Over the thirty years from 1880 onwards, rule changes were incrementally introduced into the game, including the adoption of the line of scrimmage, scoring that began to resemble the modern version, and the down and yardage structure.

[27] Among other critical innovations, the Burnside rules reduced the number of men per side to 12 and introduced the ten yards in three downs structure that is central to the modern game.

[33] In December 1906, The Gazette reported that a proposal originated from Ottawa for the ORFU and the QRFU to merge, which would allow for higher calibre of play and create rivalries.

[29][34] Seeking looser rules regarding the employment of professional players, Toronto and other cities split from the ORFU and formed the IRFU, along with Hamilton, Ottawa, and Montreal.

[48] The management style under new owner John W. H. Bassett has also been blamed: young talent was traded or allowed to leave and the team could not form a nucleus of championship players; coaches came and went rapidly.

In a defensive struggle at Vancouver's soggy Empire Stadium, a now infamous late fumble by Leon "X-Ray" McQuay and a possession-changing kick out of bounds by Harry Abofs sealed a 14–11 Stampeder victory.

[58] High-profile moves such as hiring Canadian football icon Russ Jackson as head coach in 1975 or signing running back superstar Anthony Davis the next year turned into busts.

[60] The enlargement and reconfiguration of Exhibition Stadium over 1975 and 1976 in anticipation and preparation of the Blue Jays expansion baseball team (who began play in 1977) allowed for these massive crowds.

[61] The Argos reached an all-time low in 1981 when they finished 2–14; this despite having such talented players as quarterback Condredge Holloway, running back Cedric Minter, and receiver Terry Greer.

The Argos were generally competitive for the remainder of the 1980s, thanks in large part to talented players such as Gill "The Thrill" Fenerty and Darrell K. Smith,[67] but a return to the glory of 1983 proved elusive (outside of an appearance in the 1987 Grey Cup game, in which they lost in the last minute to the Edmonton Eskimos 38–36).

[20] Trouble also struck off the field: McNall was convicted of conspiracy and fraud at the end of 1993,[70] while Candy died prematurely the next year, shortly after he sold his stake in the team.

With Gretzky's salary dependent upon McNall, the team was effectively left without owners before Labatt Brewing Company, parent of league broadcast partner The Sports Network, bought it in the spring of 1994.

Critical players over this half-decade included receiver Arland Bruce III, defensive star Byron Parker, and all-star punter Noel Prefontaine.

Looking to start afresh both on and off the field, the Argos hired former Montreal Alouettes general manager Jim Popp and head coach Marc Trestman on February 28, 2017.

[77] Despite missing most of the free agency period and having mere months to assemble both a roster and coaching staff, the Double Blue finished the year with a 9–9 record, good enough for first place in a weak East Division and a first-round bye.

During the years that they competed in the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union (1907–1957) the Argonauts won the James Dixon Trophy (awarded to the IRFU playoff champion) 14 times, going on to win the Grey Cup on 10 of these occasions.

[82][83] The only pre-1958 year in which the Argos won the IRFU but failed to make a Grey Cup appearance was 1922, when they lost in the Eastern Canada final to Queen's University.

Often remembered ruefully by Torontonians for its exposure to weather, as well as poor sightlines after it was converted in the 1970s to additionally accommodate baseball, the stadium was nevertheless the site of the Argos' greatest attendance in the late 1960s and 1970s.

Replacing the playing surface would require permanently locking Rogers Centre into its baseball configuration, making it impossible to host CFL games.

)[90][91][92] The stadium issue generated significant press and raised concerns over the team's long-term viability given that the Argonauts' losses have been estimated anywhere from $2 to $6 million annually.

[93][94] While various stadium rumours swirled over the course of David Braley's tenure (including building a new facility), it became increasingly clear that a move to a renovated BMO Field was the only viable option.

Facing overdraft and with wealthy suitors knocking, the Argonaut rowers finally sold the team to a consortium led by John W. H. Bassett, Eric Cradock, and Charlie Burns in 1957.

Various machinations were entertained by Bassett including moving the Argos to the NFL, bringing an American expansion team to the city (e.g. the Toronto Northmen of the WFL), or expanding the CFL itself in the opposite direction.

[120] At the time it was rapidly ramping up its sports sponsorship (it also owned the Quebec Nordiques before they moved from the World Hockey Association to the NHL) and would become a huge benefactor to the CFL itself, inking television rights deals that reached $11 million annually by 1984.

Canadian businessman Harry Ornest bought the team off Carling O'Keefe for $5 million at the end of 1988[123] and then sold to the trio of Bruce McNall (60%), John Candy (20%), and Wayne Gretzky (20%) for the same amount in 1991.

Other notable coaching careers include those of Joe Wright, Sr. at the end of the nineteenth century, Ted Morris and Frank Clair in the post-war years, Leo Cahill in the late 60s and early 70s, and Pinball Clemons after the turn of the millennium.

)[144] Argonauts coaches have been honoured nine times: Cahill (1971), O'Billovich (1981 & 1987), Adam Rita (1991), Don Matthews (1997), Jim Barker (2010), Milanovich (2012),[145] Trestman (2017), and Dinwiddie (2023).

[citation needed] Notable broadcasters for the Argonauts include John Badham who had three tenures on three separate radio stations and later inducted into the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1995.

[147] The two teams meet in Hamilton every year in the Labour Day Classic, a league wide tradition since the late 1940s in which the game's greatest rivalries are showcased.

The two teams' five Grey Cup match-ups include an epic 38–36 Toronto loss in 1987 and most recently, the Snow Bowl victory in 1996 led by the arm of Doug Flutie.