What do Steelers fans think about the NFL International games in London?

[Oviedo]

Totally pointless, an NFl team has only 8 home games per season. Having one of them in London is a joke in my opinion.
Why London anyway, just because it is an English speaking country? If anything such a game should be excecuted in Germany(Frankfurt), the biggest European country, where NFL Europe was a real sucess and where you have many Americans (military)

Stil, if the NFL wanted to grow it simply should have excecuted NFL Europe better.

Why London? Easy answer=$$$$$$. Tons of expendable income in London and it is the destination locations for people with money from all over Europe and the Middle East. It is also one of the largest Corporate business centers in the world which means corporations buying blocks of tickets. It is also TV contract dollars because someone in Europe will bid for the broadcast rights.

I'm not supportive of teams in Europe at all. I fly there frequently on biusiness and the travel schedule would be a mess for teams especially in the winter when there are frequent delays due to weather. Plus there are very few US military left in Europe to provide a built in fan base. Just don't see how it works. Better to put a team in Canada and Los Angeles.

[ramblinjim]

The last time I flew to London it took less time than my flight to San Francisco (from DC). I don't have a problem with games in London. Does anyone know if the NFL and CFL have any corporate bonds? There could be a rule that you couldn't have a full time NFL team in say Toronto?

[Oviedo]

The last time I flew to London it took less time than my flight to San Francisco (from DC). I don't have a problem with games in London. Does anyone know if the NFL and CFL have any corporate bonds? There could be a rule that you couldn't have a full time NFL team in say Toronto?

Not sure what airline you fly, but I can get to the west coast from Orlando in 5 hours. From an eastern US city to London or Paris is 8 or 9 hours. Add another hour to Germany and probably two more for Rome. When you are talking west coast/mountain time zone US teams you could be talking 10-12 hours of flight time.

[RuthlessBurgher]

Steelers interested in going global

Posted 5 minutes ago

Bob Labriola Steelers.com


Art Rooney II said the Steelers want to be part of the NFL's international expansion.


Once again, the NFL will have three regular season games played in London as part of its 2015 schedule, and Steelers President Art Rooney II said he would be disappointed if the league wasn’t playing in Mexico and Germany by the end of the decade, too.


As a member of the International Committee, Rooney spent time during the recent league meetings working on the expansion of the league’s global footprint, and he wants the Steelers to be a part of that process.


“We would love to play another game in Mexico at some point, and so that part of taking NFL football to another country is something in which we have a keen interest,” said Rooney. “The Steelers are interested in the other international games as well, and so there’s a lot of activity going on. There’s a lot of interest in NFL football around the world, and we’re just trying to keep developing that."


The Steelers have a long history of playing outside the borders of the United States, and it actually started with a 1960 exhibition game in Toronto against the CFL’s Argonauts. In 1969, the Steelers played the New York Giants in Montreal in what was the preseason finale of Chuck Noll’s rookie season as coach.


The modern history of the Steelers playing internationally started in 1991 with a preseason game in Montreal against the New England Patriots. Back in that era, the NFL only played preseason games outside the United States, and the Steelers also played the San Francisco 49ers in Barcelona in 1993, the San Diego Chargers in Tokyo in 1996, and the Chicago Bears in Dublin in 1997. The Steelers’ visit to Mexico City came in the 2000 preseason against the Indianapolis Colts, and the team’s first regular season game overseas was in London in 2013 against the Minnesota Vikings.


All of those games involving the Steelers did very well at the gate, and the team has supporters in 101 different countries – with the highest concentrations in Mexico, Canada, and the United Kingdom – as part of Steelers Nation Unite, which officially recognizes fans as members of Steelers Nation.


“Our teams in the 1970s built a reputation for being one of the all-time great teams, and people who were following NFL football at that time got to know the Steelers and started following us,” said Rooney about the franchise’s international appeal. “The explanation I’ve heard about Mexico and why we have such a great following there is the rivalry we have with the Cowboys, which really is an out-growth of having played them in the Super Bowl three times. That Steelers-Cowboys rivalry became something that was followed in Mexico very closely. It’s been an interesting phenomenon, and that’s why we’d like the opportunity to play games in other countries and be able to have our fans in other parts of the world come to see us play.”


During a news conference that closed those recent league meetings, Commissioner Roger Goodell talked about some of what was presented to the International Committee.


“Particularly in Germany, we know there is some interest in playing a game over there,” said Goodell. “We know there is a renewed interest in playing a game in Mexico – a regular season game. We will evaluate that. There’s been some interest in playing a Pro Bowl in Rio de Janeiro. We are going to evaluate all of those. There’s a growing passion for our game on a global basis, and we want to respond to that. We want to respond to it in the right way, in the right markets. We are excited about where we are.”


Where the NFL seems to be globally right now is entrenched in London, and a whole lot closer to having games in Mexico and Germany than to having them in Brazil.


“Brazil is probably the one that’s in the early stages of the discussions in trying to determine whether they would be receptive to the game and what kind of audience there might be,” said Rooney. “Brazil is the one I would say is the newest discussion, and my guess is there will have to be a little longer lead time in developing that.”


But not so, for Mexico and Germany.


“If I had to put a timetable on it, I would be disappointed if we don’t have games in those two countries within the next five years,” said Rooney. “The audience in those two countries – there are enough NFL fans in both to support a game, and so it’s really a matter of being able to put together a stadium situation that would work well for us, as well as being able to put together a broadcasting and digital media-style programming so the games can be broadcast in those countries as well being played there.”


In choosing who plays where, Rooney said the idea of matching teams in countries where they have an established following would be explored.


“That would be a consideration, and there are a few teams that have a strong following in Mexico,” said Rooney. “The Dallas Cowboys also have a strong following in Mexico, but the Steelers are a little unusual in terms of being popular in Mexico, because we’re from the northern part of the United States. Most of the other teams with a following in Mexico are located closer to the border.”


When the Steelers played the Vikings in London, there was local interest expressed in having an NFL franchise there, and Goodell annually gets questions about that possibility during his Super Bowl news conference. That’s still no sure thing, and the rest of the world outside the U.S. is going to have to be happy with just games.


“I don’t envision a lot of movement of franchises to other countries, that’s for sure,” said Rooney. “There’s a possibility of a franchise in London at some point, and while there’s certainly a developing interest there, that still has a ways to go to become a reality. Technology is giving fans around the world more opportunities to be exposed to NFL football, and part of the opportunity we see in the future is we’re not going to be limited to just games that are broadcast on television, as far as fans having exposure to the game. It’s a new opportunity that’s going to continue to grow as the different digital platforms continue to expand.”


And there might be no limits on the expansion of NFL football, even to Asia.


“When Hines Ward was on our team, we obviously had a bit of a growing following in South Korea,” said Rooney. “We did have some conversations about trying to play a game over there at one point, which would have been fun. Now that Hines has retired, I’m not sure that’s still on the drawing board, but it just shows you there are opportunities that can develop, and it’s fun to look at them and consider them and try to develop some interest in those countries.”

[URL]http://www.steelers.com/news/article-1/Steelers-interested-in-going-global/86e5aec3-6836-4f11-8d28-90c445d3399a[/URL]

[brazilsteel]

[...] “Brazil is probably the one that’s in the early stages of the discussions in trying to determine whether they would be receptive to the game and what kind of audience there might be,” said Rooney. “Brazil is the one I would say is the newest discussion, and my guess is there will have to be a little longer lead time in developing that.” [...]

I'm so happy Brazil was mentioned. Football is growing really fast down here.
There was some talking about bringing the Pro Bowl to Brazil as an experiment, I am pretty sure it would be a success. Football leads TV ratings among men between 18-35 on cable from September to the Super Bowl (EVEN AGAINST SOCCER).

[hawaiiansteel]

Steelers open to international game

Published: May 22, 2015
By F. Dale Lolley



Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin points from the sidelines during the first half of an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens on Thursday, Sept. 11, 2014, in Baltimore. (AP Photo/Gail Burton)

The Steelers are interested in playing another regular season game abroad, with team president Art Rooney pointing at Mexico as a possible destination.

Rooney told the team’s web site Friday he’d welcome the opportunity for the Steelers to play another international game after the success – at least off the field – of the team’s trip to London two years ago.

“We would love to play another game in Mexico at some point,” said Rooney, referring to a preseason game the Steelers played in Mexico City in 2000 against Indianapolis.

“That part of taking NFL football to another country is something in which we have a keen interest. The Steelers are interested in the other international games as well, and so there’s a lot of activity going on.

There’s a lot of interest in NFL football around the world, and we’re just trying to keep developing that.”

The Steelers traveled to London in 2013 to play Minnesota at Wembley Stadium, losing 34-27. But the team had a good experience with the game, which drew 83,518.

Pittsburgh has a long history of playing international games, starting with a 1960 exhibition against the Toronto Argonauts of the CFL.

In recent years, the team has played preseason games in Montreal, Barcelona, Dublin, Tokyo and Toronto.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said earlier this week the NFL would like to expand its international regular season schedule, which has included games in London the past few years.

“Particularly in Germany, we know there is some interest in playing a game over there,” Goodell said. “We knoew there is a renewed interest in playing a game in Mexico – a regular season game. There’s been some interest in playing a Pro Bowl in Rio de Janeiro. We are going to evaluate all of those.”

Rooney, who is a member of the league’s International Committee, said he expects games to be held in Mexico and Germany in the next five years. He also said it makes sense for the league to put games in those countries that pit teams against each other that already have established fan bases there.

The Steelers have a strong following in Mexico.

“That would be a consideration, and there are a few teams that have a strong following in Mexico.” Rooney said. “The Dallas Cowboys have a strong following in Mexico, but the Steelers are a little unusual in terms of being popular in Mexico, because we’re from the northern part of the United States. Most of the other teams with a following in Mexico are located closer to the border.”

[URL]http://www.observer-reporter.com/article/20150522/SPORTS04/150529773[/URL]