George Osborne has held talks with NFL officials and pledged government support for a London-based American Football team.
The NFL has staged a series of games at Wembley since 2007, attracting near-capacity crowds. The Detroit Lions and Atlanta Falcons will play there on Sunday.
“One of London’s massive strengths is its sporting prowess, its great football teams,” Britain’s chancellor of the exchequer told the Evening Standard. “This is primarily a decision for the owners of the clubs and the NFL organisation but I’ve said to the NFL that anything the government can do to make this happen we will do because I think it would be a huge boost to London.”
Osborne said he would take his son to one of the NFL games coming soon to Wembley and that he felt there was a very real chance for the British capital to have an NFL team. There are 32 teams in America and one of them could be a London team. That’s a serious prospect,” he said. “It’s not going to happen overnight but over the next few years.
“I just think it will cement London as a global sporting capital as well as a global financial and business and cultural capital.”
