1880–1955, Canadian Rugby Union The organization, which is now known as Football Canada, was founded on June 12, 1880, as the
Canadian Rugby Football Union, disbanded then revived on October 21, 1882, and re-organized as the
Canadian Rugby Union on December 19, 1891. The CRU was founded to govern a sport which at the time had rules similar to the
rugby football being played in the
United Kingdom. In 1909,
Albert Grey, 4th Earl Grey,
Governor General of Canada, donated a trophy to the CRU to be awarded for the Rugby Football Championship of Canada. This trophy became known as the
Grey Cup. Even by this time, however, the rules being played in Canada were vastly different from the rules used in countries that were part of the
International Rugby Board (IRB). In the years that followed, the CRU made numerous rule changes that resulted in a game reasonably similar to the American one but unrecognizable to a rugby union enthusiast. In the early-1910s, CRU held annual discussions dealing with rules changes due to the influence
American football. The CRU elected
W. A. Hewitt president for the
1915 season. He appointed a commission to establish uniform rules of play at different levels including collegiate and senior. He approached multiple football coaches and sought feedback on best ways to implement standard playing rules. After the CRU did not operate from 1916 to 1918 due to
World War I, Hewitt returned as president for the
1919 season. Due to disagreements on playing rules in Western Canada, lack of interest in Eastern Canada, and students prioritizing studies instead of intercollegiate sports; national playoffs were not held in 1919. vs
United States at
White City Stadium,
London, England, February 14, 1944 Despite the divergence, the sport continued to be referred to as
rugby for many years. The CRU did not change its name despite the obvious confusion (rugby union was known as
English rugby in Canada). By the 1940s, however, another development was to cause further changes to the CRU's mandate. It was now clear that two of its member leagues, the
Interprovincial Rugby Football Union in
Eastern Canada and the
Western Interprovincial Football Union in the
West were far more competitive than other circuits.
1956–1967, shift to amateur governance By the 1950s, the two major unions had become openly professional, and in 1956 formed the Canadian Football Council (CFC) as an umbrella organization. In 1958, the CFC seceded from the CRU and became the
Canadian Football League, whose teams became the sole competitors for the Grey Cup (though the amateurs had effectively been locked out since 1954). During the CFL's Grey Cup meetings in November
1966, the CRU transferred its ownership of the Grey Cup to a CFL trusteeship. In exchange, the CRU received $50,000 per year to assist the development of amateur football. As an organization with no direct jurisdiction over the professional clubs and having become a distinct sport from
rugby union by this time, the CRU changed its name to the
Canadian Amateur Football Association (CAFA) in 1967. The CAFA changed its name again to Football Canada in 1986. In French, its name had long been Football Canada. ==Provincial members==