Our Balls are Bigger
by 3DF Staff
It has happened to every Canadian. You are in the United States, and a local asks where you are from. You identify yourself as Canadian and give them the name of the city you are from. Their response is often, “Where?” or, “Is that in Toronto?” You may even come across someone who asks if you live in an igloo because they believe all of Canada is frighteningly cold or that Canadians have not advanced their home building skills beyond winter shelters. A few jokes aside. This is very real.
Yes, Americans are not taught much about Canada. They do not know Canada’s lakes and river systems, its political system, geological regions, the names of its cities, where those cities are located on a map, or even their own nation’s history with Canada.
I know this all too well, as I have spent nearly a decade visiting high schools across the United States. Coincidentally, I often notice classrooms with maps of Canada hanging on their walls.
I have also noticed that many Americans can easily identify celebrities without realizing they are Canadian. Personally, it has always bothered me that so many people have never heard of The Tragically Hip or do not know that Michael J. Fox, John Candy, Neil Young, Martin Short, and Rush are Canadian. Many are unaware that basketball was invented by a Canadian or that Canada played an important role in the growth of American football. Others are surprised to learn that some of their favorite movies and television shows are filmed in Canada rather than Hollywood.
I dare you to tell them that the Canadian Rockies and Niagara Falls are even nicer from the Canadian side of the border.
Do all Canadians see this as an anomaly? Where else does one neighboring country know so little about the other? It would be understandable if it were rooted in hatred or arrogance, but that is generally not the case.
The significance of Canada and the United States as neighbors is enormous. Together, they share the world’s longest undefended border and rely on each other for trade, continental security, and good old-fashioned friendship. We compete against one another in international athletics, and many Canadians and Americans have been inspired by the achievements of each other’s greatest athletes, entertainers, and entrepreneurs.
History shows us that things have not always gone so smoothly. As a Canadian who lives in the United States, I want to understand the future of both countries. To see where either country is going, we must first understand where they began, and their shared history started with conflict rather than cooperation.
This story starts in 1775, when American revolutionaries attempted to capture Quebec. Fortunately for us Canadians today, the effort failed. The Revolutionary War eventually ended with the Treaty of Paris in 1783, but tensions between Britain and the United States remained.
You have to give the Americans credit for their persistence as concerns over British policies, trade restrictions, and Native American conflicts helped spark another war in 1812. That conflict eventually led to the Rush-Bagot Agreement of 1817, which limited military vessels on the Great Lakes, and the Convention of 1818, which extended the boundary line from the Great Lakes to the Rocky Mountains.
Then, in 1837, Toronto first Mayor William Lyon Mackenzie led a rebellion against the government in Upper Canada and later sought support from sympathizers in the United States. Although the effort failed miserably, it contributed to future political agreements. In 1842, the Webster-Ashburton Treaty established additional border boundaries in the east, while western boundaries were created in 1846 through the Oregon Treaty.
With border lines largely settled and tensions at one of their lowest points, the American Civil War began in 1861. Resentment among many Northern Americans toward Britain remained strong because of perceived British sympathy toward the South. Although no American military invasion followed, the Fenian Raids proved that tensions along the border had not entirely disappeared.
Then, in 1867, Britain united its North American colonies into the Dominion of Canada. The departure of British military forces eventually led to the Treaty of Washington in 1871, an agreement with Canada-USA. While Canada was still part of the British Empire, Prime Minister Sir John A. Macdonald participated in the negotiations, and the treaty represented the first major international acknowledgments of the newly created Dominion of Canada.
Since that agreement, Canada and the United States have experienced relatively few serious conflicts and have gradually built the world’s strongest continental region. They became partners in continental air defence through NORAD, and commissions were established to address cultural and economic issues.
Disagreements over U.S. involvement in Vietnam created political tensions that may have affected Canadian politicians more than American ones. Later, the election of Brian Mulroney as Prime Minister helped pave the way for the 1987 Canada-USA Free Trade Agreement. That agreement expanded in 1994 to include Mexico through the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).
Trade became big business for both countries. By 1995, the United States was receiving roughly 80 percent of Canada’s exports, while Canada received approximately 70 percent of its imports from the United States.
That is an incredibly long and significant history between two powerful nations. Given the importance of the Canada–USA relationship, one has to wonder why more of this shared history is not taught in American classrooms. Perhaps a greater understanding of Canada’s contributions, culture, and influence would strengthen relations between the two countries and foster a deeper appreciation for Canada as a nation.
Too often, there seems to be either a lack of awareness or an unintentional refusal to acknowledge how deeply connected the two countries truly are. From entertainment and sports to economics, military alliances, and cultural influence, Canada has played a far greater role in shaping North America than many Americans realize.
As global tensions continue to rise, Canadians and Americans should be thankful for the peace and stability they share as neighbors. Unlike people in Ukraine, Taiwan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and throughout the Middle East, they do not have to live each day under the constant threat of conflict, violence, or war.
Today, the primary issues are border security and tariffs. Like most disputes between friends and allies, these disagreements will eventually be resolved. For the time being, however, many Canadians are reluctant to embrace their neighbors to the south. They feel that Canada has consistently stood by the United States, while that support has not always been fully reciprocated.
This sentiment has been noted by members of the U.S. Embassy and other observers, who have described it as a long-standing Canadian frustration stemming from an uneven relationship. Canadians often pay close attention to developments in the United States, while many Americans devote comparatively little attention to Canada. As a result, some Canadians feel overlooked despite the deep political, economic, and cultural ties that bind the two countries together.
Canada–USA relations have recently been described as a mix of economic and social imbalance. Many Canadians seek to distinguish themselves from Americans, taking pride in their social programs, bilingual French and English heritage, international reputation for politeness and kindness, and achievements in sports and entertainment. These qualities have become important elements of Canada’s national identity and help shape how Canadians view themselves.
For many Canadians, sports represent a strong source of national pride. Hockey is widely known, without question, as “Canada’s game” a national birthright, with skating on ice using a stick and puck deeply tied to Canadian identity. National pride on display against the world during international competition, while civic pride is present each spring during the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Sports have long served as a bridge between Canada and the United States. Growing up in Canada, it is common for Canadians to develop a strong connection to American cities and sports teams, whether through hockey teams or by following legends like Gordie Howe in Detroit. Wayne Gretzky grew up in Brantford, Ontario, listening to Detroit Tigers radio broadcasts as many Americans have engaged with Canadian culture through programs such as Hockey Night in Canada.
The 1980s saw increased cross-border cultural exchange. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) allowed expanded access to USA cable and satellite networks in Canada. Seasonal travel to the United States, particularly to Florida and California, became increasingly popular among Canadians. Meanwhile, Canada and the United States strengthened economic ties through the Canada–U.S. Free Trade Agreement, later expanded into NAFTA with Mexico.
As parts of Canada’s cultural and sporting landscape became increasingly influenced by the United States, financial pressures continued across Canadian professional sports especially in Quebec City (NHL), Montreal (MLB), Winnipeg (NHL), and Ottawa (CFL). At the same time, the American presence in Canada continued to grow. In the 1990s, Canadians became more immersed in American culture than ever before. The arrival of the Fox Network and expanded access to U.S. television programming made Canadians more dependent on American media with the National Football League now regularly broadcast into Canadian homes alongside an increasing amount of USA produced news, sports, and entertainment programming.
Industry demands were changing. Canadian artists and athletes were no longer satisfied with national success alone; many sought fame in the United States for greater financial opportunity. The same was true for hockey players, who once dreamed of winning Stanley Cups in their favorite Canadian jerseys now increasingly found themselves drawn to teams such as the Colorado Avalanche, Florida Panthers, Dallas Stars, and Los Angeles Kings.
How things were changing.
Meanwhile, the CFL’s ’90s invasion into the United States ultimately failed. While teams, ownership groups, and players were secured, attendance and long term fan support did not meet expectations. The league eventually abandoned the experiment and returned to its Canadian identity as a distinctly Canadian institution rooted in regional pride and national tradition.
Some analysts believe the expansion might have succeeded under different conditions, such as stronger market selection or more time. Others argue it was fundamentally misaligned with the CFL’s identity as a distinctly Canadian league. In retrospect, marketing the CFL in the United States proved difficult, particularly with the “C” in the title. The challenge was not only football, but cultural. The experiment raised broader questions about identity, audience, and market fit.
When the CFL’s expansion era had ended after the 1995 season, the league returned fully to Canada, with the Baltimore franchise relocating to Montreal, Quebec, and becoming the Alouettes. The league then attempted to reestablish its national identity and pride with the launch of a patriotic campaign, “Radically Canadian.”
This was a popular league initiative intended to highlight the differences between the Canadian and American games of football. The slogan “Our Balls Are Bigger” became one of its most recognizable slogans, although it was not literally accurate, as the football used in both leagues had already been standardized in size by the 1990s. Another slogan, “We Play by Our Rules,” emphasized the rule differences that defined the CFL game and, in the eyes of its supporters, contributed to a more entertaining brand of football.
A year later, the Ottawa Rough Riders folded operations, and the 1996 season led many fans and media members to question whether it might be the league’s last. The Grey Cup in 1996, played in Hamilton, became historically known as the “Snow Bowl” and is regarded as one of the more memorable championship games in league history. Despite the negativity surrounding the CFL at the time, the one constant that remained was the Grey Cup itself, which demonstrated that the league is an institution with coast to coast appeal and cultural significance.
The game at Ivor Wynne Stadium was discussed for months afterward and remains one of the most frequently rewatched Grey Cups in history. It is often credited with reinforcing the national value of the CFL at a critical moment. This renewed attention helped the league to receive financial support arrangements, including an interest-free loan involving the NFL, as well as a new television contract with TSN that introduced Friday Night Football.
The 20th century ended without war in North America, but for many Canadians there was a growing sense that the country was losing part of its identity. The increasing influence of the United States on Canadian media, entertainment, and the new big business approach to professional sports contributed to those concerns. The relocations of the Quebec Nordiques and Winnipeg Jets to American markets, followed by the eventual loss of the Montreal Expos after the franchise never fully recovered from its magical 1994 season due to a players’ strike, only deepened those feelings.
As debates over Canadian culture and identity intensified, attitudes toward the United States often grew strained. The CFL responded with one of the most memorable marketing campaigns in sports history. Riding the same wave of national pride that fueled the iconic “I Am Canadian” campaign, the league delivered a bold and unmistakable message to its American neighbors: “Our Balls Are Bigger.”