The NFL should merge with the CFL (Canadian Football League) if it is looking to expand

1) Difference in rules"both Gridiron codes slowly developing independently to the point the likability of a merger can be rendered moot."The rules for the NBA and the ABA were also substantially different from each other as both evolved in their own way when basketball was first invented, yet that still didn't stop both leagues from successfully merging with each other in the 1970's http://www.remembertheaba.com...- One major difference was that the ABA had the three-point shot and the NBA did not. - During its first eight years, the ABA had a 30-second shot clock, as opposed to the NBA's 24-second shot clock. - In the ABA's last season was that the ABA had no foul-out rule. When a player committed his sixth personal foul, he could stay in the game. However, subsequent fouls by that particular player resulted in two free throws plus possession of the ball for the opposing teamThe ABA and NBA had different sets of rules and different styles of play but still merged fine with each other. Therefore a merger between the NFL and the CFL is not out of the question like you claim since other leagues experienced similar differences in gameplay but still worked out an agreement. 2) National Identity"Canadians see their own version of football as some sort of independent sport, and the idea of mainstream American pop-culture and commercialism absorbing their league may be a turn-off for many."You could also say that many Canadians could be excited to see a merger with the NFL where their teams will play against the best in the world and also be allowed to draft American players in the NFL draft, greatly increasing the skill level of those Canadian teams in the process. At this point its just speculation. 3) 'NFL should be exclusive to the US'"NFL Europa and the World Bowl are prime examples of how little the world outside the US cares about it"NFL games hosted in London routinely sell out every ticket to the stadium, sometimes even 8 months before the game beginshttp://www.theguardian.com...NFL Europe and the World Bowl folded partly because those teams had no talented players from the US or their home territory to draft from, meaning the level of talent in the players on these squads were so bad that the level of play lagged as a result and made the games just bad to watch... Canadian teams in the CFL though pick up players who were not drafted by the NFL, which gives Canadian teams some level of talent that European football teams lacked. The fact that Canada itself HAS a functioning football league in itself implies that it is simply untrue that the rest of the world doesnt care about American football. Furthermore your argument could serve as a reason FOR the NFL merging with the CFL since Canada clearly showcases an interest in American football, therefore making a merger with that league more sensible than trying to expand to other foreign markets where such leagues do not exist. "I doubt a merger would happen with the elitist mindset the NFL commitee have"The NFL merged with the AFL in 1970 so your claim is an unsubstantiated opinion in addition to being flat out false, since the NFL has a history of being open to mergers. https://en.wikipedia.org..."The NFL should stay at home and be looking at football hotbeds like San Antonio or no-man's land like the states of Maine and Alaska"But individually expanding into new places one or two places at a time causes the team imbalance in conference divisions that I stated before. If you add a team to LA or San Antonio, you would have to sort those new franchises into the league, which would cause some divisions to have more teams than other divisions and therefore create an imbalance in the league. A merger with the CFL though would fix this problem while also allow the NFL to expand to a far larger, wider, and already existing audience than just putting one or two franchises in new cities and start them from scratch. 4) Seasons"The CFL plays from Spring-to-Fall to avoid the extreme temperatures while playing in the much warmer climates during the summer. (The NFL on the other hand plays from Fall to Spring)"There are ways to get around this predicament and still allow the merger to flourish. Canadian teams could play all of their away games at the time of the year when the winter in Canada is at its most frigid for example, playing all of their home games early in September and October and playing the rest of their games on the road when Winter really kicks in. Another solution is that Canadian teams could invest in dome stadiums, which though expensive could be affordable since these Canadian teams would now be tapping into the massive revenue the NFL generates already. 2 teams already have dome stadiums, its possible that other stadiums could be converted to dome stadiums due to their small size, and also that the Canadian government would be interested in providing public funding for dome stadiums since their construction could create temporary jobs. The NFL could also change its schedule for when its games are played. The NFL has time and time again extended the playing length of the schedule, the very first NFL season was only 13 games in length and ended in mid decemberhttps://en.wikipedia.org...In 2015 when the Buffalo Bills had a home game called off due to heavy snow, the game between them and the Jets was simply moved to Detroit where the game was played there. If during the regular season some Canadian teams experience too much snowfall to play their home games, those games can be moved to other locations to be played there. This could even be planned out before then if it becomes certain that the weather would not allow for the home games in Canada to be played. http://mmqb.si.com...The NFL could move its season to an earlier time of the year, it could very well create a hiatus during the heaviest times of winter to spare teams from the harsh wintersI extend all other uncontested arguments