SUMMER 2019 INFORMATION - THE BEST GAME DAY EXPERIENCE, JUST GOT BETTER!



FOR THE PLAYERS ...           ... BY THE PLAYERS



Thanks to everyone who participated in the recent summer football survey, we had over 400 people respond! We take player-based direction seriously as we want to ensure we provide the best game day experience in recreational sports.



Season shortened from 18 games to 16 games:
Based on survey feedback, the PIT Football league will reduce its schedule from 18 to 16 games. The improvement that teams most requested was better spacing of games during the summer. By reducing the season by two games, better spacing can be achieved. Teams should keep in mind the following when judging spacing of games:

  • The season is 16 weeks in duration. In an 18-game season there would be multiple weeks in which you would play at least two games.
  • Your schedule requests determine spacing. If your team provides limited availability, then your spacing will be considerably different/worse than teams with better availability.
  • Your opponent's schedule requests determine your spacing. We do our best to accommodate your requests, we also must do the same for your opponents!
  • Long weekends and Bomber games will affect your spacing. There are some weeks where we have four days off for a long weekend and a Bomber game, meaning five of the 7 days are days the league does not schedule games. With just two other days remaining to schedule games, only a few teams will play, thus affecting spacing in other weeks.
  • Sunsets will affect your spacing! Beginning mid-August, we go down to just one game a night, thus there are now half as many options for teams to play during that time.
  • Rain outs will affect your spacing. Reschedules will shift the spacing of games. What your schedule is at the end of the season may be quite different than what it was at the beginning depending on rain outs.
The goal of reducing the season from 18 to 16 games is better schedule spacing, reducing team registration fees, and providing more opportunities for players to enjoy the summer!



Divisional Re-Alignment:
Over three-quarters of players indicated they would like to see divisional realignment to ensure better parity across divisions. By player direction, PIT Football will now be the first football league to offer realignment. The season will be split into two “halves”. After 8 games the league will realign. The tentative date for realignment would be July 5th. The league would shut down for the weekend of the 6th and 7th (barring rain outs) and then start up again on Monday July 8th.

  • The second half schedule will take into consideration all original schedule requests so that players can plan their summers, vacations, etc.
  • Teams would not be allowed to make additional schedule requests for the second half of the season.
  • The goal of divisional realignment is to ensure parity within a division so that all teams have a fun and fair season.
  • Team captains may choose from a drop-down list of divisions at registration; however the League Coordinators reserve the right to align divisions at their discretion to ensure parity.
  • Divisions will be realigned after 8 games. Divisional realignment generally involves the top-seeded team(s) in each division moving up one division and the bottom-seeded team(s) in each division moving down one division. However, the League Administration reserves the right to re-align divisions as they see fit to achieve parity and ensure an enjoyable season for all teams.
  • Default losses will not be considered in realignment.
  • If a multi-team player is moved into a division with their other team, the player can continue to play on both teams but must choose a “priority” team for when the two teams play one another.
  • The combined records of the two “halves” will be considered for playoff seeding.
The goal of realignment is to ensure better divisional parity and more enjoyable seasons for our players. During the regular season, realignment should foster more competitive games. Come playoffs, we ideally want teams sharing an equal chance of winning the championship!



Reduced Weekend Summer Schedule:
Most players favored a reduced weekend schedule during July and August. However, there were still a significant number of players who indicated that the weekends are the only time they can play. As a compromise we will be working with a reduced weekend schedule for July and August.

  • Teams that request weekend games will still receive weekend games.
  • Teams that don’t request weekend games will play most of their schedule during the weekdays.
  • With more games being played on weekdays, rain outs will most likely have to be played on weekends.
  • Teams are reminded that games at IGF are on weekends.
The goal of a reduced weekend slate of games is to provide teams that want to play weekends the opportunity to do so, and for those teams who prefer their weekends off, we can ideally allow them more time to enjoy Winnipeg summers!



New Summer Divisions:
The survey indicated considerable interest from new teams wanting to play summer football. That interest was divided between wanting to play outdoor in an introductory division or continuing to play indoor football with an extended season during the summer months. Based on your feedback, we will be offering both an extended indoor touch football and a new team (outdoor) division in the Summer.

Indoor League:

  • Indoor touch football will be played according to the 5 v 5 rules just like the current indoor seasons. Touch football will join Flag Football and Coed Football as part of our indoor slate of games.
  • Indoor games will be held Monday to Thursday in prime time (approximately 7pm to 10pm based on demand).
  • The indoor season will run from June to September with an extended 14-game regular season.
  • Similar to outdoor, all teams will make playoffs and divisions will be realigned according to skill level for playoffs.
  • Flag Football will follow the rules of the Canadian Flag Football League (CFFL) and provide players the opportunity to participate in regional, provincial, and national events.
Outdoor League:
  • We will also be providing an outdoor (7 v 7) New Team Division for teams who have not played outdoor previously.
  • Indoor teams will be considered new to outdoor if your team hasn’t played outdoor before.
  • The New Team division will help introduce teams to the outdoor game at the most economical price!
  • All new divisions will be tiered for playoffs into separate divisions (e.g., competitive, intermediate, recreational) to ensure parity across teams.
  • The New Team Division will have a shortened 10 game season so that teams can tryout the game before committing to the larger slate of games found in the regular outdoor divisions.
  • All New Team Division participants will make playoffs.
The goal of the new divisions is to encourage participation from players and teams to help grow the game of football in the province. More players and teams make for a much more enjoyable experience for all those participating in the Summer. For those that have not played summer before, we believe it is the most enjoyable season of football! The outdoor game presents more strategy and highlights the skills of our players, while the new indoor division can help with teams that may not be able to build a larger roster needed for the 7 on 7 game of outdoor.


The best game day experience in recreational sports, just got better! PIT Football is always open to suggestions from our players, so if you have a new idea, we always enjoy talking with you regarding how to make the league better. We are the largest touch and flag football league in Canada, and player-based suggestions are one of the reasons why!



FOR THE PLAYERS ...           ... BY THE PLAYERS

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