Perry Lefko

Perry Lefko keeps you connected to all the news in the CFL on Sportsnet.ca.

There is no certainty in Toronto that owners David Cynamon and Howard Sokolowski will continue as the team's caretakers.

It appears the CFL’s foundation is not as stable as was recently declared by the commissioner.

Suddenly the Canadian Football League isn't looking as steady as its commissioner Mark Cohon proclaimed less than two weeks ago in his address to the media. Two of the eight franchises are going through internal troubles, while a third is about to face a public relations nightmare.

The Toronto Argonauts and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the two worst teams in the CFL in 2009, are facing serious changes on and off the field. There is no certainty in Toronto that owners David Cynamon and Howard Sokolowski will continue as the team's caretakers. They have refused interviews and comments, similar to what they did before buying the team after the 2003 season.

Their fellow lodge members have turned down their request to shift the Argos' home games from Rogers Centre to BMO Field because the new location is not suitably built for football. Cynamon and Sokolowski are seeking some form of revenue sharing from their fellow lodge members to offset operating losses, but most of those teams are lucky to break even. The team has won only seven of 36 games the past two years and they've had three coaches during that time period. There is no certainty general manager Adam Rita will be allowed to continue in his present position.

B.C. Lions' owner David Braley, always ready to bail out fellow teams in trouble, is rumoured to be ready to buy and/or take over the Argos, possibly having his son, Rob, manage it. But what does that say about the optics of the CFL if no one but an owner from another team wants to buy the Argos? Nothing in the CFL constitution prevents one person from owning two teams (or potentially two family members from owning two teams), but this is the CFL, not the National Lacrosse League or the National Soccer League. The CFL has a long and storied tradition, but does it want to have this included in its history?

And let's not forget the Argos are scheduled to play a regular-season game in Atlantic Canada next year. To be sure, the team's ownership and football operations issues will be resolved by the time the schedule comes out sometime in late January or early February. Until then -- or at least until early in the new year -- speculation will continue about the direction of the Argos.

The Blue Bombers are without a president and a head coach. Lyle Bauer has stepped down as president/chief executive officer for personal and family reasons, but expect him to resurface in the new year in a similar position with Calgary. A source told sportsnet.ca it's a done deal. The Bombers need a head coach following the firing of loose cannon Mike Kelly, who has been charged with domestic assault.

The Bombers have had a revolving door of head coaches in recent years, but rarely have they had one who has embarrassed the club as much as Kelly. Because he was also the de facto GM, the Bombers need to hire a head coach and possibly a director of football operations. The financial bottom line of the community-owned club is about to take another big hit, and the Bombers' fans will have to pay for it with their support through season-ticket sales.

The Saskatchewan Roughriders head into the new year with GM Eric Tillman set to stand trial on a sexual assault charge, something that will garner province-

wide attention and assuredly filter across Canada. Tillman has stressed his innocence, but having to prove that in court is clearly something that is uncomfortable for himself, his family, the Roughriders' organization and the CFL as a whole.

Tillman worked from his home the entire season, while on paid administrative leave from the team. Members of his football staff came to his home or did business via the phone, and the Roughriders' came within a bonehead penalty of winning the Cup this year. But Tillman's trial will play out in a court-room drama unlike anything that happened in the championship game.

So while the CFL will take a hiatus for the holiday season, much will be happening behind the scenes, setting the stage for a new year that will be full of interesting developments. And don't forget about the on-going negotiations between the CFL and the Players' Association over a new collective bargaining agreement and the thorny issue of possibly reducing the starting Canadians from seven to four.

For a league that was described as stable less than a fortnight ago, it appears the foundation is buckling from a public relations point of view.