The Grey Cup is both the name of the championship of the Canadian Football League and the name of the trophy awarded to the victorious team.
In 1909 , the Grey Cup was donated by the then Governor General Of Canada , the Earl Grey , to recognize the top amateur rugby football team in Canada . By this time Canadian rugby had become markedly different from the Rugby Union football from which it developed. Over time, the Grey Cup became the property of the Canadian Football League (CFL), who had evolved as a professional league that plays Canadian football. University football teams now compete for the Vanier Cup .
Recently, the Canadian Football League considered renaming the Grey Cup with the name of a corporate sponsor. Many CFL traditionalists have objected to the idea, claiming that the league should not exchange a historical, national treasure for short-term profit.
