Doug Mitchell

Doug Mitchell’s unbridled passion for football has made the game stronger at the amateur and professional level.
Mitchell played for the BC Lions, but that was just the start of his many football accomplishments and contributions. His contributions to sport, and in particular his dedication to football, have been defining features of his life, along with his successful law career and the remarkable family he has built with his wife Lois.
Perhaps best known as the CFL’s sixth Commissioner, serving in that capacity from 1984 to 1988, Mitchell has also served on the CFL’s Board of Governors, as a representative of the Calgary Stampeders. His many contributions to Canadian university football include the creation of the U SPORTS Athlete of the Year Awards honouring Canadian university student-athletes. The honour – formerly known as the Howard Mackie, BLG and Lieutenant Governor Athletic Awards – were recently renamed The Honourable Lois Mitchell and Doug Mitchell U SPORTS Athlete of the Year Awards Presented by Makadiff Sports. U SPORTS has named one of its national semi-final football games the Mitchell Bowl in his honour.
A member of the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, Mitchell’s contributions to his community and his country have earned him inclusion in the Alberta Order of Excellence, and the Order of Canada.