Bears the most popular team in the UK...sort of
by Sam Householder on Feb 24, 2012 3:00 PM CST
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Let's take a break from the "meat market" poking, prodding, probing and speculating of the NFL Combine for a minute and look at something else. I like the combine, I'll comb through the results and read the analysis, but I just don't see the point of watching wall-to-wall coverage on NFLN. Maybe if I actually had NFLN I could know for sure. Anyway, the results of a poll were released this week over at nfluk.com. The NFL fans of the United Kingdom have spoken and their favorite NFL team is your favorite team too. Unless you're reading this and visiting from another blog.
The Bears finished second in a different poll of nfluk.com users, who chose the Patriots, (apparently UK NFL fans are either irony-impaired or just all US transplants). But at the Bears-Bucs game at Wembley last fall, the Bears gathered 20 "per cent" of the vote.
Hm, I wonder what percentage of people at Soldier Field would say that their favorite team was the Bears?
Anyway, let the pollsters explain it
While the three-time Super Bowl champion Patriots are the number one ranked team according to those registering at nfluk.com, the Bears were named as ‘favourite team’ by 20 per cent of those attending the most recent International Series game at Wembley last October. They beat the Patriots (9 per cent) into second place ahead of the home-team Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7 per cent).
Then they list the results of the previous polls over the years.
2007
2009
2011
1
Miami Dolphins 26%
Chicago Bears 20%
2
New York Giants 12%
Miami Dolphins 10%
3
4
5
6
So the Bears have been crawling up the chart the last couple years. The infancy of the NFL in the UK might be attributed to the fact that there is some fair-weather fan stuff going on; the Packers going from unlisted in '09 to number four in '11 and the Dolphins being very popular in '09, coming off their 11-5 season and dropping to sixth during their latest 6-10 campaign.
The Bears are actually listed ninth among the nfluk.com database, if that means anything. Not to generalize, but I assume a lot of the most popular teams relies on which teams get a lot of air play over there, i.e. the larger-market teams (Chicago, New York, Miami) and the teams that have good records (Packers, Pats).
I wonder if NFL UK fans are exposed to the same annoying over play of the NFC East like we are and that has something to do with the Redskins and Giants landing on the poll every year.
I know we have some readers from the UK on here, any of them want to chime in? The US fans can share their thoughts too.
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thats a jolly good job done there sir!
by C-Razzle on Feb 24, 2012 3:16 PM CST via mobile reply actions
Bears were big in the 80s
…when Americana and the NFL had their last surge of popularity in the UK.
I’m a UK fan of the Bears more by accident – I liked the NFL, had to pick a team and 1) Bears had a good kit (uniform), 2) weren’t currently too bad or too good (didn’t want to glory hunt or support a rubbish team) and 3) I was born in ’85.
A good kit?
I like that!
When Mike Ditka calculates pi it's decimal representation ends. | @wiltfongjr
by Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. on Feb 24, 2012 3:33 PM CST up reply actions
Totally a good kit.
Good kits are something to pride yourself on.
Five foot three seems to thrive on his misery...
by awfullyquiet on Feb 24, 2012 8:33 PM CST up reply actions
You know what else was big in the 80’s? Hair.
Fix the Offensive Line
by touchdown bears on Feb 24, 2012 3:39 PM CST up reply actions
Shoulder Pads.
Five foot three seems to thrive on his misery...
by awfullyquiet on Feb 24, 2012 8:33 PM CST up reply actions
I remember watching a weekly hour-long programme on the NFL on Sundays – it must have been the 1986 season and the Bears, as reigning Superbowl champions, were getting some decent airtime. For old-timers out there, it was presented by former Atlanta Falcons kicker Mick Luckhurst… a quick search on youtube reveals this clip of what we were served: a round-up of the week’s action plus extended “as live” highlights of one game. It wasn’t much, but it was something to look forward to every week.
When I assume, I'm not "making an ass out of u and me"... I'm actually putting u between me and an ass.
UK does not = England!
Sam, in future can you not confuse the UK/Britain as England. The poll was for UK NFL fans, so consisted of English, Scottish, Welsh and Irish NFL fans, not just English fans.
I am Scottish, so to read the headline “Bears the most popular team in England..” and then to find out it was a UK poll, really hits a nerve with me.
It would be like taking a poll of the USA and Canada, and using the results to describe America alone, assuming that Canadian people are the same as Americans.
Anyway, the reason that I am a Bears fan is that the first NFL game I watched was Super Bowl XLI, and i decided to root for the Bears, and I’ve been a fan ever since!
freeeeeeeeddddooooomm
But yeah.. Canadians are basicallly minnesotans, or alaskans.. so basically almost americans
by GtM on Feb 24, 2012 4:24 PM CST via mobile up reply actions
#WilliamWallace'd
If its free, take two.
by T.J. Shouse on Feb 24, 2012 4:52 PM CST via Android app up reply actions 1 recs
lol
When Mike Ditka calculates pi it's decimal representation ends. | @wiltfongjr
by Lester A. Wiltfong Jr. on Feb 24, 2012 6:06 PM CST via iPhone app up reply actions
Brilliant!
"And furthermore, I think Carthage must be destroyed."
by TheotherDane on Feb 25, 2012 11:41 AM CST up reply actions
Snicker.
Been there, done that, twice.
Weekend contributor and official editorial lackey/waitstaff at Windy City Gridiron
If a people-avoiding gaming hermit is on Twitter, I should be too. Follow me!
by Steven Schweickert on Feb 24, 2012 9:35 PM CST up reply actions
Irish?
Correct me if I’m wrong but is Ireland considered part of the UK? I know Northen Ireland is.
by MrBaker on Feb 24, 2012 10:33 PM CST via iPhone app up reply actions
Ireland (the island) is part of the British Isles. As a political entity, only Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom; the Republic of Ireland is its own country. Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland have separate everything apart from the rugby team, which is unified.
When I assume, I'm not "making an ass out of u and me"... I'm actually putting u between me and an ass.
If only we could play an under par Italy team missing Martin Castrogiovanni and with a scrum half playing out of position at out half every time!
When I assume, I'm not "making an ass out of u and me"... I'm actually putting u between me and an ass.
That's the sad state of Italian Rugby......
They produce good to great forwards i.e Sergio Parisse, Castrogiovanni (both of whom ironically were born in Argentina), Salvatore Perugini, Ghiraldini, Mauro Bergamasco (his brother is also beastly) but have don’t produce many quality backs and the ones who are serviceable usually end up being foreigners from Australia, South Africa or New Zealand who qualified for the team via a distant Italian grandparent.
But to be fair you guys were missing O’Driscoll and Fitzgerald.
by frenchbears113 on Feb 25, 2012 11:35 AM CST up reply actions
Sorry man!!
I didn’t mean to strike a nerve! I know the difference but didn’t even think about it. I should have known better. I’ll try to be more accurate next time. Hope there’s no hard feelings! Cheers!
...because Cutty does it.
by Sam Householder on Feb 25, 2012 10:37 AM CST up reply actions
No hard feelings
Haha, not at all. I wouldn’t expect most Americans to understand the difference between UK and England. I must have just been feeling extremely patriotic that day! If you hadn’t I wouldn’t have bothered to sign up to this site. So I’m glad you did.
Also if anyone is interested, Scotland is having a referendum in 2014 to vote on independence. Hopefully we can get our country back!
FREEEEEEDOM! [Also that film is historically incorrect, and Mel Gibson is Australian :) ]
by Mrbluepaint22 on Feb 25, 2012 4:32 PM CST up reply actions
No one stole your country from you.
The act of Union was not one of conquest. As far as many English people are concerned (and I mean English here not British) if the Scots want to leave that is up to them. Frankly all the rancour from north of the border relating to events from hundreds of years ago seems small minded and spiteful to many of us.
I don’t see Americans from the appropriate regions declaring here that the South will rise again or that Texas will break away from the rest of the US, which is analogous to the hubbub coming from Scottish independents. Then again, this is a sports site, not a political discussion forum and I didn’t see the need to bring it up in the first place.
When I assume, I'm not "making an ass out of u and me"... I'm actually putting u between me and an ass.
I didn't.
Although I probably didn’t need to respond to it either.
by weepingbear on Feb 26, 2012 10:43 AM CST up reply actions
Threadjack
Brad Biggs @BradBiggs
Phil Emery busy meeting w/ agents today, including rep for WR Dwayne Bowe. But #Chiefs WR unlikely to reach market trib.in/wJXvrH
-------
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Buy my work at zenfolio
France, Bowe's agent, also reps for Eddie Royal
I’m thinking Phil Emery will definitely sign at least 1 FA WR, but will weigh his options carefully. His strategy is most likely going to depend on who gets tagged or locked up before March 13.
Jay Cutler is our QB, and I for one am proud of that
Follow me @EDuerrwaechter
by Erik Christopher Duerrwaechter on Feb 24, 2012 9:08 PM CST up reply actions
yeah I wouldn't mind Wayne then i could make a Waynes Worlds Reference after he did something
but yes i think he will bring in a WR though i would like another TE to pair with Davis.imo
Obviously not a scientific poll...
And awful variances.
Five foot three seems to thrive on his misery...
NFLUK Website
As you have mentioned, fans get to pick their “favourite” team on the NFLUK database. However I suspect that many people do not have a favourite team, and there actually games/quizzes to chose a “favourite” team.
There are two quizzes that will select a team based on your answers. Such as “what is most important to you in a stadium” A-history, B-large capacity C-modern or “Ancient History, would you rather have been” A-Roman B-Greek C-Incan. Another is a stupid game, that gives you a random franchise.
Here it is, if anyone wants to see if they get the Bears. It is aimed at UK fans though, so if it asks about football, it’s talking about “soccer”.
The first memory of football I have was watching the highlights of Superbowl XX on the news the next morning.
The action enthralled me entirely (of course I had no idea I was watching the greatest team in history) and those thirty seconds of highlights made me a football fan for life. I heard the two team names and ‘New England’ sounded all wrong to someone from England and I had no idea of what a Patriot was at five but I did know what a Bear was and had heard of a city called Chicago (I used to love staring at Atlases and maps, all these places so far away laid out on a page in front of you). So the Chicago Bears it was for me.
Five years later when I was old enough to stay up and watch the highlights on channel four the Bears were my team before I knew anything about them – watching them come back against the Falcons is still something I remember. Then we got a John Madden game for the megadrive and the Bears were a great team on that game – Neal Anderson and Brad Muster were all the offense you needed and then use either Dent or Singletary to shut down the offense.
So I have been a Bears fan longer than anything else (26 of my 31 years), I didn’t even start watching cricket until later than that so the Bears predate my support for the England crikcet team or Lancashire. Prick me it seems and I would bleed navy and orange.
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