Western Women's Canadian Football League

Last updated
Western Women's Canadian Football League (WWCFL)
WWCFL Logo.png
Sport Canadian football
Founded2011
First season2011
PresidentJamie Lammerding
CommissionerShawn Walter
DivisionsWestern Conference; Prairie Conference
No. of teams7
Country Canada
Most recent
champion(s)
Saskatoon Valkyries
Most titlesSaskatoon Valkyries (9)
Official website wwcfl.ca OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg

The Western Women's Canadian Football League (WWCFL) is a full-contact women's Canadian football league which began play in the spring of 2011. The league plays an annual season in the spring and summer, and with seven teams it is the largest women's football league in Canada. The teams play 12-woman tackle football games using the Football Canada rules, similar to those of the Canadian Football League. The league has teams in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta.

Contents

League history

Women's tackle football began to grow in popularity across the Prairies in the early 21st century. Clubs were established in several Alberta cities and in Winnipeg before 2010, and teams would frequently travel to play each other. [1] In 2010, the Edmonton Storm, Calgary Rockies, and Lethbridge Steel came together to form the Alberta Female Football League (AFFL), while the Manitoba Fearless traveled for exhibition matches against Alberta teams, as well as the Minnesota Vixen. [2] [3] When a women's football clinic in Saskatoon in 2010 consolidated interest in the sport in Saskatchewan, a Prairie women's league began to look feasible. [4] [5] The following year, the WWCFL was founded with seven teams across Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. The league's first commissioner was Fearless co-founder Tannis Wilson, one of the central figures pushing for an inter-provincial league. [6]

The WWCFL began play in 2011. Teams were divided into two conferences, with Alberta-based teams playing in the Western Conference and Saskatchewan- and Manitoba-based teams playing in the Prairie Conference, a structure that has remained intact. In the inaugural season, both the Edmonton Storm and Saskatoon Valkyries went undefeated in their conferences, posting 4–0 records. Both teams dispatched provincial rivals in their respective Conference finals, leading to a Championship match between the Storm and the Valkyries, played in Lethbridge. The Valkyries won the title with a 35–7 victory, becoming the first WWCFL champions. [7]

The Valkyries quickly established themselves as a WWCFL dynasty, winning the first four WWCFL championships and losing only one game along the way. They defeated the Lethbridge Steel in the championship final in three consecutive seasons from 2012 to 2014. [8]

Two new Alberta-based teams joined the league in 2013. [9] The Northern Anarchy began play out of Grande Prairie, Alberta, and the Okotoks Lady Outlawz began play out of Okotoks, Alberta. [10] [11] Although the league considered expansion to British Columbia, the two new teams struggled to become firmly established. The Outlawz suspended operations in 2014; the Anarchy paused operations in 2015, returned to play in 2016, and suspended operations again in 2020. [12] This left the league with its original seven clubs.

The Regina Riot were the first team to beat the Valkyries, and the first team besides the Valkyries to win the league championship, winning the title in 2015 with a 53–6 victory over Edmonton in the championship final, played in Winnipeg. [13] Regina established its own run of dominance, advancing to the championship final four times in five seasons from 2015 to 2019 and winning three titles in the process. [14]

It was not until 2019 that either the Valkyries or the Riot lost a game to a team from outside of Saskatchewan, when the Manitoba Fearless defeated the Riot 34–9 in Regina on 5 May 2019. [15] [16] The Fearless made another breakthrough in 2022 when they defeated the Riot in the first round of the playoffs with a 20–13 victory. [17] They went on to lose their first Championship final to Saskatoon. [18]

Mosaic Stadium has hosted two WWCFL championship games, in 2018 and 2019 Mosaic Stadium Interior.jpg
Mosaic Stadium has hosted two WWCFL championship games, in 2018 and 2019

The WWCFL cancelled both the 2020 and 2021 seasons due to the COVID-19 pandemic, although some teams managed to organize exhibition games in 2021. [19] [20] This delayed celebrations of the league's 10th anniversary, which was marked in 2022 when the league returned to full play. [21] The league did encounter struggles with stability after returning to play, and both Edmonton and Winnipeg paused operations ahead of the 2024 season. [22] Coming out of the pandemic, the Valkyries established a second dynastic run of success, winning another four straight titles—including one prior to the pandemic in 2019—without losing a single game. [23]

Rules, structure, and philosophy

The WWCFL follows Football Canada's Canadian Amateur Rule Book for Tackle Football, drawing on the same rules as men's leagues. A 2014 study noted that this avoided the "ghettoization" of the women's league through stripping down the rules. The WWCFL has also consequently been able to draw upon support and resources from men's football. [24] Founding Commissioner Tannis Wilson said, "It's an old boys club out there. You can’t let those guys push you around, but there is a lot of support for the women’s programs once people find out about us. They want their daughters to follow in dad’s footsteps.” [6]

The league is divided into two conferences that play four-game intra-conference regular seasons before a three-round playoff that culminates in the WWCFL title game.

Early in its existence, the WWCFL was contrasted with the then-Lingerie Football League (LFL), which expanded into Canada in 2012, including teams in Saskatoon and Regina and plans for a team in Calgary. The LFL was frequently criticized for devaluing women's football, and the WWCFL offered an alternative focused fully on the sport. [24] In 2012 Wilson said, "I'd say if you want to see real women play real football, come out and watch the WWCFL." [25]

The league operates as a non-profit organization with a decentralized and democratic power structure, with a league board of elected members that includes representatives of each team. [24]

Athletes in the WWCFL are unpaid and the league relies on extensive volunteer labour at the club and league level, along with fundraising. [26] It has not been uncommon for league executives to play, manage, or coach clubs in the league. For example, Jaime Lammerding played for the Saskatoon Valkyries from 2011 to 2022 while also serving as league president, and WWCFL commissioner Shawn Walter took over as head coach of the Edmonton Storm in 2022. [18] [21]

Teams

TeamLocationFoundedHome FieldConf. titlesLeague titles
Western Conference
Edmonton Storm Edmonton, AB2004 Clarke Stadium 30
Calgary Rage Calgary, AB2009Shouldice Athletic Park20
Lethbridge Steel Lethbridge, AB2010 University of Lethbirdge Community Stadium 30
Prairie Conference
Saskatoon Valkyries Saskatoon, SK2010 Saskatoon Minor Football Field / Griffiths Stadium 109
Regina Riot Regina, SK2011Leibel Field / Mosaic Stadium 53
Manitoba Fearless Winnipeg, MB2008 IG Field 00
Winnipeg Wolfpack Winnipeg, MB2011 North Winnipeg Nomads Football Club 00
FormerYears active
Northern Anarchy Grande Prairie, ABLegion Field2013–2020
Okotoks Lady Outlawz High River, ABHigh River High Field2013–2014
Map of WWCFL teams
Western Women's Canadian Football League
Invisible Square.svg
Invisible Square.svg
Mapscaleline.svg
200km
125miles
Blue pog.svg
Wolfpack
Invisible Square.svg
Blue pog.svg
Fearless
Invisible Square.svg
Blue pog.svg
Riot
Invisible Square.svg
Blue pog.svg
Valkyries
Invisible Square.svg
Red pog.svg
Steel
Invisible Square.svg
Red pog.svg
Rage
Invisible Square.svg
Red pog.svg
Storm
Invisible Square.svg
Red pog.svg Western Conference Blue pog.svg Prairie Conference

WWCFL Championship results

YearChampionFinalistScoreLocationRef
2011Saskatoon ValkyriesEdmonton Storm35–7Lethbridge [7] [27]
2012Saskatoon ValkyriesLethbridge Steel64–21Saskatoon [28]
2013Saskatoon ValkyriesLethbridge Steel27–13Regina [29]
2014Saskatoon ValkyriesLethbridge Steel53–0Saskatoon [8]
2015Regina RiotEdmonton Storm53–6Winnipeg [13]
2016Saskatoon ValkyriesEdmonton Storm81–6Lethbridge [30]
2017Regina RiotCalgary Rage53–0Saskatoon [31]
2018Regina RiotSaskatoon Valkyries14–10Regina [32]
2019Saskatoon ValkyriesRegina Riot25–3Regina [33]
2020Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic [20]
2021Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic [20]
2022Saskatoon ValkyriesManitoba Fearless36–6Saskatoon [18]
2023Saskatoon ValkyriesCalgary Rage40–0Saskatoon [34]
2024Saskatoon ValkyriesRegina Riot36–21Regina [23]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western Hockey League</span> Junior ice hockey league

The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hockey in Canada, alongside the Ontario Hockey League and Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League. Teams play for the Ed Chynoweth Cup, with the winner moving on to play for the Memorial Cup, Canada's national junior championship. WHL teams have won the Memorial Cup 19 times. The WHL is composed of 22 teams divided into two conferences of two divisions. The Eastern Conference comprises 11 teams from Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta, while the Western Conference comprises eleven teams from British Columbia and the American states of Washington and Oregon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian Junior Football League</span> Canadian football league

The Canadian Junior Football League (CJFL) is a national Major Junior Canadian football league consisting of 19 teams playing in five provinces across Canada. The teams compete annually for the Canadian Bowl. Many CJFL players move on to professional football careers in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and elsewhere.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western Canadian Baseball League</span> Collegiate summer baseball league in Canada

The Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL) is a collegiate summer baseball league. The league is home to teams based in the Canadian Prairie provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta, and has roots dating back to 1931 in Saskatchewan's Southern Baseball League. In 1975, the province's southern and northern leagues merged, creating the foundation for the WCBL. Today, the league boasts seven teams in Alberta and five in Saskatchewan.

The Western Canada Senior Hockey League was a senior ice hockey league that played six seasons in Alberta and Saskatchewan, from 1945 to 1951. The league produced the 1946 Allan Cup and the 1948 Allan Cup champions, and merged into the Pacific Coast Hockey League for the 1951–52 season.

The 1968–69 WCHL season was the third season of the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL), featuring eight teams and a 60-game regular season. The Flin Flon Bombers topped the season's standings with 47 wins, and in the playoffs defeated the Edmonton Oil Kings to win the club's first President's Cup championship. The Bombers advanced to a national series organized by the Canadian Hockey Association to rival the Memorial Cup. In the series the Bombers defeated the St. Thomas Barons from the Western Ontario Junior A Hockey League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al Pickard</span> Canadian ice hockey administrator

Allan Wilfrid Pickard was a Canadian ice hockey administrator, who served as president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) from 1947 to 1950. When Canada opted out of the 1947 Ice Hockey World Championships and decided not to participate in the 1948 Winter Olympics, Pickard felt that Canada was obliged to send a team due to its place as a top hockey nation, and nominated the Ottawa RCAF Flyers who won the gold medal for Canada and lived up to the requirements of the Olympic Oath as amateurs. Despite disagreement with the International Olympic Committee, he sought for the International Ice Hockey Federation to adopt the CAHA definition of amateur in the face of increasing difficulty in selecting the Canada men's national ice hockey team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alberta Junior Hockey League</span> Ice hockey league in Alberta, Canada

The Alberta Junior Hockey League (AJHL) is an Alberta-based Junior A ice hockey league that belongs to the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). It was formed as a five-team league in 1964. The 2023–24 season began with 16 teams, however 5 teams did not finish the season after it was announced that they planned to join the BCHL in the 2024–25 season. The regular season league champions receive the Dave Duchak Trophy. The playoff champions receive the Inter Pipeline Cup. The winner of the AJHL playoffs continues on to play in the Centennial Cup tournament, which determines Canadian Junior A champion.

The Saskatchewan Senior Hockey League (SSHL) was a senior amateur ice hockey league that operated in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan on-and-off from 1938 to 1971.

The Calgary Rage are a women's football team in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Western Conference. They are based in Calgary, Alberta.

Julie Paetsch is an athlete from Lanigan, Saskatchewan. Currently, she is a two-sport athlete in hockey and football. Selected by the Calgary Inferno in the 2013 CWHL Draft, she is also a competitor for the Saskatoon Valkyries of the Western Women's Canadian Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saskatoon Valkyries</span> Womens football team

The Saskatoon Valkyries are a women's football team in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Prairie Conference. The team is based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. They are the most successful WWCFL team, winning nine of the leagues twelve championships since play began in 2011, including the first four. Their primary rivals are the Regina Riot, the only other WWCFL team to win the championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Regina Riot (football)</span> Womens football team

The Regina Riot are a women's football team in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Prairie Conference. The team is based in Regina, Saskatchewan. Their provincial rivals are the Saskatoon Valkyries. The Riot and Valkyries have dominated the WWCFL since play began in 2011 as the only two teams to win the league championship.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lethbridge Steel</span> Western Womens Canadian Football League team

The Lethbridge Steel is a women's football team in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Western Conference. The team is based in Lethbridge, Alberta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manitoba Fearless</span> Womens football team

The Manitoba Fearless are a women's football team in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Prairie Conference. The team is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and is the longest running Winnipeg-based women's tackle football team, founded in 2008. Their local WWCFL rivals are the Winnipeg Wolfpack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmonton Storm (football)</span> Canadian womens tackle football team

The Edmonton Storm are a women's football team in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Western Conference. The team is based in Edmonton, Alberta. The Storm are Alberta's oldest competitive women's tackle football club.

The Western Canada Soccer League was a soccer league in Canada. The league operated for eight seasons over a nine-year period from 1963 to 1971 and eventually operated across nine cities in four Canadian provinces and one American state. In the 1960s, the Western Canada Soccer League was one of four major leagues in Canadian soccer alongside the Pacific Coast League, the National Soccer League of Ontario/Quebec, and the Eastern Canada Professional Soccer League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frederick E. Betts</span> Canadian ice hockey administrator and businessman

Frederick Everett Betts was a Canadian ice hockey administrator and businessman. He concurrently served as president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA), the Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association, and the Saskatchewan branch of the Amateur Athletic Union of Canada during the 1919–20 season. He sought regulations to govern amateur sport in Canada, which he felt was in a state of disrepute due to the lack of discussion and the postponement of meetings during World War I. He supported the reinstatement of former professionals as amateur athletes as favoured in Western Canada, despite the growing rift with delegates from Eastern Canada on the issue. He sought for the Allan Cup trustees to allow the CAHA to have more say into how the national playoffs were operated and argued for receiving an annual percentage of profits from gate receipts to allow the CAHA to govern effectively.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dave Dryburgh</span> Canadian sports journalist

Dave Dryburgh was a Scotland-born Canadian sports journalist. A native of Kirkcaldy and an immigrant to Regina, he reported on the soccer games in which he played for The Leader-Post. As the newspaper's sports editor from 1932 to 1948, he primarily covered Canadian football and the Regina Roughriders, and ice hockey in Western Canada. His columns "Sport Byways" and "Dryburgh" give a first-hand account of sporting events, and were read widely in Western Canada. As the secretary of the Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association during the 1930s and 1940s, he established its registration system including the history of each player. He also served as the official statistician for baseball, softball and hockey leagues in Saskatchewan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winnipeg Wolfpack</span> Canadian womens football club

The Winnipeg Wolfpack are a women's football club in the Western Women's Canadian Football League's (WWCFL) Prairie Conference. The Wolfpack are based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

References

  1. Lunney, Dough (March 26, 2012). "Women eager to tackle new football challenge". Winnipeg Sun. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  2. "Lethbridge Steel - About". Lethbridge Steel Football. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  3. "Manitoba Fearless - About Us". Manitoba Fearless. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  4. "Saskatoon Valkyries - Our History". Saskatoon Valkyries. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  5. "Regina team joins women's football league". CBC News. March 12, 2011. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  6. 1 2 Tait, Ed (May 18, 2017). "Women's Football - A Growing Game". Winnipeg Blue Bombers - bluebombers.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  7. 1 2 Menz, Kevin (August 13, 2011). "BRIEF: Saskatoon Valkyries league champs". The Sheaf. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  8. 1 2 Piller, Thomas (July 6, 2014). "Saskatoon Valkyries capture 4th WWCFL championship". Global News. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  9. Staffieri, Mark (May 6, 2013). "Sky Is the Limit as WWCFL Enters Third Season on Wings of Optimism". Bleacher Report. Retrieved July 15, 2023.
  10. "Grande Prairie getting gridiron gals" Daily Herald Tribune, Grande Prairie, September 27, 2012. Retrieved on December 11, 2012
  11. Greer, Remy (February 29, 2012). "Foothills ladies hit the gridiron". Okotoks Western Wheel. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
  12. Oatway, Jenny (May 8, 2015). "Northern Anarchy Women's Football Regrouping for 2016". My Grande Prairie Now. Archived from the original on May 28, 2015. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
  13. 1 2 Harkins, Jamie (July 15, 2015). "Locals lead Riot to historic win". Sask Today. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  14. Vanstone, Rob (June 23, 2019). "Regina Riot earns third consecutive trip to WWCFL final". Regina Leader-Post. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  15. Vanstone, Rob (May 5, 2019). "Manitoba Fearless no longer winless against Regina Riot". Toronto Sun. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  16. Provost, Kelly (May 11, 2019). "Sask. football teams welcome a more competitive Western Women's CFL". CBC News. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  17. CKRM (June 12, 2022). "Riot Make Early Exit From Playoffs". CKRM Sports. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  18. 1 2 3 Mitchell, Kevin (June 26, 2022). "'I couldn't be prouder': Valkyries cap off unbeaten season with championship celebration". Saskatoon StarPhoenix. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  19. "SCHEDULE: WWCFL League Update". Western Women's Canadian Football League. Archived from the original on September 17, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  20. 1 2 3 "About WWCFL". WWCFL. 2021. Archived from the original on December 20, 2021.
  21. 1 2 Bonnyman, Clare (May 21, 2022). "Edmonton Storm tackling stigma around women's football". CBC News.
  22. Davis, Darrell (June 11, 2024). "Regina Riot ready for women's football playoffs ... finally". Regina Leader-Post . Archived from the original on June 11, 2024. Retrieved July 3, 2024.
  23. 1 2 Lammerding, Jaime (June 24, 2024). "Saskatoon Valkyries claim their 9th WWCFL women's football championship". Saskatoon StarPhoenix . Archived from the original on June 24, 2024. Retrieved July 3, 2024.
  24. 1 2 3 Krawec, Katrina (2014). "Shaping and Being Shaped: Examining Women's Tackle Football in Canada". University of Windsor. Archived from the original on November 1, 2018.
  25. "Feeling the Rush: Women's tackle football league a hit". Winnipeg Sun. May 14, 2012. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  26. Bezovie, Erin (April 27, 2022). "Edmonton women's football team tackling obstacles on and off the field as play resumes". CTV News. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  27. "WWCFL - 2011 Results". WWCFL. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  28. "Valkyries win championship, remain perfect" Saskatoon Star-Phoenix , Saskatoon, July 16, 2012. Retrieved on July 21, 2012
  29. Rice, Don (June 17, 2013). "Valkyries' third title win tougher". Saskatoon StarPhoenix. Retrieved July 13, 2023 via pressreader.
  30. "Saskatoon Valkyries take back WWCFL championship". CBC News . June 25, 2016. Retrieved October 6, 2016.
  31. "Regina Riot captures WWCFL championship". Leader-Post . June 11, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  32. Harder, Greg (June 24, 2018). "Riot wins second straight WWCFL championship". Regina Leader-Post. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  33. Bidwell, Derek; Piller, Thomas (July 1, 2019). "Saskatoon Valkyries dedicate winning season to late coach". Global News. Retrieved July 13, 2023.
  34. Dayal, Pratyush (June 26, 2023). "Saskatoon Valkyries win 3rd straight Western Women's Canadian Football League title". CBC News. Retrieved July 11, 2023.