Jaguars Bring NFL Draft To London

London will be the first ever city outside of the USA to play its part in the NFL Draft after the Jacksonville Jaguars confirmed it will be announcing two Draft picks live from the capital.

The Jaguars, who have played one home game each year in London since 2013, is now set to further its ties this side of the Atlantic by selecting a UK fan to announce its sixth and seventh round Draft picks from a TV studio in London. 

The winning fan will make the announcement as part of a live broadcast via Sky Sports News in the UK and NFL Network in the US on Saturday 2nd May.

The NFL Draft, a staple of the NFL season since 1936, sees the best 256 college American Football players picked by all 32 NFL franchises over seven rounds.

The NFL Draft attracted 45.7 million TV viewers last year and will broadcast its first three rounds from a base in Chicago this year.  Through rounds four to seven, each NFL team will then take turns to announce their Draft picks live on camera from their team base. The Jaguars will be the only team to have two home bases – one at EverBank Field in Jacksonville and the other in London.

This latest activity is a continuation of fan-focused activation from the Jaguars in the UK market. Since announcing its UK commitment in 2012, the team has made regular year-round visits to London to support a variety of fan and community events and projects.

In 2015, the Jaguars will head to Wembley Stadium for their third visit in as many years to face the Buffalo Bills on Sunday 25th October.

Mark Lamping, president, Jacksonville Jaguars, said: “We are so excited to provide our fans in the U.S. and abroad with an exciting opportunity to be part of the NFL Draft and introduce everyone to our newest Jacksonville Jaguars.  Additionally, we are also equally thrilled to be the first team in the league to bring the NFL Draft to the International market in London.”

Competition entry for the ‘You Make the Pick’ competition is hosted at www.nfluk.com.