fuck that, i will be enraged if i lose a game next season so they can go out and play in fucking london. (season ticket holder) This shit is ridiculous its gotta stop. Not to sound ignorant but they can buy a flight over here and come see the game in its true element, with all of the fans. Cheesey bullshit.
I dont know about England but I can guarantee we will be playing a game in Mexico in the near future. There have been a couple of games played there in previous years and with Sanchez and his Mexican heritage you know the NFL is seeing dollar signs.
Bitch and moan all you want, this is happening. Yes, the Jets will play in London and Mexico City in the next five years, likely sooner. Some people think NFL europe was under funded? No, it wasn't. It was a litmus test for the NFL to figure out which countries and which cities in europe they should target with a long term expansion plan. It's called test marketing. It's soooo obvious. The NFL wants a full blown division in europe within the next 20 years, likely sooner. Expansion teams, not relocated ones. Expect to see more games played outside the country. The NFL knows that this market is saturated. Like any business, they look for market growth, and that folks, is off shore. One does not have to be a tea leaf reader to see this coming. The NFL wants to be international. And... they will be.
Then why are they now playing in London? The Monarchs weren't exactly a huge success and only lasted until 1998. The Claymores were much more successful, so why aren't they playing in Edinburgh/Glasgow? Or even in Germany where NFL Europe had by far the largest amount of teams and biggest attendances.
I'll disagree with the underfunding element as I was involved closely with one of the teams to the extent of sponsoring players and volunteering on marketing drives to grow the fanbase. If NFL Europe was not overfunded explain the poor living conditions for players and coaching staff in crappy hotels and the make and mend practice facilities. In terms of marketing budget for teams to grow fanbase where I was it was very small The test marketing claim does not work either when you consider that The Monarchs - London based team closed down due to falling crowds yet International Series games here for several years and the Claymores were finally closed due to cost differential in terms of ? sterling vs Euros Germany drew the big crowds specifically for Rhein and Frankfurt however when the Europa League as it became known withdrew in itself to be virtually Germany based teams it fell apart. Based on these numbers alone International Series should be played in Germany but to best of my knowledge their sports arenas do not necessarilly support numbers required for attendance and it's one hour further in terms of time zones. Look at the history of the league World League > NFL Europe > Europa League to shut down in the space of 15 years. That doesn't tell me test marketing that tells me poorly supported and strategically flawed expansion plans
Couldn't agree more. There was little to no marketing that I was aware of during the league's existence. The Monarchs did travel to play in my city at the home of my favourite football (soccer) team, but if it wasn't for that, and the fact that I was already a fan of the NFL, I doubt I would have known anything of them or the World League/NFL Europe. I disagree about the lack of appropriate stadia in Germany though, they have at least a couple of stadiums that will hold 70,000. Admittedly it's not the 90,000 that Wembley can accomodate but it's still a fair few. Edit: And as others have said, even as UK fan I'd be very much against a London franchise - I can't see current fans suddenly switching teams just because a new one suddenly appears on their doorstep. And even as someone who's only visited NY once I'd absolutely hate to see the Jets move from NY/NJ...
Don't worry about us - most of us are against an NFL franchise in London as well, and personally, I would HATE to see my Jets move anywhere.
NO, NO, NO and NO!! I rarely swear, especially in posts, but this total crap makes my blood boil. What the fuck is it with this obsession to FORCE the ENGLISH (not British) public into welcoming the NFL into their culture?! Its been tried in many different guises in this country and failed on every single one, miserably. Even our own home grown version of this great sport is failing now. Since 1984 I have played and been involved with this sport and for my sins been a Jets fan all this time too, and have seen many changes, as alot of us over here have. So in a bid to make the NFL more popular over in the UK, SKY (TV) have dropped its coverage of the extra game we've been accustomed to. Cost? Maybe, but the NFL are WANTING to garner interest here, so surely they and SKY could have come to some agreement.....hmmm. This was one way to continue to draw new fans and keep the existing ones. Why London? Why not Manchester or Birmingham, (geographically better), why not Edinburgh, Last city in the UK to won an NFLe franchise. Why not Germany, the hottest fan base in europe??? WHAT the fuck is it wth London?? Wembley where the games are played is a fucking hell hole to get to and out of and is situated next to an industrial area...nice!! There is a thread here > http://www.nfl.com/international/st...emplate=with-video-with-comments&confirm=true Where alot of UK based fans feel the same way...its not our game, it will never be so. At best its a popular minority sport here with a rabid fan base. I don't want to start bashing other teams in this thread, but alot of these 'fans' are also Patriots bandwagon jumpers which has swelled the fanbase coffers immensely, when they demise comes of this franchise, will these fans choose another team or simply slide away, the latter I think after talking to a few. For most its a passing interest. This is a US sport thats become popular over here not only because of the game, but all the hoopla which goes with it. If anyone caught the game at the weekend (Pats/Bucs) you would have noticed the shitty almost silent atmosphere there. There did seem to be a few fans that cheered and booed in all the right places, but despite alot of the fans being issues with Bucs flags, there was no sense of homefield advantage...it was sterile , a glorified exhibition match that most people couldn't give a damn about. Not only do I not want an NFL franchise over here, but I would also like to see an end to the regular season games altogether. We have no right to have these games, and we have no right to take these games away from the US fans. We have no right to uproot complete franchises and import them to this side of the Atlantic and we have no right to expect this to be put on every year to satisfy a few thousand peoples hunger for the game over here. Going to get asked this, so I'll answer this now... So what if the Jets played at Wembley? I'll say this first, I live, eat, sleep, drink, think JETS football every single day, it is the most important thing in my life outside of my own family. I even love the Jets more than I do my own football (soccer) team , which believe me is saying something! So would I go? NO. As much as it would hurt, no I wouldn't. It would be hypocritical of me for a start. I do not want to support in any way shape or form this 'Goodell' idea. I have never ever seen a Jets game, and I don't plan on my first ever game being in some shit hole near an Industrial area in one of Londons worst areas. Roger Goodell needs to go back to basics and stop fucking around with this great game.
BTW , the first team in the UK to call themselves the Jets were a Heathrow team, yep the Heathrow Jets (played in all red). There is still a Jets team in the UK, the (Coventry) Cassidy Jets , who play in light blue. If I ever start a team, they will be kitted out in todays team colours. My local team looks like this, and although I love the game just cannot bring myself to go anywhere near them.. http://www.gateshead-senators.co.uk/
I still find it amazing that in the US football is a perfectly respectable sport to follow, but in the UK it has a reputation for only interesting geeks and spotty twats in Zubaz pants. It just does not chime with a big enough fanbase to warrant a franchise over here. Also, the UK media would treat it as a freak show and would just be waiting for it to fail. You think the people of Los Angeles don't want an NFL franchise? Wait until you see a two-thirds empty Wembley Stadium in year two of this bold experiment. And 95% of those would be fans of a different team - a real NFL team. The WLAF champion London Monarchs only attracted 30,000 fans to Wembley back in the early 90s. It was like going to a graveyard.
I am a UK fan (obviously) and wouldn't want to see this happen - I would love to see them come over here for a game at Wembley as a one-off but thats it. Its called American Football for a reason
This is WHY you shouldn't think that way. Forget all about the financial ramifications for a moment. You are taking away a home game from a US fanbase. Whether its a 16, 18, 19 or 20 game season, cut that in half. At the moment Jets fans get to see THEIR team in THEIR stadium a minimum 8 times a season over a 3 month period (with the possibility of POs being played home or away). We as Jets fans wait the whole fucking year for this 3 month(ish) season......and then a game goes to the London circus which benefits the Jets.....in what way? Maybe they pick up some new fans and Braylon gets to punch out Prince Charles best friend?? I would prefer our bye week to be going in from a US based game with limited travelling and upheaval for a start. The list of cons against the pros is endless. If this game was an exhibition game, the fans would still turn out, so why crap around with the regular season??
I think the Jets will play at Wembley in the next 2 years, makes too much sense. Probably a Jets road game against Detroit, Minnesota, Washington or someone. (I think we play NFC North and then NFC East next two years?)
I even followed the Mon-arc's when they went to White Heart Lane (spits , sorry Wayne :wink and played there. Even then the crowds dropped every week. There just isn't the sustainable appetite for this sport in this country. If we want a global brutal sport, lets do rollerball.
Jeezus calm down - I would personally like to see them play in the UK so I could see them play - its called being selfish but no more selfish than US fans saying "fuck no I dont want to miss a regular season game". I said "as a one-off" - I cannot see that missing out on one home game - ever - is going to bring this mighty franchise to its knees.
If the Jets go it will be an away game, unless its Jets/Giants or something like that. I doubt a game of that magnitude will ever be played there. It seems the trend is one popular team and one crap team.
Calm down? I 'm fucking furious, I want to insult you, but also don't want a ban. This whole shitty idea instantly gets me as angry as I can get without punching walls. Sorry if you don't get it. Its only one game mentality is whats wrong, if its not the Jets its another team. Your missing the point, its not about bringing a franchise to its knees, its about 8 homes games...ooops now 7, that the Hard working people who stump up PSL $s go to see THEIR team. I am a fan from far away, but have the option of paying to go and see a game and the whole experience where the game should be played. AND meet alot of great Jets fans along the way.
for a team opening a new stadium this has got to be nightmare. Just spending 1.4 billion dollars to open a stadium, not selling all the seats because you are charging a ridiculous amount for PSL and then having the NFL take away ticket sales. Absolutely...bring it on. Fuck the owner once in a while.
