Tottenham's new stadium was visited by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Monday, according to Amitai Winehouse of the London DAILY MAIL. He was joined by club Chair Daniel Levy, who took Goodell on a guided tour of the new 61,500-seat ground, "which is set to open next season." Goodell also brought NFL Exec VP Mark Waller. Tottenham and the NFL have an agreement to host matches at the new stadium over the next 10 years, starting in '18. Goodell said, "The new Tottenham Hotspur stadium is clearly going to be a world-class venue. We are very pleased with how closely we have been able to work with the club, and are optimistic that the broader regeneration plan will make for an extraordinary experience for NFL fans." Tottenham has included facilities specifically designed for players of American Football, and "added dedicated entrances and media facilities to the new ground" (DAILY MAIL, 10/30).
TWICKENHAM RETURN?: The PA reported NFL UK Managing Dir Alistair Kirkwood feels "four is the right number of games for London to host at the moment and is not ruling out a return to Twickenham in the future." This season's Int'l Series came to an end on Sunday when the Minnesota Vikings beat the Cleveland Browns 33-16 at Twickenham. Goodell hinted at increasing the number of U.K. games before Sunday's finale, but Kirkwood is "not sure that would be possible logistically right now." Kirkwood said, "I don't expect us to go up from four any time soon. The more games we play, the more pressure we place on the domestic schedule. Our games get announced earlier than anyone else so it means the schedule needs to fit around us. That's one consideration. The second is that while we're playing in different stadia there are different schedule demands on the stadia so the more games we play, the more difficult it is to satisfy everybody." Sunday's game was the third to be hosted at Twickenham, the "minimum stipulated in the NFL's contract with the stadium," although Kirkwood expects talks to be undertaken over the additional option for two more. He added, "I think there's a reasonable chance [we'll be back]. We're working on our 2018-and-beyond plans, but I think the last two games at Twickenham, this game and last week, were really good" (PA, 10/30).
