A Great Occasion
As the Union Jack Classic (UJC) kicked off yesterday at Wembley stadium, it was hard not to be in awe of the atmosphere.
We had just seen two great renditions of national anthems, two enthusiastic marching bands, the full spectacle of the players entering the field and fireworks on the stadium roof!
This was the first FBS college football game in the UK, and the UJC organisers had gone to a great deal of effort to ensure fans received the full “US experience”. It made for a great occasion for neutrals and fully fledged fans alike.
At kick-off, I couldn’t help but think of the misquoted version of the line from Field of Dreams, “Build it and they will come”.
Why? Because the UJC felt like an ideal introduction of college football to curious UK mainstream spectators.
What is needed now is follow up and consistency to turn curiosity into interest and then into support.
Is the potential there?
The NFL has held 3 annual regular season games in the UK for many years now.
There is a strong fan base for American Football in general, a sport which has been on TV here since the 1980s.
College football is American Football and effectively a derivative of the NFL rather than a different sport. It is one that I would argue should be MORE appealing to casual fans and EASIER to draw fans in given the pageantry and passion.
A usual introduction path to college football for many UK fans has been via the NFL/Draft. But the lack of college TV exposure has always hindered its growth amongst a UK fanbase.
Having games on DAZN and Disney + has helped but as with the NFL, the time difference impacts casual fans exposure. Therefore, the ability to see in person games like the Union Jack Classic are critical to give access to the live version of the sport – an experience which cannot be replicated on TV.
We met one casual following of the sport yesterday who had never been to a live game but got access to cheap tickets and came along and loved the experience.
People support teams and not a sport.
The official attendance yesterday was around 46,523 and it is likely around 15,000 of those were travelling from the States. At the tailgate we met many travelling American fans from both teams.
That leaves just over 30,000 of “locals” which will have been a mix of UK College Football fans, NFL fans crossing over to college for the first time and general sports fans coming out of interest.
Of course, people support a team rather than a general sport. But it will take time for UK fans to grow interested in the game and then eventually declare support for a specific team.
College Football is different in the sense that many Americans feel a deep-rooted sense of connection to their school. It is not uncommon for generations of a family to attend a certain school baking in a family allegiance that continues for a life.
This drives a lot of the atmosphere at college games. Given the university term has just started, there were not many students at the UJC but the atmosphere was still better than most NFL London games.
Broadening The Triangle
For me the equation is simple, you more people you expose to the sport casually, the greater chance of pulling them through the fandom experience from casual observer to fervent support.
If you think of it as a triangle or funnel where casual watcher is at the base and flying out to attend games is at the top, you need to base of the triangle, the broader the base the greater numbers that will eventually end up as supporters.
The NFL has a broadened its base whereby you can see games on free-to-air TV and it is easy for casual observers to stumble across it.
Why Bother?
As a college football enthusiast, I am of course bias, but I do believe there is a strong market for the game in the UK. It is pleasing to me that the product is now getting the exposure it deserves.
In the era of paying players and spiralling costs, US universities do need to look further afield to generate revenue. Growing a new fanbase overseas can form part of that solution. Arizona State coach Kenny Deillingham touched on this after the game when he referenced the new Arizona State London campus that is being setup.
For college players and their families, it is a unique experience to visit another country and being an ambassador for the sport that they love. Both teams post games talked positively of the experience.
Build and they Will Come…
Once the dust settles on this inaugural game, I am sure the planning will be underway to follow up next year. Continued momentum and exposure are important, and the potential is there to grow that 46,000 attendance into the 50s and 60s. It will just take some careful thought and some patience.
The game is slightly different compared to the NFL and its growth plan cannot be a simple copy and paste.
There is a thriving UK college football community, including networks like ours, and I hope that the organisers will listen to feedback from existing stakeholders in the UK on how to continue to grow. As a UK fan I would love to see the sport more widely available and discussed in the UK but that will take time.
So build it and they will come, of this I am certain.
