The Canadian Football League and the Austrian American Football Federation issued a joint statement:
Following a productive day of information sharing and discussion here in Vienna, we have reached an agreement to work together to grow the game in both of our countries. We share a passion for creating opportunities for Austrian players to play at the highest levels and for Canadian players to take advantage of the fantastic opportunity that is football in Austria. With football season in Austria set to start on March 16, the top players from that country will not be able to participate this spring in the CFL’s National Combine for top Canadian prospects and players from around the gridiron football world. But we look forward to future years and all that we can achieve together.
Randy Ambrosie, Commissioner, Canadian Football League
Michael Eschlböck, President, Austrian American Football Federation
Gregor Murth, Vice President, Austrian American Football Federation
The agreement with the AAFF is the latest in what has been an list of international partnerships for Ambrosie and the CFL.
On Tuesday, The French American Football Federation was the latest group to sign onto Ambrosie’s vision to strengthen the CFL and football around the world by strengthening ties between countries where gridiron football is played.
The CFL recently reached a similar agreement with the German Football League and its governing federation. It also recently held a Combine and Draft in Mexico as part of an agreement with the Liga de Futbol Americano Profesional (LFA), the pro league in Mexico.
Ambrosie ‘s whirlwind tour continues Thursday as he flies up to Helsinki, Finland to meet with Roope Noronen from the Finnish federation as well as Martin Soderberg from Sweden, Lars Carlsen from Denmark and a representative from Norway.
He has said the international component of CFL 2.0 is designed to expand the CFL’s talent pool, give Canadian players more opportunities around the world and pave the way for international broadcast and streaming deals for the Canadian professional league.