The Debate - Jacksonville Jaguars

Do you think it is a good or bad idea for the Jacksonville Jaguars to play multiple home games in London?

Kevin Rossi
I totally think it depends on a couple of factors for whether the Jaguars’ move to play some home games in London is a good one or not.  I promise this isn’t a cop-out.  It is a good idea if the team is planning on moving to play overseas full-time.  It is a bad idea if the team plans to remain in Jacksonville.  If the team made this move with the intention of staying in Jacksonville, they would essentially be fighting fire (low attendance figures) with fire (taking away games and essentially dangling the team in front of the fans in a last ditch effort to see if they care).  That would obviously be a terrible idea because that would alienate the few fans that are still left.  If the Jags do move, owner Khan would be going against his word when he said he wasn’t moving the team.  Clearly he meant to add “yet” to the end of that statement.  I do think it is very interesting that arguably the least popular team in the NFL is set to be the guinea pig in testing the long term European waters.  It is just going to be an uphill battle to gain popularity.  But then again, if there is a league that can do it, it is the NFL.  So for the question, I think we need to know more information.  We need to know the 5 year and 10 year plans for the Jaguars.  Maybe it will work.  Maybe it will blow up in their face.  Only time will tell.

Drew Rosen
I think it would be a great idea for the Jaguars to play in London. If they do agree to play games in London, it will most likely be one game a year. It is difficult for them to play more than that because of travel. Not only do they have to travel, but the opposing team will have travel as well. The positives for the Jaguars and the league include a broader market and guaranteed sell outs. NFL games have been very successful when playing overseas. If the Jaguars commit to a long term deal to play games in London, fans will surely root for them. Jaguars are at a point where they could use some fans, and fans from abroad could help them as an organization. Playing a game in London is also a guaranteed sell out. If football fans in London only get to see one live game a year, they will be sure to fill the stadium. The Jaguars would like to see what it feels like to sell out a home game.

Seth
For the Jacksonville Jaguars, I think it would be great for the team to play a couple games in London. They can’t sell out their games at their own venue or draw a consistent crowd. Extending their brand, exposing the Jaguars to more viewers/fans couldn’t hurt their organization...It doesn’t hurt that they won’t have any other American football games with which to compete for fans in London either. If Londoners want to attend an NFL game, well, they’re going to have to watch the Jags. Good for the Jags, not so good for Londoners, but it is what it is (sorry Londoners, wish you could watch a better American football team). I’m also not sure it’s a good move for the Jags to take home games away from the few loyal fans that they do have...then again, that might not be too many fans compared to the other teams around the league. All in all, the Jacksonville Jaguars are hurting for ticket sales and playing in London gives them a easy way to makes some sales...it’s a good deal for the team, just not so much the fanbase or Londoners.