Some NFL teams seem to believe a foray into China in '19 is "unrealistic ... especially considering the amount of manpower that’ll be put into the celebration of the league's 100th season," according to sources cited by Albert Breer of THE MMQB. Initially, the plan had been to "explore having a game this September in Beijing, but that was scuttled for a couple of reasons." One, the NFL wants to "try to replicate the London model of growing an event annually, if possible, when they're making the investment to go to a new market overseas." There also are the "logistical issues in getting teams across the Pacific and back, the effect it would have on competitive balance, and how the game would be broadcast in the States with the difference in time-zone certain to create a challenge in drawing a decent rating." The NFL's focus is on "trying to get people actually playing the sport in China." It "seems like that could be the focus for a while, since there's no great sign that the league is moving closer to surmounting the challenges it faces in reaching the pretty ambitious goal of playing a regular-season game over there." There will be an "international update" at next week's league meeting in Orlando, and there are "three topics on the agenda" -- future games, the ongoing international player program and China (SI.com, 3/22). PRO FOOTBALL TALK's Darin Gantt wrote while the NFL "loves nothing more than an untapped source of revenue, it appears their effort to start making all that Chinese money hasn't developed as quickly as they'd hoped" (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 3/22).
