A stroll along Olympic Way down from Wembley Park tube station on an NFL matchday is a study in sound and vision, a mass of bodies in kaleidoscopic colour moving at random with reckless abandon for itself and anything in the way. There is no time, mind, to be tribal – in the Jubilee Line carriages those in Packers and Bears jerseys mingle and mix, sharing in the common cause that is American football fandom at a distance. One can find just about each and every franchise represented within the throng, jerseys sported with pride and passion regardless of which teams are actually involved.
It will be two decades next year since the International Series first launched and still that festival feel remains. The NFL seems more intent than ever on global expansion but London remains its home away from home; this encounter between the Jacksonville Jaguars and Houston Texans was the 28th game at Wembley and 45th in all.
