Re: NFL Off Topic
Being the resident Brit around here, there was no way I was not going to give my two pennies on this... or cents.
In my opinion, these games are a bit of a joke now. For the first few years they were great. That one game built up an atmosphere around the country of anticipation and excitement. For one Sunday, London would almost look like the circus rolled into town. It was fantastic. You'd have people who had never heard of the NFL or football walking past trying to figure out why 90,000 odd fans were going to a stadium in all different colour jerseys. You could almost describe it as madness.
Now, in my opinion, we are being over saturated with games.. pretty poor games as well. I'm sure you have heard the phrase "you can never have too much of a good thing". Well, in this case you can. There is nothing exciting about it anymore.
I don't want to pick from four average games, I want to pick one really good game and go to that game. But that won't happen because the teams that draw the most TV revenue are the ones usually shown in prime time. And the "big" teams that do come over here are usually playing an away game so they don't have to sacrifice a home game, and are usually playing against a lesser team i.e. Patriots Vs Rams a few years ago. Infact most of the home teams we have had have been middle of the road to poor teams. Next year we get LA and Cleveland as home teams...
To top it off the games do not represent or capture that atmosphere or spirit that a game in America would. The "tailgate" party they throw is nothing more than a few beer and food stands. No trucks with BBQ's on the back, no fans cooking food, etc.. etc.. There is a reason tailgating isn't a thing over here. Oh, and the beer and food is ****. The atmosphere inside the stadium is average at best. Fans don't stay loud, and they don't always get loud when they need to i.e. 3rd downs or even on a big play. It doesn't help that Wembley isn't the best at keeping the sound in, surprisingly.
Also, the prices are too expensive for the quality of what you are getting. Take for example this Sunday, Detroit plays New York. I can go onto StubHub right now and buy a lower end zone ticket at MetLife for $170, which at it's current rate is £134. When I went to see Detroit Vs Atlanta here in the UK, a ticket in roughly the same spot at Wembley cost £215, or $272. Add onto that the **** food and beer which is WAY too expensive, the cost of getting there, the time spent getting there... Not worth it.
TL;DR - If you are not in the U.S, save your money and go to America and do it properly and get the best, most authentic experience possible. That is my plan next year.
Also I do not think it is fair at all home teams lose a game. Especially a team with good attendance records. Even the away fans essentially lose a game, why would you fly all the way to the U.K?
Being the resident Brit around here, there was no way I was not going to give my two pennies on this... or cents.
In my opinion, these games are a bit of a joke now. For the first few years they were great. That one game built up an atmosphere around the country of anticipation and excitement. For one Sunday, London would almost look like the circus rolled into town. It was fantastic. You'd have people who had never heard of the NFL or football walking past trying to figure out why 90,000 odd fans were going to a stadium in all different colour jerseys. You could almost describe it as madness.
Now, in my opinion, we are being over saturated with games.. pretty poor games as well. I'm sure you have heard the phrase "you can never have too much of a good thing". Well, in this case you can. There is nothing exciting about it anymore.
I don't want to pick from four average games, I want to pick one really good game and go to that game. But that won't happen because the teams that draw the most TV revenue are the ones usually shown in prime time. And the "big" teams that do come over here are usually playing an away game so they don't have to sacrifice a home game, and are usually playing against a lesser team i.e. Patriots Vs Rams a few years ago. Infact most of the home teams we have had have been middle of the road to poor teams. Next year we get LA and Cleveland as home teams...
To top it off the games do not represent or capture that atmosphere or spirit that a game in America would. The "tailgate" party they throw is nothing more than a few beer and food stands. No trucks with BBQ's on the back, no fans cooking food, etc.. etc.. There is a reason tailgating isn't a thing over here. Oh, and the beer and food is ****. The atmosphere inside the stadium is average at best. Fans don't stay loud, and they don't always get loud when they need to i.e. 3rd downs or even on a big play. It doesn't help that Wembley isn't the best at keeping the sound in, surprisingly.
Also, the prices are too expensive for the quality of what you are getting. Take for example this Sunday, Detroit plays New York. I can go onto StubHub right now and buy a lower end zone ticket at MetLife for $170, which at it's current rate is £134. When I went to see Detroit Vs Atlanta here in the UK, a ticket in roughly the same spot at Wembley cost £215, or $272. Add onto that the **** food and beer which is WAY too expensive, the cost of getting there, the time spent getting there... Not worth it.
TL;DR - If you are not in the U.S, save your money and go to America and do it properly and get the best, most authentic experience possible. That is my plan next year.
Also I do not think it is fair at all home teams lose a game. Especially a team with good attendance records. Even the away fans essentially lose a game, why would you fly all the way to the U.K?
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