding down the process.

CFL director of global scouting Greg Quick has attended all the events and has plucked the top players from each event to join the CFL Combine in Toronto from March 26-28.

EARLY GLOBAL PLAYER INVITEES TO THE CFL COMBINE

The final Global Combines of 2020 will take place in Tokyo, Japan on Feb. 1 and Osaka, Japan on Feb. 2. The combines with conclude in Mexico City, Mexico from March 15-16.

With the expanded roster spots for Global players, each one of these individuals selected has a chance to make their dreams a reality.

The players selected last year proved the ability of international football as a whole. Now, it’s just a matter of the talent across the pond carving out a path for themselves. That starts in 2020.

“As the numbers continue to grow and we expand, I guess I’m cautiously optimistic that guys will continue to trickle over,” Bennett said. “But I think it bears watching that if Hansen can make the transition so quickly, as we expand the pool of countries so quickly, theoretically, that talent will rise.

“We have so many talented players around the globe that we can start to pick from.”