Games outside the USA?

[GrnBay007]

Give your reasons.

ESPN poll has 61% no and 39% yes.

[Homer Jay]

Fans of each team get 8 home games. Sending one of them out of the country so the league can expand their coffers just seems wrong to me. We are talking about a billion dollar enterprise. Forget about the foreign fan and make it easier for local fans to see a game.

[Tarlam!]

Forget about the foreign fan and make it easier for local fans to see a game.

What pack4 said.

You all know me to be as forreign a fan as can be. I would not want the Pack to give up a home game even if they came to Frankfurt to do it. The Lambeau advantage is more important, the tradition of playing at home etc.

Fine if we talk pre-season, even Pro Bowl. Not regular season games. Do a better job of NFLE and there should be no need for this.

[GrnBay007]

I ran out of room in the poll question area......but they DID specify regular season games.

I thought when this was first being discussed they were only talking about preseason games.

[Tarlam!]

I mean, come on. If I lived in a State of the Union that had no team, like North Dakota, I would be so pissed at hearing about the Packers/ Seattle game being played in Tokyo.

[GrnBay007]

For all the Marketing Gurus out there, what's your take on this? Does the NFL not make enough money on the NFL in the US without looking elsewhere?




Here's an article from USA Today -

NFL looking at playing two regular season games abroad each year

DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — The NFL has proposed playing two regular-season games outside the United States starting in 2008, league officials said Saturday.

Mark Waller, head of NFL international development, said the proposal to play abroad was put to team owners Tuesday in Denver. It came after the 49ers and Cardinals played last October before a regular-season record crowd of 103,000 in Mexico City.

The owners will discuss the issue again in October. The games would be played in Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom and Germany, where five of the six NFL Europe teams play.

"I will say the reception we got from the owners was incredibly positive — all the questions were on the practical issues," Waller said.

Plans were also announced to add two more teams to the six playing in NFL Europe by 2010. Last year, owners gave the league a five-year operating license — ending years of threatening to pull the plug on the operation because of the cost.

"It now gives us a platform to grow the game internationally with a concept of clarity," Waller said.

Outgoing commissioner Paul Tagliabue said developing the game internationally may rank as one of his top five accomplishments during his 16 years in charge.

"I feel the international initiatives we made, along with the owners, may become more significant over time," Tagliabue said.

The league's effort to make an impact internationally began in 1986, when NFL teams began to play preseason games overseas.

The German cities of Hanover and Leipzig are the leading candidates to get NFL Europe expansion clubs as the league concentrates on Germany. The Amsterdam Admirals are the only current NFL Europe team located outside Germany.

NFL Europe would then be split into two four-team divisions with the schedule expanded from 10 to 12 games. The league hopes to develop local stars for NFL Europe, as well as international stars in the NFL.

"It's clearly critical to the future of the game internationally," said Jim Connelly, managing director of NFL Europe.

[Homer Jay]

I don't have as much of a problem with pre- season games, but I still don't like it. Preseason seems long to the fans, but the travel time, jet lag, etc., have to make it tougher for a coach to prepare his team. I don't see the wisdom of flying to Tokyo to have your starters play 2 or 3 series.

Also, if they move a game, does the season ticket holder get a refund for the game they missed.

[Tarlam!]

007, I've been banging this out on the 2 NFLE threads. I was preaching much of this stuff before this article was posted. This is a major waste of a golden opportunity. My list of stuff is on the official Tarlam for NFLE commish thread....

[GrnBay007]

007, I've been banging this out on the 2 NFLE threads. I was preaching much of this stuff before this article was posted. This is a major waste of a golden opportunity. My list of stuff is on the official Tarlam for NFLE commish thread....

sorry, I guess I missed that one. I didn't mean to start a repeat.

I think the decision made here will have a considerable impact....just found the topic interesting.

[Tarlam!]

I think the decision made here will have a considerable impact....just found the topic interesting.

I agree. They are two different topics, but they have been thrown together. I was also considering starting a new thread on thie NFL side, but was a bit rattled cause they threw the "E" stuff in. No harm done, I know how you love thread discipline!

[MJZiggy]

Can I change my vote?

[Tarlam!]

Can I change my vote?


Only if you now wanna vote "No"

[MJZiggy]

I now wanna vote "no."

[RashanGary]

I'm all for it. Anytime you have other countries feeding money into the USA economy, it is good for us. I think the American sports is one of the best things we have going and by reaching out to other countries we are making it a bigger market and in turn, helping our economy by bringing in outside revenue to our country.

It's all good IMHO.

[Tarlam!]

Nick, what you are talking about is cannabilizing income at the expense of USA fans privileges to watch their home teams.

No extra revenue will be developed. The TV rights are already sold. Anybody who wants a Packers shirt will buy one, the Packers don't need to come to Europe for that to happen. Most of the ticket sales will go to cover the costs of holding the event.

What extra income are you talking about hitting your economy?

[RashanGary]

As the world support of the NFL strengthened, there would be TV contracts in other coutries. If we opened up a little bit and let the world know that the NFL wants and appreciates world wide support, I think it could be bigger than it is now.

I wouldn't love the idea of GB playing a game outside the US, but one every now and again wouldn't bother me as much as it would help the league.

[GrnBay007]

What bothers me is it seems to be all for the money. Does the NFL consider the hardship of this plan on the players? The players are their bread and butter. Think about all the talk/effects of a short week.....play Mon night and again on Sun. Imagine what it would be like playing out of the country....not to mention the affects of jet lag.

Not to mention......lets give a little thought to the American fan base that has made the NFL what it is today!

[Tarlam!]

Nick, you don't need to play the regular season games abroad. What you need to do, is utilize the networks you already have. E.G. Has it ever been considered to let the SB Champion play the winner of the Canadian league? if that's too uneven, how about NFLE?


The issue is not whether to promote the game. The issue is whether or not to play regular matches. I am a staunch naysayer, and "expanding market potential" is a pathetic argument put forward by a clueless league. Sorry, the best product in the world can't make elsewhere, because???

[Homer Jay]

The NFL is the most successful , most profitable league in sports. Why? Because of its loyal fans. Don't screw them out of a home game so the billionaires can make more money. Pre-season in Mexico? OK. Otherwise if it aint broke, don't fix it.

[RashanGary]

I think it would eventually have a positive impact on the game. It would get football in the minds of young kids and allow them to dream of becoming an NFL player. Over time, the new roots of football fanism would bring the level of play higher here by having new talent being developed abroad. I think the US has a bad image and by letting everyone know we want their support, it will open things up a bit.

The economics say its good and the long term benfits would be amazing IMHO.

[Tarlam!]

The world appeal of Soccer is that anybody can play it on about 3 inches of ashphalt and with a sock filled with gravel.

Everybody knows the rules (except women and off-sides). So you can play real quick without fear of grave bodily harm.

The thing that makes it such a spectator sport is that every 500 person hick town has 3 clubs. In almost every single Soccer market, it is at least feasible for a hick town to be represented in that countries national league. It is called the "relegation system". It is this system that makes Soccer the world's number 1 followed ball sport.

BUT! That system will not condone the drafting mechanism that is part and parcel of the American system. The drafting system allows athletes leaving school to become zillionaires in a day. That appeals mostly to Americans, and( I exclude myself here) results in major head-shaking elsewhere.

That is what the USA leagues (all of them) need to understand.

The world over loves an underdog. If NFLE were marketed as the league of the underdogs, you better get out of the way, because that is all you need to gain hordes of supporters. Guarantee the league MVP a roster spot on the team that delegated him, or, if it were a FA, lottery the roster spot out.

By guaranteeing a SINGLE PLAYER a roster spot, you would accomplish 20 times what you would playing regular games in London.

[RashanGary]

Some of those kids who get that seed planted today will become some of the NFL players of tomorrow. Imagine Alfonzo Rivera being the star QB of the Oakland Raiders. You think Mexico would tune in to watch their countries star? You bet they would....YOu think they would buy jerseys and dream of becoming just like him? You bet.

It would open the NFL up to the world. The investment wouldn't pay off right away, but over time, the NFL would be so much stronger for it. I think the storylines and level of play would be higher.

I'm all for it. Like I said. I think it would help the NFL grow a lot.

[Tarlam!]

Nick, I grew up in Sydney.

We played "grid-iron" during breaks. There was an Aussie by the name of Mark Harris who was in the league for a coupla years. O-line or D-line (I should look that up) who we all wanted to be like.

The issue is not to get kids dreaming. WE LOVED THAT GAME. Had it have been televised, we'd have all watched it. We only knew the game from movies and american serials. Or Wide World of Sports Specials.

I STILL, TO THIS DAY HAVE NEVER SEEN A LIVE DOWN OF FOOTBALL. Not even high school football.

I have watched a total of 27 games on TV.

You do not need to play regular games abroad. You have a great product with a very Americano marketing department.

[Tarlam!]

The point of my previous rant was, if the NFL wants players from abroad, then, they better figure out a way to get them into the USA school system.

[RashanGary]

The NFL wants to plant the seeds of tomorrow and let it grow. Sure, seeds will get blown from place to place and naturaly grow, but you can go out and plant them where ever you want them. I think it is just a way to speed things up. The world is very quickly coming together. I think it's good to be proactive on the international market.

[Tarlam!]

The NFL wants to plant the seeds of tomorrow and let it grow. Sure, seeds will get blown from place to place and naturaly grow, but you can go out and plant them where ever you want them. I think it is just a way to speed things up. The world is very quickly coming together. I think it's good to be proactive on the international market.

I agree with every single thing you wrote here.

You can do all of this without disrupting an NFL regular season.