The American Football Revolution: How Britain Fell in Love with the NFL

The NFL successfully converted a skeptical soccer-mad nation in the UK into a passionate fan base by broadcasting highlights on a new TV channel in 1982 and organizing a preseason game at Wembley in 1983. The marketing muscle of the league and the fans' dedication and creativity played key roles in making the sport a hit in the UK.

Format: Hardback
Length: 224 pages
Publication date: 21 August 2023
Publisher: Pitch Publishing Ltd

The American Football Revolution: How Britain Fell In Love With The NFL
The remarkable tale of how the United States' most popular sport won over a skeptical soccer-crazy country is told in The American Football Revolution: How Britain Fell In Love With The NFL. Just as hooliganism was turning people away from the UK's national sport in 1982, an enigmatic new TV channel began broadcasting NFL highlights into British homes, creating a modest but devoted following. The Global Cup, in which the Vikings and Cardinals played a lackluster preseason game at Wembley a year later, marked the beginning of the end. Forty years later, the UK is the NFL's second home. Although the league's marketing power was important, it was the fans who stayed up late to watch games on TV, produced their own content, and planned vacations to the United States to coincide with important games that made the sport a success. These are the tales of the supporters who turned the NFL from a curiosity to a mainstay in the British sporting landscape, from the man who sold his house to tour the NFL's tailgate parties to the one who turned his love of the sport into an all-consuming passion for fantasy football.

Weight: 338g
Dimension: 224 x 144 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781801504652