IT’S LONDON, YEAR 5! - Ingles

The NFL’s INTERNATIONAL SERIES of regular-season games will return to the United Kingdom in 2011 when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers host the Chicago Bears on Sunday, October 23 at London’s Wembley Stadium.
“Our past four games in London have demonstrated the tremendous passion for NFL football that exists in the U.K.,” says NFL Commissioner ROGER GOODELL. “We hope by staging another extraordinary game at Wembley that we can continue to grow our existing fan base and attract even more new fans.”

The contest will mark the fifth consecutive year of an NFL regular-season game at Wembley Stadium, part of a multi-year commitment to play a limited number of NFL regular-season games in the U.K. on an annual basis. In 2010, the San Francisco 49ers defeated the Denver Broncos 24-16 before a crowd of 83,941 (left).

The Buccaneers finished last season at 10-6, led by one of the league’s most dynamic young rosters. Tampa Bay, which capped the 2002 season with a win in Super Bowl XXXVII, is no stranger to the international scene, having played a regular-season game in London in 2009 against the New England Patriots. The Tampa Bay region has also played host to four Super Bowls.

“We are honored to be selected to participate in the NFL International Series for a second time,” says Buccaneers co-chairman BRYAN GLAZER. “We are looking forward to promoting Tampa Bay’s emerging young team on the world stage. We have the longest running fan club of any NFL team in the U.K. and look forward to seeing so many familiar faces from the Bucs U.K. fan club at the game.”
The Bears reached the NFC Championship Game last season and aim to advance one game further in 2011. One of the league’s most historic franchises, the nine-time NFL champions helped introduce the sport to a U.K. audience in the mid-1980s. As the reigning Super Bowl XX champs, the Bears played a preseason game at Wembley Stadium on August 3, 1986, the first of the American Bowl series of games designed to introduce American football to fans around the world.

“Playing abroad will be a unique experience for our players and we embrace the opportunity to serve as ambassadors for our game,” says Chicago head coach LOVIE SMITH, who guided the Bears to the NFC North division title last year. “It should be an excellent matchup with two teams coming off double-digit win seasons. We know Bears fans follow us from all over the world and we look forward to playing in front of many of them in London.”
The International Series began on October 28, 2007, when the New York Giants defeated the Miami Dolphins 13-10 en route to a victory in Super Bowl XLII.

A look at what some of the players thought about playing in London:

PLAYER, TEAM COMMENT

CB Ronde Barber, Tampa Bay
“The stadium and atmosphere were great. They did their best to simulate a home game for us. It was a nice experience.”

QB Tom Brady, New England
“I think this experience will serve us well down the road. There are a lot of new players, and it’s nice to come together and experience something like this. It’s a unique bonding experience for all of us.”

QB Drew Brees, New Orleans
“There are 32 teams in the NFL. The Saints and Chargers were the third and fourth teams to represent the NFL in London. That speaks volumes and I am honored to have been there.”

WR Brandon Lloyd, Denver
“I thought it was an honor to play in Wembley Stadium. I think it was really cool. I loved the fact that the support was strong and seems like the fans are very knowledgeable on what was going on out there on the football field. I was surprised. It was definitely an exciting atmosphere.”

QB Eli Manning, NY Giants
“The British fans were great. I hope the NFL continues to play games here. I would recommend playing here to any team. It felt like playing a normal regularseason game, but just in a different country.”

CB Shawntae Spencer, San Francisco
“We’ve got to get an NFL team over here. The energy was unbelievable. There were a few times when Denver made a lot of good plays, big plays, and the fans stayed with it. The wave, the fans, the flags, it was just a lot of energy.”