Mayor of London Sadiq Khan wants to bring the NFL’s Super Bowl to the UK’s capital city.
Since 2007 London has hosted 21 NFL regular-season games and there’s also a strong possibility that the city could be home to a franchise in the near future.
Following the past success and growth of American football on British soil, the mayor is now keen on scoring the ultimate touchdown for London.
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Speaking in an interview with talkSPORT, Khan said: “I’ve been saying since the first day I became mayor my ambition is to have more American football games in London and ultimately for there to be a franchise there and, dare I say it, even the Super Bowl.
“I met recently one of the owners of the Jacksonville Jaguars, Shahid Khan. I’ve met the NFL commissioner on a number of occasions, most recently at the game at Twickenham this year, and my team is working very closely with the NFL.”
This year’s NFL London series will see three matches played - with two at Wembley Stadium and one at Tottenham’s new stadium. The new Spurs ground is designed specifically for gridiron after the Premier League club signed a 10-year partnership with the NFL in 2015.
In October the Seattle Seahawks will play the Oakland Raiders in the first NFL match at the new Spurs stadium, while Wembley will host Philadelphia Eagles vs. Jacksonville Jaguars and Tennessee Titans vs. Los Angeles Chargers.
After taking a tour during the construction phase, Khan told talkSPORT that the Spurs stadium will be “remarkable”. He also says that the opening of the new ground will give London a chance of hosting more NFL matches in the future.
He added: “Obviously once Spurs open up their stadium that will give us the potential to have more games there, but I’m ambitious - the idea is to have eight games in London eventually, which is the number a franchise team plays and then who knows, maybe one day the Super Bowl.”
While Khan is keen on bringing the Super Bowl to London, what do American football fans in the UK and Stateside think of the mayor’s plans? Here’s the reaction from Twitter:
“Impossible, maybe the Pro Bowl,” says one fan.
“Imagine the outcry if the FA Cup was moved abroad.”
“The showpiece MUST stay in America.”
The US networks wouldn’t allow it.
“Would love it here but not a chance in hell.”
“Put a bid in for Wrestlemania!”
