Possible London Super Bowl raises serious logistical question

[papasmurfbell]

http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/09/24/possible-london-super-bowl-raises-serious-logistical-question/

 

The article making reference to the plausible possibility of an NFL moving to London also mentions the unrealistic scenario in which a Super Bowl would be exported to Wembley Stadium.

Sure, the folks in England would love to host a Super Bowl. And some in the NFL may think that sending the league’s premier event overseas would be the best way to spread the virus beyond our borders.

But there’s a serious problem that needs to be mentioned whenever “Super Bowl” and “London” appear in the same sentence: The time difference.

The NFL kicks off the game after 6:00 p.m. ET. That means the Super Bowl would begin at after 11:00 p.m. local time, and that it would last until 3:00 a.m. local time, or possibly later.

For that same reason, a team sent to London could never host a prime-time game on Thursday, Sunday, or Monday. Playoff games would also have to be scheduled accordingly.

That’s the tip of the iceberg as it relates to the issues that would flow from putting a team in London on a full-time basis. At most, we can envision a split U.S./U.K. schedule, maybe for a pair of teams. When it comes to moving a team to England for every home game, competitive balance could quickly be thrown out of whack.