In America, leaders in the NFL and college football are debating and modeling how to handle the COVID-19 outbreak with a season still four months in the future. Up north, they're living in the future.
The Canadian Football League was scheduled to begin regular season play for its 2020 season on June 11 and conclude with the 108th Grey Cup on Nov. 22.
The league has already delayed the beginning of training camp, with delayed or canceled games certain to follow -- as well as the possibility of a fully canceled 2020 season.
"We're like so many other businesses across Canada," CFL commissioner Randy Ambrosie told the Canadian Press on Tuesday. "We're facing financial pressures unlike anything we've seen before.
"Our best-case scenario is we're almost certain to have to cancel games. But at worst if this crisis persists and large gatherings are prevented, we could lose the whole season and the types of losses we could incur would be devastating."
The CFL has asked the Canadian government for $30 million, and $120 million more in requests could be on the way if the league is unable to play this fall.
The league does have a TV contract, but it does not provide enough income to pay the bills on its own. More than half the league's income comes from tickets and concessions, and Canadian officials say in-person sports could be out of the question through the summer.
Canada's outbreak has been minimal compared to the United States, with just 51,000 confirmed cases and less than 3,000 deaths.