Watch an American Football Game 🏈

Part of my Real Florida Guide

So it’s NFL season, you love sport and you’re in the Sunshine State. You might want to take in a football game….

If you find yourself in Florida between September and February, you’re slap bang in the middle of the football season. Excellent if you love it. Not so great if you don’t (but your other half does).

The National Football League (NFL) is big business in the USA and there are 3 of the 32 NFL teams based in the State of Florida – the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, the Miami Dolphins and the Jacksonville Jaguars. I’m team ‘Bucs’ – by default.

NFL is actually quite big in the UK now as well, with games played at Wembley each year and more and more Brits getting into the sport. So what could be better for any die hard fan than to watch a live game in its homeland and see what all the fuss is about?

I don’t love American Football. Not at all. Not even a bit. But my other half does so if we’re in Florida and the Bucs are playing, we make a pilgrimage to Raymond James Stadium in Tampa Bay to watch his favourite team play. Girlfriend points right there. We’ve even been known to hop on an internal flight over to New Orleans to watch them play the Saints – not that I minded that, one bit.

There’s no denying – love or hate it, NFL is a show of its own! Seeing the game live is a fantastic spectacle, complete with fireworks, parachutists, cheerleaders and – if you’re watching Tampa Bay – a canon that fires every time the team gets a touchdown – which, in the Tom Brady era, was quite a bit! Fire the canons!

What’s the cost?

I guess you’re wondering how much a ticket to the game costs? Cost is pretty much down to how good or bad the home team are. The good news: Tampa Bay are not exactly league favourites since the departure of the G.O.A.T and therefore, tickets to watch them play at home come in relatively cheap. For a standard seat in the bleachers, you’re probably looking at around $35 (2022 prices) – which is pretty good for an afternoons entertainment!

Of course, if you go and watch a lesser team play away to one of the more popular teams, you’re probably looking upwards of $100 per ticket, for the cheapest. The moral of the story: support the underdogs, watch home games and save a few bucks (Bucs)!

Parking

Firstly – ‘tailgating’ is something of a pre-game ritual in America, ahead of any NFL game. No game is complete without parties of fans gathering around their cars, grilling bbq food, drinking booze and generally having a great time, hours ahead of the game starting.

With this tradition comes the inevitable parking issues in the car lots closest to the stadium. We got wind of a good tip many years ago, which is to get there an hour or so before the game and park up on a Tampa residents front yard. I know what you’re thinking but this is actually common practice on game day – with eager residents selling space in their front paths for as little as $10 – $20. Cash only – of course – and on the absolute understanding that the vehicle is left at the owners risk.

Have you been to a game? Let me know in the comments below 👇🏻