Revealed: What every Saskatchewan Roughriders player earned for winning the Grey Cup

Winning the Grey Cup secures a permanent place in Canadian football history, etching a player’s name alongside legends on one of the sport’s most iconic trophies. It also comes with a financial reward.

Playoff pay is often mentioned during free agency talks as a reason players may accept slightly lower contracts to join a contender, though the exact figures are rarely spelled out. While regular-season salaries and bonuses vary widely, postseason compensation is standardised across the CFL. Every player on the active roster or injured list earns the same amount during the playoffs.

For top earners such as starting quarterbacks, playoff bonuses can be smaller than a typical regular-season game cheque. For players lower down the depth chart, however, a deep postseason run can be significant, with total earnings amounting to roughly a third of the league’s minimum salary.

Each round of the playoffs carries a set payout. Players competing in the East or West Semi-Finals receive $3,400, which represented the full postseason earnings for teams like the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Calgary Stampeders.

Division winners who earn a first-round bye collect $3,400 for that week, followed by an additional $3,600 for appearing in the East or West Final. For the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and B.C. Lions, elimination at that stage meant total playoff earnings of $7,000.

The Grey Cup is where the biggest rewards come into play and is the only postseason game where the outcome affects pay. Players on the losing side of the championship game still receive $8,000, more than doubling their earnings from earlier rounds. Those who appeared in all three games of the Montreal Alouettes’ playoff run earned $15,000 in total.

Victory brings even more. Winning the Grey Cup comes with a $16,000 bonus and a championship ring, a payout roughly equivalent to four CFL games at the league minimum salary.

For the Saskatchewan Roughriders, lifting the trophy meant total playoff earnings of $23,000 per player. That represents a substantial bonus for three additional weeks of football, capped off with celebrations — and likely lifelong goodwill from fans back home.

Playoff compensation does not count against the salary cap, allowing teams to pursue championships without financial penalties. However, those figures could rise in the future depending on revenue growth provisions within the collective bargaining agreement.

If league revenues reach $300 million, automatic increases would be triggered, adding $500 per playoff game, $2,000 for a Grey Cup loss, and $4,000 for a Grey Cup victory.