A Super Bowl in London?

Well, as you know yesterday was the Superbowl and I just recently stumbled upon a very interesting article on foxbusiness.com. Apparently there is talk of hosting a Super Bowl across the pond in London, England. Football has been gaining popularity over in Europe and the NFL has played a number of games overseas with a great deal of success. According to the article sports marketing experts are not quite sure if the most watched and expensive sporting event in America would be a money maker for the NFL if it was played overseas.

For me, when I hear about the Super Bowl, I immediately think about the commercials. This year it cost companies 2.6 million for a 30 second spot! Having the game over in Europe makes me wonder about how it might affect the advertising in the Super Bowl. Will we be watching some European commercials here in the United States, or will it be the same as any other Super Bowl?

Some people believe putting this event in Europe could bring new fans “out of the woodwork” and potentially lead to more money for the league. People have also been comparing this to when FIFA sent its premier event, the World Cup to the United States in 1994. It was a huge success over here and eventually lead to the start of the MLS (Major League Soccer.) I’m not quite sure if having the Super Bowl in London would have that same effect as the World Cup in the U.S. but I think it would be interesting to see how successful it could be over there.

-Alec