With 32 clubs and eight divisions, the NFL appears to be perfectly balanced, but it doesn’t preclude the possibility of expansion team ideas. According to rumors, there are plans to include more NFL games as a part expansion debates and regulations in the league headquarters. The idea of the league growing to 40 clubs is being considered.
Naturally, even if all of this is merely conjecture, we can still discuss potential NFL expansion teams for fun. There are favorite prospective NFL expansion destinations just in case the league adds new teams at some time.
In the not-too-distant future, there may be more than six NFL expansion franchises. While some communities are attempting to position themselves to receive a franchise, the league undoubtedly has some possible NFL expansion cities in mind. This article will outline the cities considered perfect grounds for a stretch.
What Is The NFL Considering?
The league now generates $15 billion in revenue annually. Even so, the NFL has seen its popularity level off and, in some cases, decline due to falling television viewership, decreased participation, and unfavorable fan reactions to social justice protests. However, the NFL won’t be shrinking any time soon.
There’s no doubt that the first franchise will move to London. To make a London franchise a reality, it will take at least two rich owners to become frustrated with local governments that refuse to grant them hundreds of millions more for new stadiums.
It looked like the ideal moment to pretend to be NFL Commissioner and instruct Roger Goodell on how to earn his $20 million salary and bring the NFL to London because the New England Patriots owner, Robert Kraft, is pushing for this to happen.
How can the league continue to develop football while leveraging the relative prosperity of its products? The answer is NFL enlargement. Here’s a concise list of cities under consideration.
1. Oakland
Only a few years have passed since the Raiders left Oakland, and the community would undoubtedly adore a new team. Fans in Oakland would undoubtedly welcome an expansion team because they didn’t particularly want to see the Raiders depart.
Remember that neither of the two Bay Area cities is exactly where the 49ers play their home games. A new team in Oakland might prosper for a long time and be in a division with either the 49ers or the Raiders with a new downtown stadium.
2. London
The NFL would adore having a permanent franchise in London. To minimize movements to the barest, the NFL could only arrange for the London franchise to play Eastern Coast teams. This would make travel a little more challenging. There are many current stadium choices, including the recently constructed Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, designed with plans to host NFL games in mind.
In addition to the NFL’s adamant desire to expand, London is another sensible option. It is only two hours from the East Coast, and there is only a five-hour time zone difference. Additionally, if the city decided to host an NFL team, it already has plenty of arenas and a sizable population of crazed sports enthusiasts.
3. Toronto
The NFL can also travel internationally to Toronto in addition to London. The catch is that it’s already home to a Canadian Footbal League (CFL) franchise and is practically too near to Buffalo.
Sharing a stadium with the NFL and CFL could be challenging because their fields are of different sizes. That might compel Toronto to construct an NFL-specific stadium .
4. Austin
Many people are still shocked that Austin does not have a professional sports team because there’s Austin FC, an expansion team in the MLS. Since Austin is the Texas state capital, hosting tens of thousands of football fans on Saturdays is not a problem.
Dallas and Houston are far enough out from the metropolis to have their fan bases. Austin is already such a vibrant and active city that a football stadium in the downtown area would be a wonderful enhancement.
5. San Antonio
An NFL team would already have a home stadium as San Antonio already has the Alamodome. There’s no doubt that San Antonio, in football-loving Texas, could support an NFL club as it is also a city that has long supported an NBA team.
Just one of Austin or San Antonio will likely get a club because the league is unlikely to desire teams in both cities. San Antonio might be a better choice than Austin because it’s a little further away from Houston and Dallas.
Conclusion
The NFL has many jobs on its hand in line with extending the franchise of this widely watched sport to other stadiums not yet on the league’s list. True, this sport needs to be spread across the globe.
In the same vein, the league officials should look into these prospective stadiums and cities critically to avoid backlash and redundancy due to low interest amongst viewers in these regions. The strength of the fan base should also be seriously considered while the franchise allocation is going on.
