Commentary - pcgazette.com

Commentary
pcgazette.com

National Football League looks overseas to expand its market

By JIM SCHUH
of The Gazette
A friend asked me the other night whether she was going to have to read about our recent New Zealand trip in this column from now until Christmas.

Another one told me a couple weeks back that a few columns on the excursion would be sufficient.

I take their cajoling to heart, and promise to try not to overdo the New Zealand thing. I still have some stories from our trip to tell, but they can wait for a while. In the meantime, I'll write about other things - although you'll have to pardon me for giving New Zealand a mention in this week's offering.
Technology is taking away our fun!

Wine guru Robin Garr reports that the PlumpJack California Winery plans to sell half its '97 Reserve Cabernet in bottles with metal screw caps. To top it off, so to speak, the winery will charge $10 more per bottle ($135) for the screw top versions, to compensate for the additional cost of producing bottles with threads on the neck to accommodate the metal screw caps.

Garr notes this could be the beginning of the end for cork stoppers, which can host a fungus that spoils the wine inside the bottle.

It used to be that if you wanted to joke about someone serving you a cheap wine, that you'd ask if it came in a bottle with a screw cap. Back my in college days, a bottle of Ripple was the drink of choice for the monetarily deprived - it cost just $1.98 - the affordable price for cheap wine back then.

The National Football League is big business. It has its fingers everywhere - football, television, films, the Internet, clothing lines, a European football league among other things, and makes so much money that you'd think it has all it can use. But the NFL's tentacles keep reaching out farther - probably to help pay ever-higher player salaries.

The league already has begun broadcasting American football games to other parts of the world, hoping to entice foreigners into becoming fans. More fans equals more potential income.

When we were in New Zealand recently, we got to watch the live Monday Night Football game at 2 o'clock on Tuesday afternoon. ESPN International broadcast the ABC-TV game. We found it funny to be able to watch live, a game being played the previous day!

But so far, I don't think New Zealanders are interested. For one thing, most people there don't understand American football. Their sport is rugby, and it has wide interest all over the country. Cricket probably ranks second. It'll be a long time before American football displaces those games in popularity.

But the master U. S. promoters are using more subtle ways to drum up interest in American football. I found a front-page article in a New Zealand newspaper, telling how the NFL is making a push into Christchurch schools with flag football - the no-contact game with five players on a side.

The article explains that former Oakland Raider and now NFL Development Manager Dwayne Armstrong spent two weeks visiting schools to explain the game.

In nearby Australia, 20,000 kids have been playing flag football for three years.

The league is opening an office in Christchurch, and will supply equipment for the game - coach's manuals, instruction videos, footballs and flag belts - free of charge.

The NFL hopes to field 15 to 20 New Zealand teams in the next year.
And it's not stopping with just flag football - there'll be a punt, pass and kick competition too, with the winner getting to attend a world competition in Europe.

So far, the NFL has introduced flag football to schools in 19 other countries. Grab 'em while they're young.

* * *

Beloit College comes out each year with a freshman class profile, listing some of the experiences students at that level have had, and some they have not.

For example, to this year's freshmen, Elvis Presley has always been dead. Somebody named "George Bush" has been on every national ticket - except one - since they were born. "Coming out" parties celebrate more than debutantes.

We oldsters often forget that not everyone understands some of our references. Here's a case in point: My wife, Martha, came home the other day with a report about a Stevens Point physical education teacher she knows, who had a student teacher learning and helping him. The teacher asked the student teacher to play a cut on a 33-rpm album for the class. Looking at the phonograph, the student teacher asked his supervisor, "How do you work this thing?"

* * *

This past election night, I got to watch the returns on television for the first time in more than 30 years. Until recently, I had spent every election night (and morning after) in the radio newsroom, collecting, reporting and commenting on all sorts of election results.

In retrospect, if I were to select an election night to watch televised returns, this was the one to pick!

You may reach Jim Schuh at The Gazette, or by e-mail at jpschuh@excite.com.



	National Football League looks overseas to expand its market By JIM SCHUH of The Gazette A friend asked me the other night whether she was going to have to read about our recent New Zealand trip in this column from now until Christmas. Another one told me a couple weeks back that a few columns on the excursion would be sufficient. I take their cajoling to heart, and promise to try not to overdo the New Zealand thing. I still have some stories from our trip to tell, but they can wait for a while. In the meantime, I'll write about other things - although you'll have to pardon me for giving New Zealand a mention in this week's offering. Technology is taking away our fun! Wine guru Robin Garr reports that the PlumpJack California Winery plans to sell half its '97 Reserve Cabernet in bottles with metal screw caps. To top it off, so to speak, the winery will charge $10 more per bottle ($135) for the screw top versions, to compensate for the additional cost of producing bottles with threads on the neck to accommodate the metal screw caps. Garr notes this could be the beginning of the end for cork stoppers, which can host a fungus that spoils the wine inside the bottle. It used to be that if you wanted to joke about someone serving you a cheap wine, that you'd ask if it came in a bottle with a screw cap. Back my in college days, a bottle of Ripple was the drink of choice for the monetarily deprived - it cost just $1.98 - the affordable price for cheap wine back then. The National Football League is big business. It has its fingers everywhere - football, television, films, the Internet, clothing lines, a European football league among other things, and makes so much money that you'd think it has all it can use. But the NFL's tentacles keep reaching out farther - probably to help pay ever-higher player salaries. The league already has begun broadcasting American football games to other parts of the world, hoping to entice foreigners into becoming fans. More fans equals more potential income. When we were in New Zealand recently, we got to watch the live Monday Night Football game at 2 o'clock on Tuesday afternoon. ESPN International broadcast the ABC-TV game. We found it funny to be able to watch live, a game being played the previous day! But so far, I don't think New Zealanders are interested. For one thing, most people there don't understand American football. Their sport is rugby, and it has wide interest all over the country. Cricket probably ranks second. It'll be a long time before American football displaces those games in popularity. But the master U. S. promoters are using more subtle ways to drum up interest in American football. I found a front-page article in a New Zealand newspaper, telling how the NFL is making a push into Christchurch schools with flag football - the no-contact game with five players on a side. The article explains that former Oakland Raider and now NFL Development Manager Dwayne Armstrong spent two weeks visiting schools to explain the game. In nearby Australia, 20,000 kids have been playing flag football for three years. The league is opening an office in Christchurch, and will supply equipment for the game - coach's manuals, instruction videos, footballs and flag belts - free of charge. The NFL hopes to field 15 to 20 New Zealand teams in the next year. And it's not stopping with just flag football - there'll be a punt, pass and kick competition too, with the winner getting to attend a world competition in Europe. So far, the NFL has introduced flag football to schools in 19 other countries. Grab 'em while they're young. * * * Beloit College comes out each year with a freshman class profile, listing some of the experiences students at that level have had, and some they have not. For example, to this year's freshmen, Elvis Presley has always been dead. Somebody named "George Bush" has been on every national ticket - except one - since they were born. "Coming out" parties celebrate more than debutantes. We oldsters often forget that not everyone understands some of our references. Here's a case in point: My wife, Martha, came home the other day with a report about a Stevens Point physical education teacher she knows, who had a student teacher learning and helping him. The teacher asked the student teacher to play a cut on a 33-rpm album for the class. Looking at the phonograph, the student teacher asked his supervisor, "How do you work this thing?" * * * This past election night, I got to watch the returns on television for the first time in more than 30 years. Until recently, I had spent every election night (and morning after) in the radio newsroom, collecting, reporting and commenting on all sorts of election results. In retrospect, if I were to select an election night to watch televised returns, this was the one to pick! You may reach Jim Schuh at The Gazette, or by e-mail at jpschuh@excite.com.