Although the Canadian Football League's rules differ only slightly from those that guide the National Football League, an enormous gap separates the salaries of the two leagues. With a much smaller fan base and league size generating less ticket revenue, merchandising revenue and advertising income, the CFL simply can't afford to pay its players on the same level that the stars -- or even average players -- in the larger U.S. league to its south does.
Entry-Level Salary
Rookie-year stars drafted into the Canadian Football League earn salaries around $50,000 Canadian as of 2010, according to Monster.com, although league minimum for rookies is $30,000. League minimum for veteran players is $32,000, with average salaries in the league around $45,000, according to DarrenBarefoot.com. By contrast, NFL's minimum base salary is $295,000 American, roughly $292,357 Canadian as of February 2011 exchange rates, or approximately 10 times the CFL's league minimum for a similar salary.
High-End Salaries
Starters and CFL superstars may expect to usually earn between $60,000 and $120,000 Canadian, according to DarrenBarefoot.com. The highest paid player in the CFL, Winnipeg Eskimos quarterback Ricky Ray, was slated to receive $500,000 Canadian for the 2011 season, although recent contract negotiations reduced that amount. Although figures weren't released, he reportedly cut around $125,000 from his compensation package, according to SportsNet.ca. By comparison, the NFL's highest paid player, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, earns about $18 million each year, according to Forbes.
CFL Salary Cap
Like the NFL, the CFL imposes a salary cap on its teams in order to keep teams relatively competitive with each other. Unlike the NFL, that salary cap is relatively small: In 2010, the league's team salary cap was $4.2 million Canadian, according to TSN.com. In comparison, the NFL team with the smallest player payroll, the Kansas City Chiefs, paid $81.8 million to its players, almost double the total payroll for all eight CFL teams.
Off-Season Employment
Many CFL players use the off season as an opportunity to bolster their annual earnings by taking on a second job, according to Monster.com. Although some serve as coaches for high school sports and as public speakers, others find employment in fields completely outside of the sports world, with other jobs as varied as positions in broadcasting to automotive repossession services.
