As the New England Patriots and St. Louis Rams jet in for Sunday’s sixth annual regular season clash at Wembley Stadium, there is a growing sense that an NFL franchise could be based fulltime in the British capital before this decade is out.
With the league having voted to persist with the experiment until at least 2016, and the Jacksonville Jaguars committing to four years of visits to London, the NFL is hoping to build on the spike in interest since landing firm feet on foreign shores in 2005.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed at the announcement of this new affirmation to overseas football that the latest deal would increase the swell of support for the game — likely to be necessary if a franchise is to flourish across the Atlantic.
But if a team is to base itself in Europe, be it in London or anywhere else, it must commit to ingraining the culture of the game in the city it adopts as a new home and guard against antagonizing U.S.-based fans, according to sports business expert Simon Chadwick.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member