The NFL has been playing regular games in London for 18 years, meaning a generation of gridiron stars have now grown up used to the idea of suiting up at some of English football’s most iconic stadiums.
Since 2018, Wembley and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium have shared London’s International Series games, with the Minnesota Vikings taking on the Cleveland Browns before the Denver Broncos and New York Jets lock horns at the home of Spurs, with the LA Rams and Jacksonville Jaguars doing battle under the arch.
And for New York Jets star Olu Fashanu, it’s a chance to get closer to the other sport he loves.
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The Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is gearing up to host two more NFL games next month (Image credit: Getty Images)
“I’m from the DC, Maryland, Virginia area, so went to DC United games growing up,” offensive tackle Fashanu tells FourFourTwo. “I don’t know the first, but one of the earliest would be when Wayne Rooney was on DC United.
“My plan for the last off-season was to go to a game at Old Trafford, but I spent most of it rehabbing an injury. Hopefully after this season, if I have time, I’d love to be there in person to see an actual Manchester United game.”
Rooney at his unveiling as DC United boss (Image credit: ROBERTO SCHMIDT/AFP via Getty Images)
The Red Devils fan also reveals that the aforementioned ex-Manchester United skipper was his childhood hero.
“Rooney,” he replies. “Just to see him in person was surreal. When I was younger, I wasn’t as big a fan as now. I was just growing up watching games with my dad, but as a kid watching Manchester United, it was a regular occurrence to see him on the scoresheet. Growing up and seeing him score all these crazy goals naturally made him a childhood hero of mine.”
Rooney is also responsible for scoring the greatest goal Fashanu has ever seen.
“I can’t recall anything special I saw live, but my favourite goal live on TV was the 2011 Manchester derby, when Rooney scored that overhead kick,” he adds. “I went totally ballistic – I was going crazy with my dad!”
Fashanu is a fan of Diallo’s off-the-pitch antics (Image credit: Getty Images)
As Manchester United continue to toil this season, which former great does Fashanu believe would transfer their fortunes?
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“Just looking at what we need right now, I’d say a midfielder and a goalkeeper – so either Peter Schmeichel or Edwin van der Sar. You also can’t go wrong with a Roy Keane or a Paul Scholes, so either of those two as well.”
And when it comes to current players, Fashanu has earmarked one Red Devils star as a good-value potential room-mate.
“I’d want someone who’s pretty funny, so probably Amad Diallo. I always see clips from his Snapchat stories where he’s making fun of team-mates and just being a fun character in the locker room.”
Olu was speaking ahead of the New York Jets’ fixture with the Denver Broncos as part of the 2025 NFL London Games. For more info, visit nyjetsinternational.com or follow @newyorkjetsinuk on Instagram, as well as @NYJetsinUKandIE on X
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