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Live From London
by Paul on 02/12/07 at 09:59 AM ET
Comments (4)
from E.J. Hradek at ESPN,
The NFL isn’t the only North American pro sports league that will play a regular-season game in London during the 2007-08 season. The buzz around the rinks is the NHL is preparing to do the same.
According to multiple sources, the Los Angeles Kings will open next season with a pair of games at The O2 in London. The O2 is a state-of-the-art arena scheduled to open with a series of Justin Timberlake concerts in early July. It is operated by Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG), which also owns the Kings.
L.A. will open its London swing with an exhibition contest before the two regular-season games. The Ducks and Canucks are two teams believed to be in the running to accompany the Kings to Great Britain.
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Comments
With all of the overexposure and the saturation of the North American market, it is about time the NHL expands into the most prominent hockey market in Europe. Is that the LA Galaxy and is it Mr. Gillette’s Liverpool that will really be playing?
Great to see that the decision to “market” the NHL in London is based on generating revenue for AEG more so than anything to do with hockey. The Kings and Ducks playing 8 time zones away makes far more sense than two East Coast Teams. If I hear one more West Coast owner complain about travel I’m going to ....
Posted by Hockey1919 from Montreal on 02/12/07 at 02:37 PM ET
Wow… this is some pretty exciting stuff. The UK is a weird market for the NHL, in that it’s pretty much the only major north European country that isn’t represented in the league, but there is a real potential for hockey that hasn’t been realised. London is a huge sports city, at least 7 soccer teams attract 23,000 for games every weekend so, with smart promotion (linking up with the soccer teams in other words) there will be no problem filling the place.
Travel is a non-issue. Travelling from LA to London is no more of a hassle than travelling LA to New York. Its a global game, and I think playing one or two games a season in Europe is the very least the NHL should do.
Posted by fredster from London on 02/12/07 at 04:58 PM ET
Fredster, nice to hear from someone in London.
If you come across any more info about this, feel free to pass it on.
I am looking forward to watching the games from there, the arena looks fantastic.
Posted by Paul from Motown Area on 02/12/07 at 05:00 PM ET
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Artists drawing of that O2 arena in London.
It will seat 23,000.
Posted by PuckHound61 from Speckville USA on 02/12/07 at 10:55 AM ET