In July, the CFL announced plans to tentatively play all games in Winnipeg, Manitoba, as a "hub city".
On August 17, the CFL announced that the season had been cancelled, citing the league's inability to obtain appropriate loans and subsidies from the federal government in order to cover operating costs and compensate for playing behind closed doors without paid ticketholders.
[10] On January 6, the CFL announced that Sid Spiegel and Gary Stern of Crawford Steel had acquired the Montreal Alouettes; their holding company, S and S Sportsco oversaw the team's operations.
[19] The Touchdown Atlantic game was also scheduled to be held between the Argos and Roughriders at Huskies Stadium in Halifax on July 25.
[23] On March 19, TSN's Dave Naylor reported that the league had ordered the closure of team training facilities.
[25] In a March 31 interview with CBC Sports, Commissioner Randy Ambrosie stated that the league had been exploring "all options available" and "[wants] to play as much football as we can", explaining that "things are changing so quickly.
[27] On April 29, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that the CFL had requested financial assistance from the federal government; the league requested $30 million in immediate aid, up to an additional $130 million in the event the season was cancelled entirely, and stated that it planned to pay this back via various initiatives, including "community and public education programs across the country, the use of our digital channels, stadiums and broadcasts for advertising and promotion, and tourism initiatives surrounding the Grey Cup and other CFL events".
The league reiterated that a federal subsidy would be required in addition to players' union and public health approval for the hub city proposal to go forward.
[33] On August 16, Dave Naylor reported that the federal government had denied a request by the CFL for a $30 million loan, and that there was a high probability that the season would be cancelled outright.
Ambrosie said that the league had secured union approval for the hub city plan, but was unwilling to take the high-interest loans the government was offering.
According to Ambrosie, the government's proposal would have put the league's owners, especially the three community-owned teams, at risk in the long term.
Additionally, the Public Health Agency of Canada was unable to provide a timeline for approving the hub city proposal.
Ambrosie stated that the league would instead focus on the 2021 season and effectively guaranteed that a 2021 season would be played; this marked the first time the Grey Cup was not awarded since 1919, when a rules dispute, the overall lack of desire to contest for the trophy, and the country's slow recovery from the Spanish flu epidemic led to no game being played that year.
[39][40] The most prominent signings during the free agency period are listed in the table below: *denotes the player was re-signed by their original team On December 13, 2019, the CFLPA filed a grievance against the league regarding the NFL window.
[21] The players were evaluated by CFL head office staff and the Director of Global Scouting, Greg Quick.
[47] The top players identified were intended to be invited to the CFL National Combine in Toronto which was scheduled to take place from March 26 to 28.