CFL to stage one-round draft of European players who participated in combine

TORONTO – The Hamilton Tiger-Cats will have the first overall pick when the CFL conducts its first-ever European player draft next Thursday.

The nine CFL teams will have an opportunity to select one of the 18 Europeans who attended the league’s national combine last month in Toronto.

The league held a weighted lottery — the last-place team in 2018 had the best chance to get top selection, while the first-place team had the worst chance — to determine the order of picks in the one-round draft.

After Hamilton, the Winnipeg Blue Bombers will make the No. 2 selection. The remainder of the draft order will consist of Montreal, Edmonton, Toronto, Saskatchewan, B.C., Ottawa and Calgary.

Germany leads the way with six players available. There are four each from France and Finland and two each from Italy and Denmark.

It will mark the second time this off-season the CFL has conducted an international draft. In January, the league held a three-round draft of Mexican players who participated in a combine it staged in Mexico City.

The CFL’s Canadian draft is slated for May 2.