NFL UK chief Alistair Kirkwood believes football is finally coming home in London next year.
Spurs’ swanky new 61,000-seat stadium will host two regular-season games each year for the next decade from 2018.
And Tottenham’s new home is complete with a synthetic field and larger dressing rooms to accommodate gridiron games.
Kirkwood told SunSport: “Ten years ago we would have never imagined ground sharing with a Premier League team and having our own field below the football pitch that Spurs are playing on.
“It’s like the difference between being a tenant and moving into a place where you’ve had some say in the look and feel and the decoration.
“At Twickenham, in order to get the right locker room space for our teams we have to knock down bars next to the dressing room to build it out – then when we leave we build the bar back up again.
“We’re having to work within the structure of a stadium that’s built for a different sport, but at Spurs we won’t have to do that.”
MOST READ IN SPORT
Sunday’s clash between Minnesota and Cleveland at Twickenham will be the fourth and final game in London this year.
There will be at least four games next year too with Wembley set to host two more contests.
Kirkwood is thrilled with the progress of NFL in London since the city began hosting games a decade ago.
“Ten years back we were playing the first regular-season game outside north American and it was a contentious issue just like the 39th Premier League game.
“Now we’ve had 26 out of 32 teams played in London and have 40,000 season ticket holders who go to all four games. There’s no way I could have envisaged that ten years ago.”
Baltimore Ravens head coach John Harbaugh said the trip to London was “not ideal” after his team’s 44-7 loss to Jacksonville this year.
Los Angeles Rams running back Todd Gurley also said that “it doesn’t make sense” and “they need to stop” with London games.
Kirkwood said: “I’ve got more than enough quotes from players and coaches that would contrast to coach Harbaugh’s viewpoint.
“I understand that when you make a trip such as this it has a lot of complexity to it and it’s not straightforward, so it’s not to everyone’s liking.
“Over ten years we’ve got a really good track record of bringing teams over.
“The beauty and the beast of what we’re doing is there is nothing else to compare it to in terms of size and scale. We have around 150 people from each team including coaches and support staff flying over.”
Kirkwood also believes the NFL is making rapid progress towards a London franchise in the coming years.
He said: “We don’t have a date we’re aiming for but we’re on track because we continue to make good progress and fans are supporting us by buying tickets.
“Everything we do is to try and build a potential for an owner to think that this could be really interesting in the future.
“By doing more games and selling out, we get closer because we have a longer track record.
“It doesn’t necessarily mean that in 2021 or 2025 or 2030 it takes place. I don’t think anyone could quite honestly roadmap this with any certainly.
“We just need to continue doing what we’re doing and I’m convinced good things will happen.”
Leave a comment