Jags setting up a move to London?

[NashuaPats]

Getting the Brits to like American football would be like getting me to like oatmeal. It ain’t happening.

I agree. Supporting one or two events per year is one thing, supporting a team year in year out is another.

 

[TBR]

Many would... an amazing adventure, playing the game you love for millions.

A 21 year old is much safer in London than many cities, including Baltimore and Miami. That 21 isn’t being FORCED to work in the League. 21 year olds from Miami are getting drafted by Seattle... how many miles is that ?

There are many great cities in the world, but few are greater than London.

The London you're thinking of... no longer exists.

 

[supafly]

Would probably have to be 4 road games, then 4 home and repeat........Add a second bye week and you could place it in 2 of the 3 travel weeks ( if they followed my logic weeks 4/5-9/10, or 14/15 minimizing the disruption....

Sure, but it’s a whole “thing” no matter what kind of solution is proposed. It would be a pain for the London team, and a pain for the 8 teams who would have to travel there. On top of that, I don’t know how much interest there would be for a season worth of 9:00am (EST) games every week.

 

[NashuaPats]

Big cultural difference ? They speak English and are very similar to many North Americans. When was your last visit there ? It’s lovely.

I think a kid from the Boston or NY area would see more of a shock in Cleveland.

There would be challenges. But, it wouldn’t be insurmountable.

I've been there a few times, last time was nearly ten years ago. But visiting a place on business or as a tourist is a lot different than living abroad. I disagree that England has more in common with the Northeast than Cleveland or anywhere else in the U.S. In some ways sure, but not in many ways. Do you have any idea how much America bashing they're going to be exposed to? I don't think that'll go well with young, entitled, testosterone fueled, millionaire meatheads who have always lived in their own small bubble. I'm not trying to insult football players, but it is the reality for many of them. I suspect many will be homesick and frustrated.

 

[Tony2046]

I've been there a few times, last time was nearly ten years ago. But visiting a place on business or as a tourist is a lot different than living abroad. I disagree that England has more in common with the Northeast than Cleveland or anywhere else in the U.S. In some ways sure, but not in many ways. Do you have any idea how much America bashing they're going to be exposed to? I don't think that'll go well with young, entitled, testosterone fueled, millionaire meatheads who have always lived in their own small bubble. I'm not trying to insult football players, but it is the reality for many of them. I suspect many will be homesick and frustrated.

I lived there for three years. Yes there is some sort of "American bashing" but it's mostly in fun. It is literally like living in a brother country. Good people, good food, definitely good debate and good times.

It's not a freaking culture shock or like living in a third world country. It's a fun place to live.

I say all of that not having millions of dollars or whatever in my pockets.

Homesickness is easily cured with a quick trip home now and then.

 

[mgteich]

Big cultural difference ? They speak English and are very similar to many North Americans. When was your last visit there ? It’s lovely.

I think a kid from the Boston or NY area would see more of a shock in Cleveland.

There would be challenges. But, it wouldn’t be insurmountable.

 

[bormio]

This is the land where a game is a match and a tie is not a draw. Too damn confusing .....

 

[XLIX]

Forcing you to leave friends... it’s not Mars. It’s a few hours away from the East Coast.

Uh, it's 6 hours to Boston, the nearest "port of call" - to say nothing of the chance the player is from California. The fact that you have to deliberately misrepresent the distance by calling it just "a few hours" proves your point is a poor one.

I honestly hope the NFL tries it. As long as it isn't New England moving, I got no skin in the game and I'll enjoy seeing it explode in their faces - and having an AFC East team we can count on to go 3-13 annually.

 

[MainePatsFan26]

Link
For foreseeable future, NFL’s London team will be Jaguars — or no one

Per a league source with knowledge of the dynamics at play, ownership most likely would support a move of the Jaguars to London, if owner Shad Khan wants to do it. It’s unknown whether he actually wants to do it.

Yeah - good luck with that Goodell.

So the league wants a team in London but can't get one installed in Toronto (5+ million) or Mexico City (30+ million, albeit a high percentage in poverty)?

It is absurd to have a single team in Europe. With the travel time, it creates such a competition issue for that team and any of those selected to play it. I'd be happy to see an international conference with a new playoff system introduced league-wide for three conferences. Otherwise, this has to be the dumbest thing Goodell has thought was a good idea. And this is Goodell we're talking about.

 

[MainePatsFan26]

Uh, it's 6 hours to Boston, the nearest "port of call" - to say nothing of the chance the player is from California. The fact that you have to deliberately misrepresent the distance by calling it just "a few hours" proves your point is a poor one.

I honestly hope the NFL tries it. As long as it isn't New England moving, I got no skin in the game and I'll enjoy seeing it explode in their faces - and having an AFC East team we can count on to go 3-13 annually.

The Chargers are already demonstrating Goodell's incompetence. Anyone could have told you Los Angeles wasn't a big enough football market to support two new teams. The problem is finding an adequate city for them and potentially the Jaguars (unless London is really on the table). Let's review the potential cities.

San Antonio - Jerry Jones says no
Oklahoma City - Jerry Jones says no, sir
Toronto - the Bills are next door
Montreal - the Patriots and Bills? (Maybe at 1.7 million this is a viable option)
Portland, OR - the Seahawks and 49ers
Vancouver - the Seahawks
Calgary - this could work and it is 1.2 million with a large geographical area currently not served by the NFL. Passion for the sport may be an issue.
St. Louis - give it time, the tombstone is warm
San Diego - give it time, the tombstone is still warm
Omaha - I could see a regional team, a la "New England" doing well in Omaha with Lincoln and Des Moines, Iowa having roughly a million people and a passion for football. It may be too close to Kansas City.
Mexico City - racism and cultural biases and Jerry Jones stop this one dead in its tracks
Birmingham, AL - on the small side but also passionate about football
Chicago 2.0 - another club in Chicago, a major sports city, could work. I'd personally like to see the league move the Giants to the AFC East and this second Chicago team to the NFL North (shuffling the Lions somewhere else).

So my top pick is actually a second Chicago team, moving the Bills to Toronto, and Omaha if we're talking the United States and Canada. If we allow for Mexico, Mexico City is just waiting for a team. London is a better option than any of these if there can be a new conference but otherwise there are too many logistical issues.

 

[fourhour]

How about the NYFL just leave it the **** alone!

 

[PatsFanInLondon]

Getting the Brits to like American football would be like getting me to like oatmeal. It ain’t happening.

The same Brits that sell out every game - even when they were on 3 weeks in a row? It's not just Brits either - you get quite a few Germans in the crowd, along with other fans from across Europe. I also had a lot of friends that couldn't get tickets - they do sell out very quickly..?

Anyway - it's blindingly obvious that the NFL wants to put a team in London:
- they've been trying early starts in London games to gauge the reaction of fans back home;
- they've put on games across 3 consecutive weeks to see if they all sell out;
- they've invested £100m or so into Tottenham's new stadium, which has been built specifically with the NFL in mind (changing rooms on opposite sides of the ground - which we don't normally do), the turf field underneath the soccer pitch etc.

Jacksonville is the obvious candidate (played here 6 years in a row, and Khan also owns Fulham Football Club - oh, and he tried to buy Wembley recently)

For the record, I don't like the idea - I think it ruins the integrity of the league. What tax implications are there for players and staff? Do they move their families over here, or just stay here temporarily during the season? Given that teams have their bye week after playing in London, how would that work across a 17 week season? Play 4 on the road, all 8 home games in a row and then the last 4 on the road? It would be a logistical nightmare...

London is one of the world's truly great cities, but having lived in both countries myself I would say that there are many cultural differences between the two (we speak proper English for a start..! Ho ho).

At the end of the day, I think a team relocating to London is an inevitability (Spurs' new stadium rather solidifies that opinion) - and while I'll take them on as my second team (as will everyone else), I'm not happy with it.

 

[luuked]

At the end of the day, I think a team relocating to London is an inevitability (Spurs' new stadium rather solidifies that opinion) - and while I'll take them on as my second team (as will everyone else), I'm not happy with it.

I am not so sure about that inevitability.

There are so many legal hurdles to consider here.. some pretty major when it comes to things like the CBA (e.g. article 46). And nobody in the UK's or EU's legislative body would bend backwards to create exceptions for the NFL. Hell, they don't even do that for the UEFA or FIFA so why would they entertain that for what many consider the equivalent of "the circus coming to town" and not the juggernaut sport it is in the US.

Quite honestly I think they will just stay the course with an international series for the foreseeable future. Most probably even extend it to more games to lengthen the broadcast window and get around those rules that prevent them from scheduling Saturday or Friday games inside the US (as there are no high schools or colleges within that radius if you play in London).

 

[1960Pats]

There are many considerations. But, I don’t think it’s nearly as far fetched as most... I’d much rather play in London than many current NFL cities : Jax, Cleveland, Cincy, Tampa, Green Bay, just to name a few. It’s a huge metro, a world leading city that is second to none.

As transportation improves (Concorde type planes are back in talks/on the horizon) some of the stumbling blocks become less pronounced.

Furthermore, I don’t think the « no one would want to play there » narrative is as true as it might seem at first glance. As a Canadian, I can’t help but notice that Europeans from such highly developed societies as Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, and others are willing to move to Edmonton and Winnipeg to play in the NHL... So it’s not a stretch to think a DL from Birmingham or Austin would gladly live in beautiful London, UK. The shy players might even enjoy walking the streets incognito w/o the hassle you’d get in football crazed Dallas.

Apples to oranges. Isn't a player here or there moving to play in a foreign city different than an entire team moving to a foreign city? You're also talking about entire teams travelling to that foreign city to play games, not a handful of foreign players travelling to NHL cities.

 

[1960Pats]

I think given how we are curb stomping everyone for about 15+ years straight has made me jaded.

On a more serious note I personally would love to do away with the preseason, see instead a 18 week regular season, with 2 BYEs where you play the entire conference + your own division a second time.

This way you could do away with all this ******** about someone playing an easier schedule and also make intra-conference stats more comparable. To account for fewer games against the other conference I'd make the playoffs mixed.

But then again that's just me. I can see the logic behind keeping it all as it has been for a while.

It's not just you. I was ranting and raving about this ridiculous division setup for so long that I finally gave up. The idea that an 11-5 team has to sit home for the playoffs while an 8-8 team and it's fans not only get to go but get a home game, is so screwed up that it goes without saying. I can't wait for it to happen to another team.

 

[1960Pats]

Just like when they moved the Colts out of the division so that Fivehead didn't have to face the Goat twice a year.

Not to mention placing him in an all expansion team division.

And it still didn't work, after nine one and done playoffs.

 

[DaBronxPats14]

nfl* just can't help it. Changing rules, game, involvements.

 

[PittPatriot]

Who the hell has ever heard of a London Jaguar? Makes no sense. I mean, who would be a sponsor?

https://static.cargurus.com/images/...ar_xjr-pic-2329212689729522927-1600x1200.jpeg

 

[farn]

The London you're thinking of... no longer exists.

Was there 3 months ago. Loved it.

 

[farn]

Apples to oranges. Isn't a player here or there moving to play in a foreign city different than an entire team moving to a foreign city? Your also talking about entire teams travelling to that foreign city to play games, not a handful of foreign players travelling to NHL cities.

I think we'll need to agree to disagree... a few posters agree with me, but most don't. I know that I'd rather travel 8 times and live in London than spend one day in Jacksonville.