Henry Hodgson: ‘nfl Is Becoming Part Of The UK Sporting Culture’
The NFL London Games are back.
America’s biggest sport is crossing the Atlantic once again to play three regular season NFL games in the English capital. The league, which began making the annual trip in 2007, continues to see its UK audience grow at an unprecedented rate in the UK, now boasting 15.1m NFL fans on these shores.
To find out more, we sat down with the recently appointed General Manager of NFL UK, Henry Hodgson, who having worked for the NFL since 2003, has observed the uplift first hand.
After six years working in LA with the NFL Media Group before he turned his attention to leading the league’s international marketing initiatives, Hodgson is back on home turf to run the UK operation. His number one priority – more growth.
Central to that ambition was the recent announcement of a new three-year partnership with ITV, which sees the channel replace the BBC as the NFL’s free-to-air broadcaster in the UK.
“We have fantastic TV partners,” says Hodgson highlighting the crucial role that television coverage plays. “Obviously, Sky Sports and now ITV, and before that – BBC. Those companies form the right ingredients to grow the sport from a fan development point of view. Quite simply – just getting it out there in front of people.”
The new coverage will be fronted by talkSPORT’s Laura Woods and sees two-time Super Bowl winner Osi Umenyiora and former NFL cornerback Jason Bell taking the pundits chairs, a role they also played at the BBC.
As important as the terrestrial broadcasting is, Hodgson is quick to credit efforts put in to reaching audiences beyond traditional sports fans as crucial to bringing potential new supporters into the funnel. “We’ve done a lot of marketing through social and influencers to reach new fans,” he explains, later identifying individuals aged between 12 and 24 as the organisation’s target audience.
Off the screens and into the stadiums, the consistency of the annual regular season games in the UK has given prospective NFL fans some real-life contact with the sport. “I think the persistence of the Games in London is important. We have been doing it since 2007 and are about to play our 31st game in London. It’s becoming more the fabric of UK,” Hodgson says.
“When I left in 2010, we had only played three years and it still felt like something that came and went – like a travelling circus. Now, the number of games and the year-round presence in the market means that for kids growing up, it is one the options and doesn’t have to feel niche. It is becoming part of sporting culture in the UK.”
On the NFL’s seemingly unique ability to fuse sport and entertainment, an attitude that is slowly being embraced by more ‘traditional’ British rightsholders, Hodgson says, “We have a tag line that we continue to use: Only In the NFL. It is that promise that we will deliver that premium sports experience but also the entertainment around the game, outside the game, before the game.
“We must continue delivering great acts. For example, this year we are going to have Yungblud performing at the game on Saints v Vikings game on 9th October. Getting artists of his calibre is exactly what we need to do to connect the younger audiences. Because this is not just those in the stadium, but everyone else streaming his performance.”
Outside of the in-stadium entertainment, the NFL is striving to provide even more. With an ambition to “broaden the live events further,” this year’s London Games will incorporate the return of a fan event in central London. On Saturday 1st October, on the South Bank, fans will be able to meet former players, see the Super Bowl trophy on display, watch a performance from Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints cheerleaders, and experience an exclusive NFL Super Bowl Gallery exhibition, in an attempt to immerse the UK audience in the sport before a ball is even thrown.
“It’s really exciting to get those fans together,” Hodgson says. “Also, just those people that happen to be in central London and see what is going on and the entertainment we provide.”
With previous iterations of this event taking place in Regents Street, Trafalgar Square and Oxford Street, the current London-centric nature of the NFL’s operation is obvious. Hodgson is keen to recognise that and underlines the need “to try and hit as much as the UK as we possibly can”, to prevent the success becoming too regionalised.
When exploring the NFL’s biggest challenges for continued growth to grow, Hodgson also emphasises improving participation. And it’s here where flag football, the non-contact version of American football, can play a role. It’s the best way “to get the game played by younger kids”, saysHodgson.
At this year’s Games, all the teams travelling to London will be engaging with the local community by inviting kids to come and learn about flag from the players themselves. Meanwhile, at each of the matches there will be a flag football exhibition at half-time involving the GB flag football women’s team.
Building a pathway from flag football to the full-contact sport is a crucial part of the participation challenge. With that in mind, the NFL Academy, which works in partnership with Loughborough University, is there to help, “as way to develop kids from playing flag into NFL players. We know that is critical piece of us growing the sport in the UK – to have those local heroes that people can connect to,” Hodgson says.
Efe Obada, a defensive end for the Washington Commanders, is the most high-profile British export to the NFL, but the NFL Academy is focused on producing more, and ensuring young players can see a route to America’s big league.
“We want to give them a great education and the opportunity to have a US high school-like experience where they are surrounded by football”, Hodgson adds.
Identifying October as the NFL’s most important month for engagement and growth, Hodgson describes the request for tickets this year “phenomenal” and highlights additional activations – like the NFL International Player Combine, which this year takes place at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – as opportunities to drive further interest.
Having earlier likened the first NFL London Games to a travelling circus that came and went,as the teams touch down in the UK this year, Hodgson is confident that they will see the legacy of those that have been before them, while fans can be confident that the NFL is here to stay.
