Well, flights to away games in the NFL might be getting a whole lot longer in a few years if current league commissioner Roger Goodell has his way. The man in charge of America’s most popular sport has his eyes cast out across the Atlantic, hoping to bring in the untapped revenue of the European markets and expand the influence of the National Football League from dominating the domestic market to also being a player in global discussion, a la the top-tier franchises of the far-reaching English Premiere League.
If this sounds like an aggressive strategy for the NFL — well, why not? It makes sense that a league on such a long run of success would be ambitious in it’s prospects for expansion. And as you’re probably already aware, the league has been playing one game a year in London — the 49ers and the Broncos face off this afternoon in the storied Wembley Stadium — and hopes to begin playing multiple games annually in the near future. There is of course some debate as to the long-term viability of an NFL team based in Europe, and one wonders might happen when the novelty wears off and the UK team finds itself 4-9 and tied for last in its division. But Goodell isn’t worried; he’s willing to be patient — somewhat. From the International Herald Tribune:
“That is one of our challenges, how do we promote a sport that is not played by the youth in each of those markets?” he said. “But I think that’s where media and bringing our game to those markets meets those challenges. We’ve seen it here in this marketplace, we’ve seen it in Japan, Mexico and Canada.”
Goodell would not give any hints about a timeline for putting a team in London, “other than as fast as is practical.”
“As fast as is practical” is a cryptic term from a man known for getting what he wants, so it’s entirely possibly the option could be fast-tracked if the market research comes through. Go for it, it’s about time America started exporting things again.
My only suggestion would be to move an existing struggling team and not grant a true expansion — 32 teams is plenty, really. The London Jaguars sort of has a nice ring to it, though.
Goodell Supports European Expansion For NFL [International Herald Tribune]
