So while I’ll start this post with a nod to the usual suspects who will question Arash Madani’s motivations in chirping the CFL – yes, he works for TSN rival SportNet and has been a frequent critic of the league – this is certainly… interesting.

The @USPORTSca East-West Bowl, featuring Canadian football players and pro prospects, was in Ottawa yesterday; bargaining with the CFL and CFLPA for a CBA that expires this week is going this weekend. And yet the priority of the #CFL commissioner is to spend his time here: https://t.co/lNXr3yNka1 — Arash Madani (@ArashMadani) May 12, 2019

The league has long insisted it can walk and chew gum at the same time, solving the league’s domestic problems while pursuing its global strategy, otherwise known as CFL 2.0. Ambrosie has spent much of the off-season inking deals with various international football associations while the league slow-played negotiations with the players.

But as Madani points out, the optics of this aren’t particularly great. Bargaining with the players resumed today in Toronto and I guess Ambrosie isn’t a part of those discussions, choosing instead to attend the Mexican Bowl, the championship of the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional. They were the first international league to sign an agreement with the CFL.

As for the East-West Bowl, I’ve asked the CFL if Ambrosie attended any part of the week but haven’t heard back. But again, the optics… can’t make time for a showcase of USports players but happy to go to Mexico to watch their guys.