NFL approves regular-season games in Mexico, Canada, Europe

[RedskinsFreak]

NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Two NFL regular-season games will be played each year outside the United States in Mexico, Canada and Europe, starting in 2007.

The plan, first announced last month, was approved Tuesday at the recommendation of new commissioner Roger Goodell.

No specific sites were given for the games. But when the proposal originally was disclosed, the league suggested that Britain and Germany likely would host the European games.

[BearSkins]

NEW ORLEANS (AP) – Two NFL regular-season games will be played each year outside the United States in Mexico, Canada and Europe, starting in 2007.

The plan, first announced last month, was approved Tuesday at the recommendation of new commissioner Roger Goodell.

No specific sites were given for the games. But when the proposal originally was disclosed, the league suggested that Britain and Germany likely would host the European games.

I would reckon Germany would be the more likely. England had an NFL-E team (the Monarchs, formerly QBed by Brad Johnson) but lost the franchise as they were struggling to pull in 5,000 fans. I used to watch the Scottish Claymores regularly and they would pull in roughly 15,000 on a good day but they, too, lost the franchise due to crowd size. I think the German teams all pull 20,000 - 30,000 plus. The UK is hindered by a government that barely backs sport at all and a media fixated only one part of the UK (England) and obly certain sports (soccer, rugby, and the mind-numbing snoozefest that is cricket).

[Irn-Bru]

I'm thinking Germany as well. They seem to be much more receptive to football than our English-speaking friends. Not only is just about every NFL Europe team now located in Germany, check out this list of other semi-pro teams:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Am ... in_Germany

[redskingush]

The Skins in Toronto would be great!!!!

[air_hog]

Canada, that's fine, but playing regular season games in Europe just seems stupid to me.

I mean, I can't really explain it, it just seems dumb.

[Jake]

I don't like it, either. I hope they don't count any of those games away games. It's an AMERICAN league.

[Irn-Bru]

I don't like it, either. I hope they don't count any of those games away games. It's an AMERICAN league.

That's a good point--who loses home field advantage for that game?


I'm guessing the Skins will lose out on that draw. . .

[RedskinsFreak]

The plan is for there to be 2 games a year for 16 years.

Each team plays twice — once as the home team and once as away.

So, each team loses one home game over the 16 years.

[Cappster]

I think it is a big mistake playing outside of the US. Football is our sport! I can see pre-season games but regular season games??????? We do not have to try and make everything a "melting pot". We can stand alone on atleast one subject and that subject to me would be football. Let them have their soccer (ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ) and let us enjoy OUR game on OUR homeland. It seems to me that Americans are known all to well for SELLING OUT! They/we send our money and jobs overseas. Now we can't even keep our sport where it belongs!

[HailSkins94]

What a screwed up idea. I'm sure since we are the #1 grossing franchise we will be play 7 home games a year along with the cowboys and phili and the giants will continuously have 8 (not really but you get the idea). I don't like the idea one bit, sorry. Another case of people trying to make the NFL something it is not.

[Jake]

I don't like it, either. I hope they don't count any of those games away games. It's an AMERICAN league.

That's a good point--who loses home field advantage for that game?


I'm guessing the Skins will lose out on that draw. . .

Oops.. I meant home. I don't want them to take away any of our home games.

[Chris Luva Luva]

Seems like the NFL could be stretching itself thin with this one. Before long there wont be any home games left.

[Irn-Bru]

Seems like the NFL could be stretching itself thin with this one. Before long there wont be any home games left.

They'll keep one or two, I'm sure--available only to those who pay for Sunday Ticket, of course!

[USAFSkinFan]

Let's just send San Diego over the fence to Mexico... Detroit across the river to Canada... and New England over to Old England... then we can call it the I LAF (International League of American Football)...

[BossHog]

Yeah, what a stupid idea to promote the sport outside of the United States.

Fortunately, the league disagrees implicitly with some of the opinions expressed here.

Funny how an 'American' sport has been won on a youth level two years in a row by a team from Thailand. The Americans finished at the bottom of the pile and didn't even qualify for the quarter-finals (final eight) in a ten team tournament.

Fact is, the beautiful thing about sports is that they're really nodody's possession. Basketball was invented by a Canadian, but we let you play that don't we? Same with Hockey... and Lacrosse.

Thanks a lot for baseball.

England gave everyone soccer and rugby. And so on.

Sports should be enjoyed by anybody who wants to play them.

There are 109 players in the NFL that are 'foreign born'.

From a business stand-point, the NFL can not get much bigger than it already is in the United States. It only makes sense to explore new markets and promote the game.

It may be a small 'hardship' for the teams that 'travel nternationally', but every team will go through the exact same 'disadvantage'... so no team is going to be 'hurt' by i any more than any other.

I know I'll be going to ANY game in Toronto... Skins or not. I know that if the league ever expands to Toronto, there's a good chance I'll be a season ticket holder too, to support the team. Heck I'll probably show up in Toronto looking for a job if they put a team there. There are business logistics to putting a team in Canada that might make it impossible to EVER put a team here, but that's a topic for an entirely different discussion.

There are people like me all over the place that don't live in the United States... that love football just as much as any American does. I'm glad that the league decided to go ahead with it, and I look forward to being able to catch a couple of games in Toronto.

[Cappster]

Yeah, what a stupid idea to promote the sport outside of the United States.

Fortunately, the league disagrees implicitly with some of the opinions expressed here.

Funny how an 'American' sport has been won on a youth level two years in a row by a team from Thailand. The Americans finished at the bottom of the pile and didn't even qualify for the quarter-finals (final eight) in a ten team tournament.

Fact is, the beautiful thing about sports is that they're really nodody's possession. Basketball was invented by a Canadian, but we let you play that don't we? Same with Hockey... and Lacrosse.

Thanks a lot for baseball.

England gave everyone soccer and rugby. And so on.

Sports should be enjoyed by anybody who wants to play them.

There are 109 players in the NFL that are 'foreign born'.

From a business stand-point, the NFL can not get much bigger than it already is in the United States. It only makes sense to explore new markets and promote the game.

It may be a small 'hardship' for the teams that 'travel nternationally', but every team will go through the exact same 'disadvantage'... so no team is going to be 'hurt' by i any more than any other.

I know I'll be going to ANY game in Toronto... Skins or not. I know that if the league ever expands to Toronto, there's a good chance I'll be a season ticket holder too, to support the team. Heck I'll probably show up in Toronto looking for a job if they put a team there. There are business logistics to putting a team in Canada that might make it impossible to EVER put a team here, but that's a topic for an entirely different discussion.

There are people like me all over the place that don't live in the United States... that love football just as much as any American does. I'm glad that the league decided to go ahead with it, and I look forward to being able to catch a couple of games in Toronto.

I don't think most of us are upset about us playing a football game outside of the US. I think we are upset because we will be playing a REGULAR SEASON GAME outside of the US. Tickets are not easy to afford riand when you only have 7 home games, that is another reason for ticket prices to go even higher.

As for the issue of ownership of football, I don't think anyone cares if any other country has THEIR OWN LEAGUE. The NFL is our league (our being Americans). Sharing our league is just not right when playing games that count. They can play preseason and get basically the same experience as with a regular season game.

Yeah, we can share the "game" but I feel that it is wrong to share our "league". I think a lot of other people feel that way too. We feel like we are getting cheated.

You cannot say that people from other countries are getting cheated because they are the ones who started liking an American based sport. If they want to see live football games, they need to start their own league. I wouldn't expect a rugby team from England to come over and play here. I would expect if it is that popular, we would start our own league.

Heck, we even gave Europe a football league. Granted it is with football players that can't really make it in the NFL. They need to make something out of it. Yeah, its not the best football you can watch with all of the big names but its still football.

We as Americans, are tired of our country "selling us out". Profit, Profit, Profit.......They make a lot of money already. If they want to make even more money, start some sister leagues in other countries and leave the NFL where it belongs!

[Deadskins]

I know that if the league ever expands to Toronto, there's a good chance I'll be a season ticket holder too, to support the team. Heck I'll probably show up in Toronto looking for a job if they put a team there.

What about THN and the Redskins?

[Irn-Bru]

I know that if the league ever expands to Toronto, there's a good chance I'll be a season ticket holder too, to support the team. Heck I'll probably show up in Toronto looking for a job if they put a team there.

What about THN and the Redskins?

Breaking into the Redskins organization is like attacking a brick wall with a plastic spoon. . .if you were given a chance to work for a pro franchise would you take it? I know I would. . .unless it was Dallas. . .

[Deadskins]

I know that if the league ever expands to Toronto, there's a good chance I'll be a season ticket holder too, to support the team. Heck I'll probably show up in Toronto looking for a job if they put a team there.

What about THN and the Redskins?

Breaking into the Redskins organization is like attacking a brick wall with a plastic spoon. . .if you were given a chance to work for a pro franchise would you take it? I know I would. . .unless it was Dallas. . .

No, I really wouldn't. If it wasn't the 'Skins, my heart wouldn't be in it. I might buy another team, if I had the money, but that would be more of an investment thing, and I would still root for the Redskins.

[Irn-Bru]

I see. . .


Maybe it's just because of the job that I have right now, but I would take a job with an NFL team any day over my current position (things like family, moving, etc. aside for the moment). Not necessarily because I would like the team that I worked for, but because I could be a part of the National Football League for a living. I would definitely be capable of putting fandom aside for a moment if it meant that I would drive to FedEx Field (or some equivalent) every day for work. To me it would be a pretty exciting opportunity (to my tastes, anyway).

I can understand BH's sentiments. . .if I were to get a shot at working for a pro team I would go for it. I bet that it can really open doors down the road, too, if one stays a passionate Skins fan

[Redskin in Canada]

It seems to me that Americans are known all to well for SELLING OUT!

Yep. You guys can wrap yourselves in your flag for all I care. For MANY, MANY people this is nothing but a PROFITABLE business. The game will come to Canada because they want to EXPAND the market further. Same thing will happen in Mexico and Europe.

Hey, just in case nobody noted, there are actually foreign teams already in the NHL, NBA and the MLB. Take it easy, nobody stole any land from the USA and these three sports gained (and not lost) fans elsewhere.

[Jake]

The thing is that they are taking two current American teams at a time and having them play games outside the U.S.

It would be different if there was a brand new (or multiple) EXPANSION team in Canada or Mexico.

But they are taking at least two American teams and using one of their home games as an away game.

[Mursilis]

The thing is that they are taking two current American teams at a time and having them play games outside the U.S.

It would be different if there was a brand new (or multiple) EXPANSION team in Canada or Mexico.

But they are taking at least two American teams and using one of their home games as an away game.

It's just on a trial basis. I'm sure they'd love to have expansion teams in those countries. More $$ for the league.

[Deadskins]

The thing is that they are taking two current American teams at a time and having them play games outside the U.S.

It would be different if there was a brand new (or multiple) EXPANSION team in Canada or Mexico.

But they are taking at least two American teams and using one of their home games as an away game.

And one game can make or break a playoff shot or seeding. We win either of the games last year that were stolen by the refs, Denver and Tampa, and we win the division, are the number 2 seed in the NFC, and get a first round bye and a home game in the divisional round.

Then again, the same is true if we just beat the Raiders at home.

[BossHog]

Wow, I am surprised at some of the arrogance expressed in this thread... which is saying something when I expect it anyway. Like i said, luckily the NFL have businessmen that don't let petty pride get in the way of doing what's right for the business.

How do you expand to new markets and put franchises in foreign cities? By exposing the people to it... which is what the NFL are doing.



I think Europe is a different kettle of fish entirely, but there are Canadian and Mexican cities that make geography and time changes a non-issue.

Like I said earlier though, there are business aspects to bringing the NFL to Canada that make it nearly impossible logistically, but that's a different conversation entirely.

I don't think it's a big sacrifice for each team to play two games in the next 16 years on foreign soil. To me it seems like a great way to spread out the 'hardship' to the existing teams, expose the game to more people around the world, and grow the business of the National League Football.

The NFL already spends a great deal of money to promote the game around the world, and right now, they get very little return for their investment. They fund youth football tournaments, they augment the incomes of leagues like the CFL, and NFLE just to promote the game of football, it's obvious to me that their big vision for the game is to expand it's borders and turn it into an internationally enjoyed sport like soccer.

What's wrong with that?

Who's to say whether their intentions are to physically expand the league to those places, or just to create more of a viewing audience for the existing game. But creating interest and financial support in the league is what makes the NFL the best run sport going in terms of business.

This is a natural extension of the league's progressive thinking IMO.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Why would I go look for a job there?

I'd welcome the opportunity to work for an NFL franchise that would let me apply all that i have learned and observed over the last few years 'behind the scenes'... in any capacity. I mean don't get me wrong... i'd never work for an existing franchise... but for a newly franchised local team? No brainer.

And frankly, considering that we've now seen how organizations that DO care about the fans operate... it really just makes it that much tougher to take ones that don't.