Canadian receiver Ajou agrees to terms with Stampeders following CFL reinstatement

Saskatchewan Roughriders receiver Ajou Ajou (80) runs the football against the B.C. Lions during the first half of CFL football action in Regina, on Saturday, October 25, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Heywood Yu

Canadian receiver Ajou Ajou agreed to terms with the Calgary Stampeders on Tuesday after being reinstated by the CFL.

TSN was the first to report that Calgary and Ajou had come to terms on a deal. But the Stampeders will have to wait for Ajou, who must serve a six-game suspension before being able to resume playing.

In a statement, the Stampeders said the club completed its own due diligence and player evaluation before deciding to sign Ajou.

“Given the extensive league conditions, the team believes in providing Ajou with a second chance at this time and expects him to demonstrate the qualities of a good teammate and upstanding member of the organization and the community,” the club said.

The team added that Ajou will begin serving his six-game suspension immediately but will be eligible to practice and attend team meetings at the club’s discretion.

The CFL suspended Ajou on April 16 for the entire pre-season and at least six regular-season games for violating its gender-based violence and harassment policy. The move followed a third-party investigation into allegations of aggressive and unwelcome physical contact with multiple women at a restaurant in Regina on Nov. 18, 2025.

Ajou’s reinstatement came with conditions but the league wouldn’t divulge what those were. It did say in a statement any future violations of its gender-based violence policy will incur a more severe punishment, including a potential lifetime ban.

Ajou spent last season with the Saskatchewan Roughriders, registering 22 catches for 212 yards in eight regular-season games. He was with the CFL club when it defeated the Montreal Alouettes 25-17 to capture the Grey Cup, registering two catches for 13 yards.

Ajou was released by the Roughriders after the allegations surfaced.

Suspended players can’t participate in regular-season or post-season games, but it will be up to the Stampeders to decide whether they’ll allow Ajou to participate in other team activities such as practices or meetings.

The investigation revealed that on Nov. 18, 2025 — the same day as the team’s Grey Cup parade — Ajou engaged in aggressive and unwelcome physical contact with multiple women at a restaurant in Regina, conduct the league said breached its gender-based violence and harassment policy.

Ajou had returned to Saskatchewan after being released by the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts on Aug. 26, 2025.

The CFL said Tuesday Ajou’s reinstatement was contingent upon successful completion of a three-part process: 15 mandatory counselling sessions conducted by a gender-based violence expert, a psychological assessment by another independent expert, and meeting with CFL commissioner Stewart Johnston.

The league added Ajou’s ongoing conditions “reflect the need for him to demonstrate a continued commitment to upholding league standards.”

“These conditions are confidential and shall not be disclosed.”

The six-foot-three, 218-pound Ajou, 24, of Brooks, Alta., became the second player suspended by the league for violating the policy.

In 2024, Toronto Argonauts quarterback Chad Kelly was suspended for the entire pre-season and at least half of the club’s regular-season contests. The move came after a lawsuit and independent investigation into harassment allegations involving the league’s 2023 outstanding player.

Kelly was reinstated in August 2024 by the league on a last-chance agreement after undergoing mandatory counselling and meeting with then-commissioner Randy Ambrosie.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 30, 2026.