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NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell wants to add one more overseas game by next season.
(AP Photo/Richard Drew)
The NFL has a growing interest to expand the league internationally and adding a second London game might just be the answer.
Commissioner Roger Goodell has expressed interest in another game in London or any other United Kingdom city for the 2010 regular season. The NFL has had a game played in London's Wembley Stadium each of the past two seasons. In 2007, the Giants defeated the Dolphins 13-10 while the Saints defeated the Chargers 37-32 last year.
Overwhelmed by the sellout crowds in both games, the commissioner feels that another game overseas for the fans would be great for the game and the league.
Of course, there will also be talks about possibly adding a 17th regular season game and shortening the preseason to make such a move possible. In fact, the hardest thing to take are the games that are lost for the designated home teams. This year, the Buccaneers are the host team to the Patriots. The Buccaneers now will have only seven games played at Raymond James Stadium this upcoming season.
I'm all for the NFL going international. After the failure of NFL Europe, the NFL needs to get back to the international level.
I wouldn't mind if the NFL does add a second U.K. game as long as the field conditions are great (they have been sloppy the past two years) and that the teams losing their home game are properly compensated.
So far, the experience looks to be positive so I can't complain, as a fan, just yet.
Comments
What caused the failure of NFL Europe? And what makes the commissioner think that making players travel all that way will be more cost-effective and over-all more successful than NFL Europe?
He must be looking at the ability to make the NFL a marketable sport. The NFL Europe failed because it was too much investment in something the rest of the world wasn't ready to handle. But now, I think the development of the game has evoled overseas. A second game wouldn't be bad, but it is a far less commitment than NFL Europe was.
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