The Canadian Football League Combine will be virtual in 2021.

Testing, football drills, and interviews will be conducted remotely through video, replacing the traditional in-person sessions for prospects ahead of the CFL Draft. The change was made for this year because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is the safe and prudent approach for this year, given the current state of Covid-19 pandemic,” commissioner Randy Ambrosie said. “We look forward to this Spring and the CFL Draft. We remain optimistic about returning to play in 2021. And we intend to return to an in-person Combine in 2022,”

The change to virtual sessions applies to all CFL combine events for both Canadian and global prospects.

“Consultations with team Presidents and General Managers revealed a strong consensus that a virtual combine season would ensure the health and safety of everyone involved, including prospects, football operations staff, coaches, scouts and event staff,” Head of Football Operations and Chief Financial Officer at the CFL Greg Dick said.