Jacksonville Jaguars’ pre-match controversy

The temptation of a big night out is inevitable for many visitors to the UK’s capital city; when there’s an NFL match that weekend, however, it may not be the best idea.

This is exactly what four Jacksonville Jaguars players, named by nfl.com as Barry Church, Ronnie Harrison, DJ Hayden, and Jarrod Wilson, discovered after getting into a dispute over the £50,000 bar tab they had racked up.

Jacksonville lost their match on Sunday at Wembley against the Philadelphia Eagles 24-18, bringing their losing streak up to 4 games. The trouble over the bill at a bar in Piccadilly, that regularly puts on burlesque shows, surely can’t have helped their endeavours.

The Jaguars owner Shahid Kahn is a familiar name for both NFL and Premier League fans, owning Fulham FC and recently pulling out of his bid to buy Wembley Stadium. Kahn can’t have been too happy with the players, especially Church, who admitted to taking “full responsibility,”  after the match.

Those who watched Manchester City’s Monday Night Football match against Tottenham at Wembley would have noticed the worn-down pitch, left behind by the Jaguars-Eagles match. It seems as though American Football is causing controversy in England both on and off the field.