Fan's Guide to CFL Official Playing Rules 2026

From the Table of Scores in the 2026 Official Playing Rules:

The team scoring the majority of points wins.

• Touchdown: scored when a player has the ball in the opponent's goal area, or the ball in a player's possession crosses or touches the plane of the opponent's goal line.
• Field goal: a drop kick or place kick (other than on a kickoff) that, without touching the ground again, goes over the crossbar and between the goal posts. After a field goal, the team scored against may scrimmage from its 40-yard line or kick off from its own 30-yard line, or require the scoring team to kick off from its 30-yard line.
• Safety touch: scored when the ball becomes dead in a team's own goal area, or crosses the dead line or a sideline in goal, after that team carried, kicked, fumbled or otherwise directed it from the field of play into the goal area (or after a kick from scrimmage was blocked). The scoring team may scrimmage at its own 40-yard line, kick off from its own 30-yard line, or accept a kickoff from the 20-yard line of the team that conceded.

If the ball is kicked into a team's goal area by an opponent, a rouge (single point) is scored:

1. when the ball becomes dead in possession of that team in its own goal area, or
2. when a player possesses or touches the ball in the goal area and the ball then touches or crosses the dead line or a sideline in goal, regardless of how the ball goes out of bounds in the goal area.

After a rouge, the team scored against puts the ball into play by a scrimmage as first down at any point between the hash marks on its own 40-yard line. If the point came from an unsuccessful field goal attempt, that team may instead choose to scrimmage from the previous line of scrimmage.

2026 change: the rouge rule was changed so that no single point is scored when a ball is kicked directly out of bounds in an opponent's goal area, either in flight or after hitting the ground. Also, when a kicked ball goes through the opponent's goal area without being touched, or hits the opponent's goal post in flight, the ball is next scrimmaged from the opponent's 40-yard line.

A team that scores a touchdown may attempt a convert by a scrimmage play from any point on or between the hash marks, on either the 3-yard line or the 25-yard line:

• 1 point: by kicking a field goal on a scrimmage play initially scrimmaged from the 25-yard line.
• 2 points: by scoring a touchdown by a ball-carrying or passing play initially scrimmaged from either the 3-yard line or the 25-yard line.

If a convert is re-tried because of a penalty, a team that originally chose a 2-point attempt from the 3-yard line cannot change to a 1-point attempt on the re-try.

There is no convert attempt on the winning touchdown scored in overtime. In overtime, a touchdown must be followed by a 2-point attempt from the 3-yard line.

A game is 60 minutes of actual playing time, divided into four quarters of 15 minutes each. The scoreboard clock is the official time. Goals change at the end of the first and third quarters, and the second-half kickoff takes place 16 minutes after the end of the first half.

3-minute warning: if the game clock is running and the ball is not snapped before 3:00 remains in each half, the clock stops at 3:00 and the 3-minute warning is given (a 2026 change). The game clock then starts on the snap on the first play after the warning, and the clock stops each time the ball goes dead for the rest of the half. The variable 20-second play clock is used for the last three minutes of each half.

Kneel out (2026 change): the offence can end a half by declaring to the Referee that it will "kneel out". It can do this when it has a first down, there are 40 or fewer seconds left, and the other team has no timeout. The player taking the snap kneels promptly and the Referee declares the half over regardless of the time left.

Coin toss: the Referee tosses a coin with the visiting captain calling. The winning captain declares whether to have first choice at the start of the first or the second half. The captain with first choice at the start of the first half chooses between kicking off or receiving, or which end to defend; the other captain has first choice at the start of the second half.

Team A must put the ball into play before the play clock reaches 0. A violation is a time count foul (5-yard penalty, which may be declined).

2026 change: after most plays, a 35-second play clock now starts automatically on a signal from the covering official that the play is over.

The Referee instead starts a 20-second play clock:

• for the play after a kickoff, a touchdown, the application of penalties, a change of possession, a TV or team timeout, an injury or equipment delay, a team challenge or Replay Centre review, or any other administrative delay
• for every play after the 3-minute warning in each half
• for every play in overtime
• any time the Referee deems it necessary

On a kickoff following a convert or field goal with no commercial break, the timer runs back-to-back 35-second play clocks, and the team must kick the ball before the second one reaches 0.

After the 3-minute warning, a time count foul on first or second down costs a loss of down or 10 yards, and on third down 10 yards. On a convert attempt it is 5 yards at any time in the game.

In regulation time each team is granted two timeouts, which can be used at any point, subject to these rules:

• Any player on the field or the head coach can request a timeout, directed to any official on the field.
• A timeout lasts 30 seconds.
• A team cannot request or use a second timeout in the same dead-ball period.
• A team may use only one timeout in the last three minutes of the fourth quarter.
• The game clock resumes on the snap.

In overtime each team is granted one 15-second timeout.

A coach challenge requires a timeout in regulation time (an unsuccessful challenge costs the team a timeout), but not in overtime.

If the score is tied at the end of regulation time, an overtime mini-game is played:

1. A coin toss decides which team goes first. That team scrimmages the ball at the opponent's 35-yard line and may advance by consecutive series of downs until it scores or loses possession. If it scores a touchdown, the convert must be a 2-point attempt from the 3-yard line.
2. The second team then scrimmages from the same 35-yard line under the same conditions.
3. If still tied, a second mini-game is played at the opposite end of the field, with both teams again scrimmaging from the 35-yard line.

Playoff and Grey Cup games: if still tied, additional mini-games are played, alternating the end of the field, until there is a winner.

Regular season games (2026 change): if still tied after two mini-games, the teams play an unlimited series of 2-point convert attempts from the 3-yard line, at the same end of the field, until a winner is determined. A winner is determined when one team has scored more points after each team has had equal opportunities.

There is only one coin toss in overtime; after the first mini-game, the choice of which team starts on offence alternates. Each team also gets one 15-second timeout in overtime, and a 20-second play clock is used for every play.

From the 2026 Official Playing Rules:

• Defence: Team B players must line up at least one yard back of, and on their own side of, the line of scrimmage until the ball is put in play. The one-yard strip on each side of the line is the scrimmage zone.
• Offence: at least seven Team A players must be line players, and Team A can never have more than five players in backfield positions. At least five line players, including the Centre, must be ineligible receivers in a continuous, unbroken line.
• Stillness on the line: all Team A line players, including the Centre, must become stationary and remain motionless for at least one second immediately before the snap. After taking a 3-point or 4-point stance, a line player may not break it by lifting a hand. No Team A line player may be moving towards the opponent's goal line when the ball is put in play.
• Offside: Team A players must be completely behind the line of scrimmage, except the head, arms and hands of the Centre and receivers. Offside and illegal-procedure penalties are 5 yards.
• Drawing the defence offside: fake snaps, quick or jerky quarterback or Centre movements, and "snap down" motions by an offensive lineman intended to draw an opponent offside are penalized 5 yards.

On offence (Team A), eligibility is shown by jersey number:

• Eligible receivers wear numbers 0 to 49 and 70 to 99.
• Ineligible receivers wear numbers 50 to 69.

Every defensive (Team B) player is an eligible receiver.

An eligible-number player must, at the snap, be at the end of the line of scrimmage, at least one yard back of it in the backfield, or in forward motion from a backfield position and within one yard of the line of scrimmage.

2026 change: a team may designate a maximum of three players wearing an ineligible number (50 to 69) to line up in an eligible position, as an end or in the backfield. The player must report to the Referee before each play in which they want to play an eligible position, and the Referee informs the defence and all officials. If an ineligible receiver is the first Team A player to catch or deliberately touch the ball, the penalty is 10 yards or an incomplete pass (the 2026 rules added the incomplete-pass option).

Also, the Long Snapper and the two players immediately on each side of the Long Snapper and/or the ball can wear any number, but they are ineligible receivers for that play.

On a forward pass thrown across the line of scrimmage, eligible receivers of both teams have an equal right to the ball. The 2026 Official Playing Rules say it is pass interference by either team when a player:

• physically contacts an opponent in a way that creates separation, redirects, restricts or impedes the opponent, is visually evident, and materially affects the opponent's opportunity to play the ball
• screens (face guards) an opponent during an attempt to catch the ball
• "goes through" an opponent during an attempt to play the ball

It is not pass interference when:

• the pass is deemed uncatchable
• the ball has already been touched by an eligible receiver of either team
• a player who has gained position makes a bona fide effort to go to and play the ball
• there is only incidental contact while moving to the ball that does not materially affect an eligible player's route
• a receiver makes contact while looking for and genuinely attempting to catch or bat a reachable ball

Penalty if Team B (defence) commits it: if the interference is ruled accidental, the ball moves 10 yards from the previous spot and Team A gets an automatic first down. If it is ruled deliberate, Team A gets an automatic first down at the point of the foul or 10 yards in advance of the previous spot, whichever is closer to Team B's goal line (or at Team B's 1-yard line if the foul is in Team B's goal area).

Penalty if Team A (offence) commits it: 10 yards from the previous spot.