In an email received today:
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As we head into the final few weeks of the 2011 NFL season I want to thank you, the fans, for making this a very memorable campaign.
While the action in the United States has been full of twists and turns, drama and record-setting levels of play, we have also enjoyed significant growth and created headlines of our own in the United Kingdom. These included:
- Ratings for Sky Sports’ coverage of the NFL increased by 30% year on year
- Red Zone was added to Sky Sports’ coverage and was very popular among our fans.
- Our fifth International Series game was held at Wembley Stadium as the Chicago Bears recorded a 24-18 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Our fan feedback ratings suggest this was the best-received of our games to date
- Events surrounding that game increased and included the Fan Forum with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, the Fan Rally, the Friday Night Lights screening in Trafalgar Square, the UK Talent Camp, Tailgate and the launch of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for American Football. Those fantastic events featured legends such as Richard Dent, Marshall Faulk, Jerome Bettis and Brad Johnson and meant there were more ways to enjoy the International Series game and more excitement than ever before
- Television viewing figures rose across all our broadcast partners as more than 6.53 million watched NFL games during the 2011 regular season – an increase of 18% on 2010
The biggest news with regard to the long-term future of the NFL in the United Kingdom came in October when the NFL owners voted to extend the International Series of games played in this country for a further five years.
We are scheduled to make an announcement tomorrow regarding the International Series in 2012 so keep an eye on nfluk.com for that exciting news.
Each year we conduct extensive research with thousands of fans who come to our game and we listen to your feedback. We are trying to incorporate as much of that as possible into our activities in 2012.
The Registry of Interest (ROI) will not take place this year. Having listened to fan feedback after last year’s game we are going to have a trial year without this extra step and will evaluate the success of the new system.Our NFLUK.com database members and forum visitors will still be the first ones to get all the information about ticketing. This will include details of general admission ticket sales, which will be announced in the run-up to Super Bowl XLVI.
So watch this space and keep checking NFLUK.com for news on the International Series in 2012.
I would like to end by thanking each of you for your continued support of the NFL.
Enjoy the remainder of this season’s playoffs on Sky Sports and the BBC!
Alistair Kirkwood.
