Both Kansas and Arizona State have a 1-1 record this season
Published3 hours ago
The NFL has been playing in London since 2007 but now a different kind of American football is coming to the capital of England.
American college football games were being played abroad long before the NFL headed overseas, in countries as diverse as Cuba, Japan and Tanzania.
But this Saturday the UK will host just its second college football game, and it will be a far bigger event than the first at Crystal Palace in 1988.
About 2,500 fans were there that day, whereas 60,000 will be at Wembley to watch the Kansas Jayhawks face the Arizona State Sun Devils (17:00 BST).
The inaugural Union Jack Classic (UJC) will feature marching bands, spirit squads and tailgate parties outside the stadium – and Ted Lasso actor Jason Sudeikis might be there too.
Why bring a college game to London?
The UJC chief executive is entrepreneur Brian Dubiski. He and a business partner both played college football, with the latter then working with the NFL in London.
And while chatting over a few beers, they asked themselves why no-one had taken college football back to England, especially since Wembley's first NFL game in 2007.
After mulling the idea over for a few years, they decided to do it themselves and managed to book a date at English football's national stadium.
Then they had to find the teams. The past two college games in Dublin have featured teams from the Big 12 Conference. Its commissioner Brett Yormark is "bullish" about building its global appeal and he was interested in a London game.
So two Big 12 teams committed to the trip. Founded in 1890, the University of Kansas (KU) has one of the oldest college teams and wants to expand its brand, while the game coincides with Arizona State (ASU) opening a London campus this month.
Before this trip, most of their players did not own a passport so both teams also wanted to give them a cultural experience they will never forget.
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What makes college football different?
The Kansas Jayhawks marching band usually plays in front of 32,000 fans at their home stadium
Virtually all NFL players come via the US college system, and in many parts of America, college football is more popular than the NFL.
College games often have bigger crowds – eight of the world's 10 biggest stadiums are for college football, all holding more than 100,000.
The fans are also more passionate as support is often passed down from one generation to another, and multiple generations attend the same school. Kansas player Calvin Clements, for example, is a fifth-generation Jayhawk.
Actor Paul Rudd is also a Jayhawk, while lifelong fan Jason Sudeikis grew up in Kansas and frequently weaves KU references into his work.
"They're very spirited, and you get the tribalism, so it's the closest thing we have to European football fanbases," Dubiski told BBC Sport.
Both the NFL and college football have tailgate parties, where fans gather in the car park and eat and drink for hours before the game.
But college football fans chant during games, which feature marching bands and spirit squads – made up of cheerleaders, dancers and mascots.
"We want the game to showcase what we think is one of the greatest sports in America," said Yormark.
"There's something special about college football – the pageantry, the traditions, the fandom. It's dynamic – there's a lot of energy and passion. It truly is an experience."
Who has bought tickets?
The Union Jack Classic has become the British American Football Association's first national league sponsor since 1992 and has subsidised more than 750 coaching and officiating qualifications in the UK, plus held clinics for more than 400 coaches
According to the NFL, 14 million people in the UK identify as fans of America's biggest sports league.
UJC organisers have tried to tap into that fanbase and the UK infrastructure the NFL has built, but also appeal to younger fans.
It formed partnerships with the British American Football Association (Bafa), British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS), and the Jacksonville Jaguars, who host an annual NFL game at Wembley.
About 60,000 tickets have been sold and 15,000 fans are travelling from the US, with student sections to help create the typical college gameday atmosphere.
"We're really pleased with that in year one," said Dubiski. "We never expected to sell the stadium out, and 60,000 is higher than the average Big 12 attendance."
Dubiski agreed an exclusive multi-year deal with Wembley and is already working on games in the next three years. He might expand to other European cities and bring basketball games too.
Why college football could rival NFL
More than 54,000 fans watched ASU beat Morgan State 70-7 in their season opener two weeks ago
Yormark believes a positive experience for fans and players would constitute success, plus an exciting game.
Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III, now a college football analyst with Fox Sports, agrees that "we've got to bring excitement".
"The way to encourage fandom is to create moments, so I'm happy the two teams coming over know how to score points – and score them in bunches," he said.
Griffin also believes college football could ultimately be more successful overseas than the NFL.
"The fandom around college football is better, it just is," he added. "It's more similar to world football so there's a better opportunity to connect, also because there's more teams. In the NFL there's 32, but in college football there's 400 you can fall in love with.
"And if you want to be a real NFL fan, you have to be a college football fan because that's the feeder system into the league and you get to watch these guys develop."
What's happening on gameday?
Fox Sports' Big Noon Kick-Off show is nationally televised in the US
Griffin will be at Wembley as part of Fox's team for their flagship pre-game show, which has gone overseas for the first time, with coverage starting two hours before kick-off.
"They'll be set up right outside Wembley," said Dubiski. "They get the crowd worked up into a frenzy, so it's loud, it's boisterous and a lot of fun.
"We've focused on picking up the tailgating experience and Americana of a college gameday in the States and planting it in London."
The main tailgate party begins at 10:00 – seven hours before kick-off – serving authentic Kansas barbecue food, and there will be cheerleaders and marching bands on Wembley Way.
Inside the stadium, there is a pre-game music line-up and half-time show, and organsiers hope Sudeikis is among the crowd. He and some British actors have been invited, although it is not confirmed who will attend.
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