UK: Miami Dolphins American football team train for Wembley match against New York Giants

The Miami Dolphins prepare to face the New York Giants at London's Wembley Stadium on Sunday (October 28) in the first regular season NFL game to be played in Europe. The NFL have exported the United States's most popular sport to Europe in the hope of getting the world excited about American football. The Miami Dolphins face the New York Giants at a sold-out Wembley Stadium on Sunday (October 28), the first time the league has played a regular season game outside North America. Despite its immense popularity in the United States, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell conceded that the NFL needs to expand into other territories to broaden the popularity of the game. Goodell's staff have worked hard to give Londoners a crash course on American football. Massive inflatables of uniformed Giants and Dolphins players can be seen outside London subway stops, while cheerleaders of the two clubs greet the rush-hour throng. A U.S.-based pizza chain was handing out "A Guide to American Football," a 12-page leaflet with A-to-Z tips on the game, including one that instructs fans to scrap the word "pitch" in favor of "field" or "gridiron". "For some fans, the highlight of a football game is the players' celebratory dance done in the end zone following a touchdown," the pamphlet states, encouraging fans to watch the pageantry as well as the game. It does not seem to matter that while the Giants are 5-2 and battling for a playoff spot, the Dolphins are winless in seven games this season and one of the worst teams in the NFL. Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said the league was not considering creating a Europe-based franchise, despite the league receiving a million ticket requests for Sunday's game. The Giants-Dolphins match-up is the latest attempt by the U.S. professional leagues to tap into the potentially lucrative European market. Last month the NHL opened its season with a two-game series between the champion Anaheim Ducks and Los Angeles Kings at London's O2 arena while the NBA's Boston Celtics and Minnesota Timberwolves recently had an exhibition game there. The NFL's first regular season game outside the United States was in 2005 when the Arizona Cardinals beat the San Francisco 49ers 31-14 before more than 103,000 in Mexico City.

ITN Source | October 27, 2007

Tags:. .european. .considering. .potentially. .mexico. .matter