NFL in London

National Football League in London

nflinlondon

Broncos Jags London

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It’s time for the final London game of the season, as the Denver Broncos visit the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium in England.
Who wins the big game? Will Russell play? What to do in the city?

We can answer that in our Broncos Jags London edition!

Wembley Stadium

Visitors take note, this game is at a different stadium!
While the first two games were hosted at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in northeast London, this game will be held at Wembley Stadium in northwest London.
If you go to the wrong stadium, it’s going to take you a wee bit to switch back.

Built in 2007, Wembley is the unofficial home of England’s football, and has hosted numerous NFL games before.

Anyone who visited Wembley for NFL games from 2007-2011 were possibly horrified at how nothing to do there was around the area.
Once the game was over, you got the heck out, and never partied prior to the game.

Boy has that changed! Around the stadium is now a Chi-Pah-Town of possibility, with numerous chains and pubs to entertain you and keep you safe before the game.
There are now lots of safe hotels around as well, which means you aren’t staying in a bedsit with some people who don’t speak the language.

Unlike Tottenham stadium, there is plenty to do around Wembley, and you will have options to look at after the game.
Do remember, London shuts early, so many of these pubs will close by 11.

Stadium Sports Bar near Wembley is very close and advertises that its open late. You will have to ask if they have Redzone, but if they show Skysports, they will have it.
You can find them here.
https://www.stadiumsportsbar.uk/

Mirage Sports Bar is also local and seems basic enough to be a place to occupy sporting bodies, and has reasonable drinks deals. You can find them here.
https://www.wembleyinternationalhotel.co.uk/restaurant-sports-bar/mirage-sports-bar-wembley/

The Game

London games usually bring two things.
One the scores are generally low as teams adjust to a new pitch, country, and fans of assorted jerseys, affiliations and newness.
Two, someone will get fired after this game. (probably Hackett)

Jacksonville are three point faves in this one, boasting a better offence than the Broncos.
Denver has a solid D that will give the Jags some frustrations, but look to Etienne Jr to have a booming day running the ball.

We think that the Jags will win by a bit to cover the spread in a low scoring affair.

After the Game

London has a lot to offer, unfortunately not late at night, and especially on a Sunday.

That being said there are a few cool areas you might want to check out.

Shoreditch

One of the few ares that will be open til the wee hours, there are a scant few places that might even put on NFL games if you ask nicely. (note they will need to have a Sky Sports sticker in their window to show Redzone).

Roadtrip near Old Street is a good old fashioned rock n roll bar that is not only open late on a Sunday, but they show LOTS of NFL. They have TVs indoor and out.
Food is a bit iffy, but loads of nibbles street side if you want to pop out.
Find them here.
https://roadtripbar.com/

Brewdog Shoreditch will definitely NOT show any NFL as they have no TVs. They do however have a great selection of beers, plenty of space, and are open til midnight.
Great place to meet up after the game to get the gang together.
https://www.brewdog.com/uk/brewdog-shoreditch

The Owl and the Pussycat is a fun pub in the hood to snag some beers and hit the garden. It’s open til 11pm on Sundays.
https://www.owlandpussycatshoreditch.com/

Other London

The Sports Bar & Grill was our original location for NFL after party fun. It’s located right in the train station, so it’s a quick blast back from the stadium into the city.
It gets very packed, so you will want to reserve a table. They will have the Sky NFL games plus Redzone.
The food is both lack and luster, so keep that in mind before ordering huge.
https://www.sportsbarandgrill.co.uk/marylebone

The King Sports Bar inside the Empire Casino is right in the filth of Leicester Square.
Americans expecting a Vegas size casino will want to tamper their expectations, as both it and the sports bar are quite modest in size.
That being said, this bustling area of London will most certainly be packed even before you decide to head there.
Leicester Square and Piccadilly Circus have become less safe in recent years, so please be wary, travel in groups and avoid the side streets.
https://www.thecasinolsq.com/kings-sports-bar

Enjoy the game, have fun and stay safe and rock on Broncos Jags London!

Week 7 Tips

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It was another dump-pump-chump week in the NFL for week 6, as topsy turvy met the upside down world in the results, that’s why it’s called ‘Any Given Sunday’.

Wade and Ryan both took some chin-hits in their picks, but as Taylor says, ‘shake it off’, and they will , as they offer their Week 7 Tips.

To make sure that you hear all of our picks, check out our podcast this week, which you can also find on Spotify and iTunes.

Here are some of the top games that Wade & Ryan have lined up for Week 7.

Lions (1-4) vs -7 Cowboys (4-2) +49

Dak is back, whiggyity wack!
After injuring himself earlier in this season with a nasty wrist hamper, Dak has rushed himself through the pain to get himself back for Week 7. But is it too soon?
The Cowboys have survived on the back of their tough D, and ginger-ninja skills of Cooper Rush.
Four wins are great to have going into Week 7, but can they stave off a feisty Detroit team whose own D has led to multiple collapses?
The Lions have a Hard Knock hangover to start this season. After feasting on the hype, fans are now starting to see that a team with a couple wins last year isn’t going to suddenly go from grower to show-er.
Detroit has a few players back from injury, but their hapless D was still 9 players down heading into practice midweek.
Ryan likes Dak & Dem Boyz to feast on Dan Campbell’s ravaged corpse, easily covering the spread.
Wade is betting on the Lions, deducing that the return of Amon and the fast scoring Goff will come to play and get that second W.
Ryan-Cowboys 30 Lions 20
Wade-Lions 31 Cowboys 27

Giants (5-1) vs Jaguars -3 (2-4) +42.5

So the Giants have 5 wins, but the 2 win Jaguars are favoured at home?
What the hey heck is this malarky?
Perhaps Vegas believes that Daniel Jones and company might be a bit less of a squad than their record belies?
The Giants thundered the Pack-fanatics in London during a game that signalled the potential demise of the Green Bay decade long domination in the NFC.
Add to this wins over the Ravens and now people really believe that this team can be more than Saquon.
Apparently the bookies didn’t get the message, who pip Trevor Lawrence and the Jags as a better option.
The Jags were great in their first two games, then they kind of imploded.
Bolstered by two solid running backs, pretty okay receivers and D that blipped the Bills last season, and you wonder where the return is?
Can they string a bunch of wins together, or are they doomed to be tainted by the AFC dumpster fire.
Ryan is a Giant fan of New York, and sees the G-Men ripping a sixth win out of the beating heart of south Florida sun.
Wade likes the Jags, and sees Etienne getting the runs all over the Giants D.

Ryan-Giants 23 Jaguars 20
Wade-Jaguars 26 Giants 20

Colts (3-2-1) vs -2.5 Titans (3-2)

It’s the rematch from Week 4 that no one asked for! But that’s what you get in the AFC South.
Matty Ice looked like he was still frozen at the start of the season, as Indianapolis played their first few games like they were still in preseason.
Now the Colts are starting to win, and Matt Ryan is second in the league in overall passing yards.
Taylor and Hines are probables, as the Colts are able to get a few healthy bodies back to avenge their October 2 loss.
Tennessee is a mess, with Henry well below his perceived yards, and Tannehill lacking any real targets.
The Titans have 3 wins though, which in AFC South terms is akin to having a full set of teeth on the bayou.
Speaking of byes, the Titans are fresh off of one, although some players consider an early bye a future curse of health.
Ryan likes the Titans at home, and sees Henry having a good rushing day to secure the W.
Wade thinks that the thaw is over, and Matt Ryan and the healthy Colts are about to start an AFC push, which aside from the Bills, is a mess.
Ryan-Titans 27 Colts 23
Wade-Colts 24 Titans 20
That’s it for our Week 7 Tips, If you want to hear more of our picks, just listen to podcast and get all the feels.

DraftKings League

We have our own NFL in London DraftKings League! Why not play along in our contests and you can play for FREE or win big.
Here’s the link to join us here!

What the Week?

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Even the most ardent NFL supporter will tell you that this is ‘one heck of a year’ in terms of playability, and Week 6 sure showed us why.

Somehow the New York teams are all killing it, while perennial favourites are struggling to get out of the first weeks’ mud.
And that’s not even mentioning the injuries!

Let’s take a look at some of the cray-cray storylines as we look at What the Week?

Tommy Boy

TB12 is sure trailing a bucket of drama as he heads into this season, with divorce, depleted squads and AB all piling on to make Tommy’s woes even bigger.

Despite losing one of their Watt’s, the Steelers D gave Tom Brady all kinds of headaches in Pittsburgh, and showed Tommy yelling it up on the sidelines at his teammates.

No one should lose to the tandem Mitch Trubisky & Kenny Pickett, but the Bucs took one on the chin from an AFC chump.

The Bucs are going to need to start stringing something together soon if they want to have any hope of pipping the Atlanta Falcons (whelp) to secure the NFC South title.

A Week 7 match-up between the Panthers should get them right, although Tommy sure would have liked to have snagged Robbie Anderson before he left for the Cards.

New York!

The Jets, Bills and Giants all have winning records…and get this…the Jets just walloped the Green Bay Packers.
What kind of bizarre multiverse is this?

The Jets are 4-2, the Bills are 5-1, and the Giants are also 5-1 in a patchwork that no one would thought we would see in decades, but here we are.

The Giants seem like that they are going to be ‘found out’ every week, yet Daboll and the boys keep finding new ways to beat tough opponents. And get this, they still do it with Daniel Jones and few receivers to speak of.

The New York Jets laid a beating on the Green Bay Packers in week 6, making the O-line of the Pack seem more like swiss cheese, than the fine cheddar it use to be.

The Bills are the one team that might bring some worry. Although they were feted to have top honours to take the title this season, there have been signs of weakness that this ride might get bumpy.

Pack Hack

If you were to tell Green Bay fans that they would be sitting at 3-3 after week 6 at the start of the season, they would have been severely ‘cheesed off’.
Surely their beloved Aaron Rodgers would never let the team sink that low…maybe Matt LaFleur…just not A-A-Ron!

The Packers have had a rough start to the season, with their 3 wins not coming easy, and their 3 losses coming effortlessly.

With no O-Line, and a scant supply of receivers, Rodgers like Brady is kind of wishing that this ends up another Covid year.

Green Bay has upcoming matches between the Bills, Eagles, Cowboys, Lions and Titans…with a few L’s anticipated in these tough contests.

Rhule the World

The Panthers took a massive squat on the state of South Carolina this season, by bring in Baker Mayfield and keeping the unpopular Matt Rhule.

After going a pathetic 1-4, the Panthers let go of Rhule, allowing him to collect $800k+ per week to sit on his butt, and field offers from college football teams.

Carolina is in trouble, and will need to unload C Mc if they can find anyone willing to swallow such a massive load.

Salmonella Russ

Russ has been cooking this season, unfortunately all the dishes keep coming out raw, and with no taste, or texture.

Russ has almost single-handedly ruined prime time NFL this season, putting in performances that more likely gift him a ‘Razzie’, than any football award.

The Seahawks are happy-clapping this season, having the weight of Russ lifted off their shoulders, not to mention the nice pay chunk in their pockets.

Will Russ get any better? Is he injured? Did he also get injured on MNF?

It’s tough to be a Broncos fan!

London Game

We still have another NFL game in London, as the Broncos and Jaguars face off at Wembley on Oct 30th in what is being billed as ‘an AFC match-up’.

Given how Russ has been performing as of late, and the sudden scoring demise of Jacksonville, we might expect some baseball like scores in this one.

Giants-Packers London

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Wowza! What a heck of a game that was between the Saints and Vikings last Sunday, as the sun came out to bring London one beauty of a game!

And guess what? We do it all again this week, as it’s Giants-Packers London this weekend!

To help you figure out what to do, where to do, and all the latest news, we have a packed little diary of ‘to-do’s’ to make your trip extra special.

Here’s what you need to know for the weekend of October 7th to 9th.

Transit Strike

Get ready to go nowhere, as the transit union is once again using this weekend to try to shame a Tory Party Conference with stagnation, catching NFL fans in the crossfire.

A national rail strike is due to go ahead on Sat Oct 8th, meaning that trains into London, out of London and some of the national rail lines will be affected.
Tubes and buses should be fine, but you might experience a knockoff affect of noticeable gaps.

If you are planning on travelling this weekend, make sure you plan ahead, as it will be a slow start on Sunday before the trains are up and running again at full tilt.

Getting to the Game

There are quick a few ways to get to the game, with the tube, overground and parking nearby all being options.

Direct trains from Liverpool street will have you at Tottenham within 25 minutes, and the busy Victoria line will take you to Seven Sisters or Tottenham Hale where you have easy access to the stadium.

Some folks also like to park a few Overground stops away, and just zip south to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

UK vs USA

It’s America versus the United Kingdom in Women’s Football (soccer), with a high profile friendly game kicking off on Friday October 7th at Wembley stadium.

The last time these two teams played was in 2020, when America delivered a 2-0 victory over the Lionesses.

Kickoff will be at 8pm on Friday night, and coverage will be available on ITV.

The game is SOLD OUT, so if you are looking for tickets, make sure you find someone who isn’t going to steal from you.

Football (soccer)

If you’re looking to watch football (soccer) this weekend, you’re in luck!
If you’re looking to watch college football this weekend…you’re kind of SOL.

It’s another big weekend in the Premier League, with some massive London derbys to check out if you can find the time.

Saturday kicks of with some major matches, as posh club Chelsea host Wolverhampton at 15:00GMT, and if you fancy a trip to the coast-Brighton and Hove host Tottenham in the 17:30 match.

There are some great traditional pubs to watch the games in, so make sure you explore the neighbourhoods to find a lovely local boozer.

Sunday might be the NFL, but it’s also a major day in English football, with games on all day-but it’s the later games that might be a problem.

Arsenal host Liverpool in an exciting 16:00GMT match, that will be on most tvs in most pubs across the country.

Later, Everton play host to Manchester United in a 19:00 GMT corker than will also predominate TVs in pubs and bars across the capital.

Comedy

London loves to laugh, so why not check out some of the great comedy on this weekend to laugh it up?

The Backyard Comedy Club in Bethnal Green has a great line-up on this weekend, and it’s one of the places Dave Chappelle likes to warm up before destroying larger venues.
Get your tickets here.

https://backyardcomedyclub.co.uk/event/backyard-comedy-club-saturday-night-427/

American comedy fans will have no idea British comedy icon Stewart Lee is, but they can find out as Lee performs in a series of intimate London comedy dates.
There are still some tickets available, and American comedy fans will be pleasantly surprised at the different stylings of Lee.
Tickets here:

https://www.stewartlee.co.uk/live-dates/

Fair Time

The fall fair is a classic of Americana, with rides, fun games, and novelty foods sure to choke arteries.

South London is hosting its’ own, with Fairgame Funfair setting up in Canary Wharf.

Loads of games, digitally updated games from your past and plenty of booze to make this an all day fun day.

Tickets and info here:

https://www.wearefairgame.com/

Sundays

As we have mentioned in the past, London is not a late night city-and Sundays are the worst of the bunch.

Please be careful in areas like Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square, as they are very dangerous at night.

Areas like Shoreditch, Highbury & Islington, and Finsbury Park all have late night options.

Stay safe, and watch this space for more info!

 

 

Skoll London

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What a first day of the NFL in London, as the Minnesota Vikings pipped the New Orleans Saints just prior to OT to get their third London victory.
The hobbled down Saints made their best efforts, but couldn’t hold the Vikes off in the end, as it was a Skoll London victory.

Despite the slow start, both teams came alive in the second half, adding 33 points between them, and electrifying the London hometown crowd.

How did you enjoy the game between the Saints and Vikings at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium?

Here are a few things we did notice that maybe you did, and some of the folks at home sure did.

Big Smoke

Pyrotechnics before kickoff is a rookie mistake, as the Tottenham crew soon found out with thick black smoke enveloping the centre of the field.

US TV announcers were quick to inform viewers at home that the picture might look dark and  cloudy not because it’s London, but because all those fireworks were just set off and it’s going to take a while to clear.

Be interesting to see if they let off that many fireworks prior to the Giants and Packers.

Fan Noise

Yes, it’s a London game, and yes, the fans comprise the whole league, not just the two teams playing.

It’s always interesting to get the perspective of US based fans who couldn’t believe how quiet it was, whereas many UK fans were bloody hoarse today from screaming all day.

Sure, you don’t get people screaming as hard at third down conversions, but they’re just happy to be at the game.

It’s not as loud as an American game, and that’s ok.

London Prices

‘Welcome to London, three pints will be £20.70.’

For anyone who doesn’t live in London, getting a pint in the capital sometimes requires a guarantor to make sure you can afford the debt.

With prices for regular pints hitting £6.90 at the stadium, many fans found it easier to quaff as many as they could before hand, or pop into the Tesco for a cheeky 4 pack.

Thanks to the pond taking a massive dump earlier in the week, American tourists must have felt that they hit the lottery with an almost par exchange rate.

Please-spend your money Yankee Doodle Dandies! We have gas bills to pay this winter.

Transit Strike

Despite the big bad warnings from the RMT and transit unions, travel on Sunday wasn’t as bad as could be expected.

Londoners bemoan the frequency of our transit woes, and it might seem malarky to foreigners, until you get here and wonder ‘how the heck do I get home.’

Thankfully fans were aware that Saturday and early Sunday would be nonsense on national rail, and made plans to get to the stadium early.

Hey guess what? There’s another strike this weekend, and this one could be even more of a doozy!

Sounds lovely! Travel smart and plan ahead.

NFL on Southbank

Well that’s pretty nifty neat-o huh?

For the first time, the NFLUK has brought the fan experience to the banks of the river Thames, with the adjustment to Southbank from Regent Street.
The result is a more fresh and invigorating stroll through the NFL.

While Westminster was nice to play host to the NFL for a few decades, the rot of Soho and surrounding area made it feel like it was stuck on the street like a piece of gum, and that the stores all secretly hated everyone in jerseys who would never shop in their stores.

It’s a whole different vibe now, make sure that you head down to Southbank and check out all of the activities that they have on this week as well.

Giants vs Packers

We have another game here in London this week!

More info to follow on all the exciting things to do in London this week!