Stewart Johnston facts for kids

Stewart Christopher Johnston was born on February 26, 1971. He is a Canadian businessman who now serves as the 15th leader, or commissioner, of the Canadian Football League (CFL). Before this, he was the president of The Sports Network (TSN). He also held a senior role at Bell Media, a large Canadian media company.

Early Life and Education

Stewart Johnston was born in Toronto, Ontario. He moved to Ottawa shortly after and grew up there. For high school, he attended Ashbury College in Ottawa.

After high school, Stewart went to Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. He also spent a year studying at the University of British Columbia. He earned an Honours Business Degree from Queen's University.

Career in Sports Media

Stewart Johnston began his career at TSN in 1997. He started as an intern, learning about the sports broadcasting world. Over time, he worked his way up through different roles.

In 2006, he became the Vice President of Programming. This meant he helped decide what sports shows and games would be broadcast. By 2010, he was promoted to President of TSN.

In 2014, Stewart helped TSN grow by adding new channels: TSN3, TSN4, and TSN5. He explained that this was an important step for the network. It allowed TSN to show more sports events at the same time. This helped satisfy more viewers and make better use of all the sports rights TSN owned.

In 2019, Stewart was recognized for his influence in sports. The Hockey News magazine listed him among the 'Top 100 People of Power and Influence' in hockey. Later that year, in November, he was also named Vice-Chairman of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Leading the CFL

On April 1, 2025, news came out that Stewart Johnston was a top choice to become the next commissioner of the Canadian Football League. The commissioner is like the chief executive officer of the league. They oversee all its operations and make important decisions.

The very next day, on April 2, 2025, it was officially announced that Stewart would take over this important role. He officially started as the CFL commissioner on April 24, 2025. He replaced the previous commissioner, Randy Ambrosie.