myguideTravel Blog

Sports Tourism

January 29th, 2008

By most accounts, US exporters fared better than other parts of the economy did in 2007 as a weak dollar made American goods more affordable abroad while growing foreign markets increased the pool of people looking to purchase those items. An area of exporting that saw a flurry of activity in 2007 was professional US sports leagues packing their bags and passports to showcase their talents overseas. Three of the four major professional sports leagues (NFL, NHL, and NBA) played games abroad in 2007 and, not wanting to be left out of the act, Major League Baseball scheduled two foreign trips (one to Japan and one to China) for early 2008.

For those of you not familiar with US professional sports, the NFL and MLB are top of the heap in nationwide interest while the NBA and NHL trail them a distant third & forth in support. One would think with a population of over 300 million people that the domestic market would be large enough to focus on for these businesses. However, this is not so as each of these leagues is striving to gain a foothold in the international market for lucrative merchandise sales and broadcast rights as well as researching new markets for talent. The US clubs are eager to replicate the worldwide successes (and revenues) that soccer clubs such as Manchester United and Real Madrid enjoy abroad.

October 28, 2007 saw the first official regular season NFL game outside of North America played at Wembley Stadium in London when the New York Giants defeated the Miami Dolphins in front of a crowd in excess of 81,000 spectators despite wet and foggy conditions. The NFL had played exhibition games before in England, Ireland and Germany, but this was the first time an official regular season match had been held in Europe. Due to the success of this event, the NFL has decided to stage another game in its International Series, also to be held in London, in October 2008. This game is expected to feature the San Diego Chargers versus the New Orleans Saints. Furthermore, a second game is also under consideration, as the NFL is reportedly thinking about adding one to be played in either Scotland (Edinburgh’s Murrayfield) or Wales (Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium). If this second contest is confirmed, the myguideTravel family will be well placed to assist the fans of either team who want to travel to support their clubs overseas as Douglas Hart and his team at myguideScotland are the Scotland experts while Keith Roberts and his sales guides at myguideWales can help you navigate the beautiful Welsh countryside. Even if you don’t follow either team or even the NFL, you should consider visiting England, Scotland and Wales in 2008. Each destination is well worth a trip, with friendly people, fascinating sites and numerous visitor attractions to compete for your attention. Regardless of your reason for travel, the myguideTravel family of specialists are here to help you plan an unforgettable trip.

Entry Filed under: England, Scotland, Travel, Wales