NFL International Series 2013 - A Review

As the clock drained at the end of the San Francisco 49ers' ruthlessly efficient dismantling of the hapless Jacksonville Jaguars, it finally sunk in. Not the realisation that I would have to slowly shuffle towards Wembley Park station in the early stages of a 'colossal' - but as it would turn out, underwhelming - storm, but the realisation that the NFL had successfully staged two games at Wembley in the same season.

I am prepared to admit I never envisioned this before or immediately the first International Series game between the Miami Dolphins and New York Giants, and I didn't see it coming as recently as the not-so sold out game between Tampa Bay and Chicago. However this international venture ends up, 2013 is a landmark year in the growth of the NFL in the UK.

As usual, there was a lot to digest, so here's the three areas I thought were worth bringing up at the water cooler this week (people still do that, right?):

Fan Experience

Slowly evolving over time, the International Series fan experience has gone from being an exclusive, overcrowded and underwhelming 'tailgate party' outside Wembley, to an expansive, interactive and - most importantly - free fan event surrounding the stadium. Sure, it won't beat the tailgates in Green Bay, Buffalo and Kansas, but it is fun and creates a great buzz before the game.

It was apparent that more effort had gone into keeping the tailgate, and the fan rally in central London the day before, fresh. Moving the event to Regents Street, and expanding the tailgate area outside the stadium were smart moves that, I feel, led to a better atmosphere before the Minnesota and Pittsburgh game. Maybe it was just the warm weather?

The Jacksonville Jaguars

It is hard to criticise the Jacksonville Jaguars' commitment to the International Series. They unveiled the entire team at the fan rally in Trafalgar square the day before the game, held fan conferences with ex-Jaguars such as Tony Boselli and Mark Brunell, and brought new features to the game day experience such as a bell for servicemen and women currently posted to Afghanistan. Oh, and their mascot bungee jumped off the roof of Wembley stadium.

There is, however, reason to doubt fans' commitment to the Jaguars. Of course, UK fans - with such die hard allegiances to the other 31 NFL teams - were never going to immediately and fully support them, but I expected them to get a warmer, more enthusiastic reaction than they did. Save for a drastic, Kansas City-esque turnaround in on-field performance I don't think fans will ever respond in the way the league hopes.

Of course, it is important to consider the pre-Kaepernick, pre-bandwagon, San Francisco 49ers of 2010. 1-6 heading into their Wembley game, with Troy Smith (remember him?) starting at Quarterback. Based on the number of Kaepernick jerseys on show at the weekend, maybe we'll see greater support for the Jaguars - and a whole load of Teddy Bridgewater jerseys - next year.

The Future

It's clear that Commissioner Roger Goodell is absolutely heading towards establishing a permanent franchise in the UK. It's tough to blame him - the international series has been a resounding success, but despite this I still don't think it is feasible.
NFL franchises are centred around cities but of course, the market in question is not London but the UK as a whole; anyone who has attended the game will attest to the wide range of regional, and even European, accents that can be heard. Sure, football fans travel the length and breadth of the country most weekends to watch their teams play, but football is the national sport. Would they be willing to fork out for travel, game tickets, and Wembley prices for eight weekends? I am not sure they would..

The Jaguars experiment is flawed in that the NFL continue to book marquee opponents for them. San Francisco have a large following in the UK after their success in the 1980's, and since the debut of Colin Kaepernick last season. Dallas, their opponents next season, have - and always will be - hugely popular. With no disrespect to their fanbases, the real challenge is to sell out a Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Cleveland Browns game.

Agree? Disagree? Let me know in the comments section or on Twitter: @TomMacFootball

University Newspaper Article: Bears Sink Buccaneers at Wembley Stadium

Yeah, it's super old but this was published in the Kent University student newspaper - inQuire - in October 2011.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers 24-18 defeat at the hands of the Chicago Bears marked the
end of a torrid day for the Glazer family. First they witnessed Manchester United falling 6-
1 to rivals Manchester City, before flying down to London to watch their original sports
franchise, the Buccaneers, lose to Chicago.


The long flight didn’t seem to slow down the suffocating Bears defence, led by star
linebacker Brian Urlacher, or running back Matt Forte, who finished the game with 145
yards rushing and a touchdown. The Bears had their way with the Buccaneers for the
majority of the game, but Quarterback Josh Freeman, who debuted two years ago in the
Buccaneers first Wembley game, attempted a trademark comeback win, throwing for two
touchdowns in the fourth quarter.

However, celebrations had to be put on hold as Freeman threw a fourth interception in
the game’s dying moments to seal a Chicago victory. Despite the fact that this was
officially a Buccaneers ‘home’ game, Chicago experienced a considerable level of supportfrom the not-so-partisan crowd; a testament to the team’s popularity in the 1980’s when
the NFL first experienced a surge in popularity in the UK. A labour dispute in the summer
between the league and the player’s union meant that tickets for this game went on sale
much later than previous years, and this was reflected in this being the first International
Series game not to sell out the stadium Despite this, on Sunday night one would be
forgiven for thinking that Wembley was a full house; with both teams receiving rapturous
applause and jeers throughout the game. But arguably the biggest reaction from the
crowd was reserved for a man who ran on to the pitch, removed his shirt, and high-fived
players before being tackled by security.

But the inevitable question that is always, but perhaps no longer needs to be, asked is
‘what happens next for American Football in the United Kingdom’? Sunday night marked
the fifth regular season American Football game at the home of ‘British Football’,
Wembley Stadium. That first game was between the New York Giants and the Miami
Dolphins in 2007 and was marred by a poor pitch, bad weather, and a game that could
be described to outsiders as ‘boring’. Five games later and the experimental, ‘showcase’,
nature of the NFL’s venture across the pond has been removed, and replaced with the
feeling that a game in Britain is ‘situation: normal’. Gone are the calls from the US media
and fans for the NFL to stop ‘robbing’ teams of a home game, with the mood now
reflecting an NFL that has embraced the UK fan base and is very much here to stay.

Recently NFL commissioner Roger Goodell announced plans to stage two Wembley
games per year until 2016 as well as an NFL-led coaching clinic for UK youth players. In a
move to consolidate these initiatives, an all-party parliamentary group for American
Football has been set up to promote the sport in the UK. This will help develop the sport
at a grassroots level, doing much to add to the work already started by BAFACL and,
through BUAFL, university teams: of which the University of Kent Falcons are one. So it
can be seen that the NFL international series games, although a highly entertaining and
enjoyable spectacle for British fans, is no longer the ‘be-all-end-all’ of attempts to
promote American Football in the UK. The NFL has provided a pedestal to promote their
game and will surely reap the benefits of a passionate UK fan base, but this has helped
the game immeasurably in the UK and is a positive sign for the continued development
of the sport.