It’s a sport which is followed and watched avidly all over the world.
It should come as no surprise then that the U.K. is firmly part of the trend as well. Although as of yet the U.K. has not become as much a huge part of the American football world as some other nations, the interest among British people does appear to be growing.
The U.K. itself has numerous amateur teams that play American football – more than you might expect – and it doesn’t look as though that is going to change any time soon. If anything, the U.K.’s fascination with the sport looks set to grow and grow. Let’s take a look at how this is happening in more detail.
American football is slowly taking a hold in Britain, and that is being helped largely by the fact that many colleges and universities are now offering the sport. Clubs are cropping up all over the country, and it seems as though educational institutions are the ideal breeding ground for this particular sport – as they have been for others in the past. Actually, American football has been played in the U.K. since World War II, when American soldiers were often stationed on British soil. But in recent years, it seems to have grown considerably in popularity.
So what might the appeal be?
One major influencing factor is the fact that the NFL have been hosting regular season games in London since 2007. Add to that the fact that the American games are easily and routinely broadcast on British television, and it’s easy to see why more and more people might be getting into the sport. Another factor seems to be the fact that it is such a good sport to bet on – and the British do have a penchant for a little gambling. Thanks to an increase in online free bets U.K. sports fans spend more and more time on betting on the games they’re watching. And when a new sport comes along, generally this makes for a more interesting kind of gamble.
But there’s more. It’s not just the game itself, but what comes along with it. One of the most popular ways to enjoy American football, as with certain other sports such as soccer, is to get involved in fantasy leagues – and the fantasy league for American football is particularly well-established. Anyone who has ever found joy in such activities is likely to hugely enjoy doing so with this particular sport.
There are genuinely many more players than ever before too, and it’s a trend which is still on the rise. There is even talk of the NFL setting up a permanent franchise in London; if that happens, we can probably expect to see much more of American football in our towns, on television – and maybe in the pub. At the very least, for now it is a sport with a growing following in the U.K., and it’s looking as though it might have a healthy future in schools in years to come.