Looking Forward To Enjoying A NFL Game At Wembley, You Won’t Be The First!

If you’re walking down Wembley way this coming Sunday, to watch the Jags play the Colts in the first of this years’ International series games, you’ll be following in the footsteps of British NFL fans that were first made thirty two years ago. In August 1983, they were on their way to watch the Minnesota Vikings take on the St Louis Cardinals in an exhibition game. The Vikes won that game 28-10, but more importantly, thanks to an entrepreneur called John Marshall, the NFL had captured their first wave of British hearts.

In the following three years, Football in the UK had grown to such an extent that it had its own Leagues and National Champions (The London Ravens). So when the NFL returned to Wembley in 1986 in the form of the Superbowl Champion Chicago Bears and the ever popular Dallas Cowboys, the stadium was full to the rafters with fervent knowledgeable fans. This exhibition game was called the American Bowl, and it gave fans the opportunity to witness first-hand the heroics of legends like Walter Payton and Tony Dorsett. As the grass roots game continued to expand domestically, NFL teams continued to play a single game each year until 1993 when the Lions met the Redskins. After that year the NFL decided to host the American Bowls in various cities around the globe, but not in the UK.

In 2007 games returned to Wembley, but this time there was a key change to the format as the games were scheduled as actual regular season encounters. Renamed the International Series, the first up on a rainy Sunday in north London were the Giants and the Dolphins. The New York outfit edged the game by a narrow three-point margin. In 2013 things developed further when the league decided to put two games on. In one of the most exciting games in the series so far, The Vikings beat the Steelers in a 34-27 thriller. The following year the series expanded to the three game format we have now.

Over the years, the UK based supporters of most of the NFL teams have had the chance to see their time live. After Sunday’s game only six of the league’s thirty two teams won’t have made the trip, namely the Seahawks, Packers, Titans, Texans, Panthers and Ravens. When the NFL are in town (London) they go to great lengths to make it not just a game, but an event. Decorating both the Stadium and its approach, holding fan rally’s in Trafalgar square and even closing off Regent Street for an NFL experience with Interactive exhibits, cheerleaders and player appearances.

At the vanguard of the NFLs UK strategy are the Jacksonville Jaguars who made a commitment to play at least one “home” game in London over consecutive years until 2020. The have their own fan club here “The Union Jax” and have hosted playing and coaching development academy events, along with running a national Sevens cup competition to encourage participation in the sport.

One of this years’ games is being played at the home of Rugby, Twickenham Stadium, and a multi-year deal has been signed for further games at the new Tottenham Hotspur stadium from 2018. The future looks bright then for the UK’s NFL fans. Could all this be leading to a permanent franchise in London? Well that’s a discussion for another article.