NFL Plans Back-To-Back-To-Back London Weekends Next Season

The NFL is planning to stage games in London on three consecutive weekends next year, "a first for the league," according to Daniel Kaplan of SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL. The league now stages four games a season in London, and it is "no secret there might be more in future years, if not a full-time team," so playing games on consecutive weeks is viewed as "necessary to prove the market can handle more." Next season is also the first time that Tottenham Stadium, now under construction, is scheduled to begin hosting two games a season. The league is creating contingency plans, however, "if it decides only one game is possible in the first year of the stadium." NFL EVP/Int'l Mark Waller wrote in an email, "We are also working on a contingency plan in the event that there are any unexpected changes to the readiness of the Tottenham stadium and related transportation services and infrastructure." He said that plans "should be complete by the end of the regular season or soon after" (SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL, 12/18 issue).