Super Bowl in London in 2014?

[budw38]

Great post Buster !!

[GridIron26]

Dang Buster, just like what others said

[tryfuhl]

Originally Posted by Buster

Explain how taking the largest sporting event in our nation, from a sport that is supported solely by American fans all season (unless someone flies into the country for a ticket on Sunday) and whose teams are ALL in this country...and outsourcing it to a foreign country that cares more about soccer, doesn't understand the game for the most part, has no real team loyalties and doesn't spend their money all season to pay the players through ticket and merchandise sales...is somehow "close-minded" or even more ridiculous, "conservative"?

Our citizens really love and understand the game, they work hard all year to afford their tickets and merchandise to support their team and even though a lot of corporations do buy the Super Bowl tickets, many fans do save up to get a ticket when their team makes the big game. How can you not understand how it would be insulting to ship the Super Bowl out of the country and cutting out a lot of fans from being able to attend...and probably filling the stadium with many fans who probably have no clue what's going on or who the players even are?

Think of it this way...the Redskins finally make the Super Bowl in a couple of years. It's been 20 years! The game is in London. You could afford a ticket and road trip if the game were in New Orleans, Phoenix or Florida, but not a plane trip and accommodations to Europe, with the added expenses and hassle of getting a passport. Wouldn't you be even the slightest bit disappointed and probably even angry at the league for cutting you out of the most memorable game in your life, that you've waited 20 years to see happen again?

Meanwhile, some guy wearing a Manchester United jersey to the game is sitting in your seat, talking to his buddies how the game is so confusing and is "inferior to futbol".

It would be equally ridiculous to have a championship soccer match between Manchester United and Barcelona in the Pro Bowl stadium in Honolulu for no real reason. They'd be equally and as legitimately angry.

Leave your blind political insults out of this. It's about fairness to the fans who already spend a ton of money to make the NFL the most successful league in the world. Sure, you're right that there's nothing wrong with exposing the rest of the world to the game we love, but to give them the biggest game of the year is quite insulting and will lose more fans than it gains. Give them more preseason games that won't interfere with travel, rest and practices for the next week's games...but regular season games give the teams who are forced to play for foreign fans an unfair disadvantage...to give them postseason games would be unfair to the fans who supported their team all year long.

You'd rather gain a few casual fans overseas who still prefer another sport and probably never see that team play live again in their life than to reward lifelong, faithful fans here at home? I don't understand it.

Diversifying the fan base and expanding it worldwide are worthy goals, but not at the cost of alienating the true fans that made the league large enough, rich enough and successful enough to even considering targeting a worldwide audience.

There's a point where football must realize they'll never reach some fans in some parts of the world...just as soccer must realize the game will never catch on professionally here in the United States. Soccer has failed so many times professionally here...just as the NFL has had lackluster success in their experimental games overseas. The World League bombed, as did NFL-Europe. You can't blame the talent level for the failures, because it was the sport they rejected in favor of soccer.

Handle that

[Monkeydad]

Thanks for all who see it the right way.

As you can see, I love my football and have been very annoyed with elitist soccer fans/Europeans far too many times. I really had no intentions of writing a book on it...it just happened.

[Ruhskins]

Originally Posted by Buster

Thanks for all who see it the right way.

As you can see, I love my football and have been very annoyed with elitist soccer fans/Europeans far too many times. I really had no intentions of writing a book on it...it just happened.

I think BHA is going to be jealous of your long post. LOL.