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The pile on stems from the CRTC’s attempt to placate the 100 or so Canadians who complain annually that they can’t see big-budget U.S. ads during the big game and are forced to watch Canadian ads instead. Fitting with its current populist agenda, the CRTC announced in January 2015 it would give the people what they want and prohibit substitution of ads solely for the Super Bowl.

The decision surprised the NFL and Bell, who subsequently filed a variety of appeals in federal court. Meantime, the CRTC rejigged the rules under which it would ban ad substitution. In September, the court dismissed the NFL and Bell’s appeals, stating they were premature since they were filed before the CRTC issued a final decision in August 2016.

In October, the court gave the parties permission to file yet another appeal, even though the clock is running down before game day on Feb. 5.

The NFL accuses the CRTC of intentionally delaying the case.

“The CRTC’s legal maneuverings each step of the way have only served to delay this process in an apparent attempt to run out the clock and sidestep the challenge,” it said in a statement Wednesday.

Still, it’s optimistic the legal Hail Mary could persuade the government to interfere with the regulator’s decision.

“The league remains confident that the Government of Canada will act reasonably and responsibly before the 2017 Super Bowl to address this arbitrary attempt by the CRTC to disadvantage not only the NFL, but Canadian broadcasters and the Canadian creative community as well.”

In a statement, Bell noted that unions, creative and business associations and politicians on both sides of the border are calling for a reversal before Super Bowl LI.

“There is a growing community of voices highlighting the negative impact of this decision on the Canadian creative and broadcasting industry,” Bell stated.

The CRTC refused to comment on the new appeals since the issue is before the courts.