I have a few ways of knowing another season of football card collecting is at hand. One of the first comes from John Bradley. Bradley is the man who has produced cards for the Canadian Football League since 1981. In that year, Bradley and business partner Barry Goodman released their first JOGO (an acronym that combines Bradley's first name with Goodman's last name) CFL set, a 51-card offering that featured one of the first pro football cards of Warren Moon. The cards were larger than most sports cards (3 1/2 X 5"), and the photos were black and white. Since 1983, JOGO has made color photo cards of a standard size (2 1/2 X 3 1/2"), and released sets with at least 106 cards each year. The 1995 JOGO set was, by far, the largest, with 399 cards in the set from a league which, at the time, had a record thirteen teams.

In 2005, JOGO celebrated its 25th year in the CFL card business. That total is larger that the combined number of years other companies made cards for the league (Topps' eight seasons of CFL cards makes up nearly half the total of the other companies). In fact, Topps is the only company that has a longer continuous run in the manufacture of professional football cards than JOGO. While the number of players in the 2005 JOGO set is nowhere near the 1995 record, 200 men from the nine CFL teams still chose to participate. As has been the case with JOGO cards, players and other CFL personnel agree to pay for inclusion in exchange for cards for their fans. Since I first purchased JOGO cards in 1990, I have purchased them directly from Bradley. The purchase price for the 200-card basic set was approximately $100. For an extra amount of money, Bradley also offered other CFL-related sets. Those include a set of variations on cards that were updated by Bradley, an Athletes In Action set for those who live their Christianity, and a Montreal Alouettes Team Of The Decade set. For the first time, Bradley also offered a parallel set to celebrate his company's 25-year involvement with the CFL. Print runs are limited. Bradley made only 400 of the basic set, and just 100 of the parallel set.

The 2005 JOGO cards are simple, but handsome, as they have always been. The cards have a white-bordered edge. The border around the photo itself resembles a picture frame. At the top of the frame are the words "JOGO 25 Years" in cursive writing. At the bottom of the photo, in the same written style, is the player's name. The card backs also have the white edge and picture frame photo for player information. At the top of the back frame is the player's name and his jersey number. Also in the top section of the card are a head shot, the card number, position, team, and college. A unique feature of JOGO cards is that each man in the set is identified as an American or a Canadian. Another unique feature of the JOGO card is that Bradley doesn't separate playing stats from the rest of the text. A portion of the text is often dedicated to saying something about the off-field life of these men. This makes for a different kind of interesting read as compared to the presentation of US football cards.

JOGO more than holds its own on photo selection. I find the shots to be among the best in professional football. In the 2005 CFL season, Bradley employed three photographers to get the shots of his subjects. Most of the front shots have a very clear view of each player's face. The only exceptions occur when the player is looking to the ground or wearing a visor. Among my favorite shots are those of Hamilton slotback Mike Morreale (#39), taking Winnipeg defenders with him after a reception, and Saskatchewan quarterback Nealon Greene (#76), putting all of his energy into a pass. The set also includes Toronto quarterback Damon Allen (#31), who is one of the CFL's best known players. His brother, Marcus, played 16 NFL seasons, and was enshrined in Canton in 2003. If the front photo doesn't show a player's face, the head shot takes care of that. Every man is shown without a helmet and facing the camera in the head shot. These photos make me wish American card companies always made time to give collectors a good view of the players' faces.

Some card collectors might consider it an inconvenience that JOGO cards don't become available until the season is completed. I don't mind because they are worth the price and the wait. Besides, JOGO is a small company based in Gloucester, Ontario. JOGO is no Topps or Upper Deck, but they have found their niche in the pro football card market. Others (All World, R.E.L., and Pacific) have competed against JOGO, but were eventually unsuccessful. I have my letter from John Bradley, offering to sell me his 2006 JOGO cards. I will be placing my order with him shortly. I enjoy watching CFL games when I get the chance. Thanks to the Comcast Sports Net cable channel, I can watch tape-delayed broadcasts of games first aired on TSN or on CBC. Even though the Grey Cup has been played by the time I get my JOGO cards each season, I think of them as an early Christmas present for myself. I enjoy professional football in its many forms. John Bradley is clearly passionate when it comes to producing cards for the CFL. That is why I have been a return customer.

Visit the JOGO Incorporated website at jogocfltradingcards.com.


Thank you Abraham (openroad) for adding these cards to the database for me.


This is an entry in the Canadiana Write-Off, a month-long celebration of Canada's 139th anniversary (as well as all things Canadian) hosted by elvisdo. Please click on the hyperlink to see the rules and read other entries.

Thank you Charles, aka Grim One.

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