Canadian football Canadian football Canadian football () is a sport played in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed oval-shaped ball into the opposing team's scoring area (end zone). In Canada, the term "football" may refer to Canadian football and American football collectively, or to either sport specifically, depending on context. The two sports have shared origins and are closely related but have some key differences. Rugby football in Canada originated in the early 1860s, and over time, the game known as Canadian
Comparison of Canadian football and rugby union running backs, receivers, and quarterbacks have roles similar to backs in rugby. Because of the playing time, number of pauses, number of players and the nature of the game in general, rugby players will typically need higher physical endurance than Canadian football players while more short-term bursts of physical strength, power, and speed are required in Canadian football (amongst equivalent positions and weights). Collisions between players in rugby union tend to last significantly longer than Canadian football, in which collisions are more often "hits" in which the momentum of the player is enough to bring the other player to ground