As 3 more matches are announced for the 2016 season, and with the security of many games to come in following years, the question has to be asked on how British fans view the NFL.
NFL UNITED KINGDOM: Do Brits Like the NFL?
POPULARITY
Without a doubt the NFL’s popularity has grown significantly in recent years with a regular season game being played in Wembley Stadium at least once every season since 2007. With the Jacksonville Jaguars having a ”home” game there every year since 2013, they are also becoming the number one supported NFL team in the UK.
The NFL has stated ”At the conclusion of the 2016 season, either 23 or 24 teams will have played in London since the inception of the International Series in 2007. Since that time, the NFL has achieved accelerated growth in the UK. Sunday viewership of NFL games has more than doubled and the Super Bowl audience has increased more than 75 percent. The league also has developed new and stronger business partnerships and, according to internal research, has a UK fan base of more than 13 million.
Participation in amateur football in the UK has risen by approximately 15 percent, per year, since 2007, with the latest figures showing 40,000 people age 16 or older play regularly.’
This sort of gain is huge in a sport not native to our shores and so, if participation levels are growing rapidly, the viewing figures on TV and at the stadium, are growing even faster. An average crowd attendance of 83,062 at Wembley just shows that the people in the United Kingdom can support the game of football and do it justice.
Two extra games in October at Wembley and one at Twickenham fills in another sure-fire 240,000 plus fans, and with calls to introduce more games throughout each season it could be possible to see up to five games. The are also reports that the NFL is considering having a franchise in London, which as unlikely as it is, just displays Brits’ passion and love for American football.
WHAT THE MANAGEMENT SAYS
“The passion our UK fans have shown for the NFL is overwhelming,” said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. “We are very appreciative of the strong and growing fan support, not only for the games, but for all of the related NFL events we host in the UK throughout the year. We look forward to welcoming new fans to their first NFL game in 2016 and welcoming back thousands of others that are helping our sport grow to new levels of popularity in London and beyond.”
It is also financially great for the NFL with only one crowd below 80,000 people in its British tenure. The advertising is displayed to millions all over the world so sponsorships and advertising income isn’t lost and so football in London is financially sustainable.
WHAT DOES NEXT SEASON BRING?
Next October will see Wembley and Twickenham host three NFL regular season games with the Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Rams, New York Giants, Washington Redskins and Cincinnati Bengals all coming to England during the run up to Halloween. Those games will bring much added joy to UK fans as great stars like Odell Beckham Jr., Tyler Eifert and Frank Gore are all set to line up for those games. Keeping big names coming to Britain, and having a good representation from various teams, is a way to keep British fans interested. Yes, we should keep the Jaguars as our ”home” team but introducing new teams or players will bring added enjoyment for fans this coming season. Hopefully fans will get to see some of Gore’s and Eifert’s huge runs or one of OBJ’S trademark catches.
SUNDAY 2 OCTOBER 2016……Wembley……….Colts vs. Jaguars
SUNDAY 23 OCTOBER 2016…….Twickenham…..Giants vs. Rams
SUNDAY 30 OCTOBER 2016….Wembley……Redskins vs Bengals
POLL
A recent poll discovered that 64% of NFL fans like the NFL coming to the UK, 27% said they didn’t like the NFL being in Britain and 9% were indifferent to where it was played.
This indicates the support that American football has generated among British fans, with high scoring, action packed, vicious games, I’m sure more and more people will tune in to watch games on TV or go to the stadiums to see the games live. Overall I would say I haven’t heard any negative comments on the NFL coming to the UK, especially from UK fans and it will only serve to increase the league’s popularity in London.
Main Photo
