I attended Scotland’s first American Football Arena League game - it wasn’t worth the hefty ticket price
American Football returned to Glasgow this past weekend with the launch of the Glasgow Tartans in the International Arena League (IAL), but it wasn’t without controversy.
Glasgow has a rich history with the sport, despite its niche billing, with the Scottish Claymores playing at Hampden Park for a number of years in the late nineties and early noughties, while the Glasgow Tigers and East Kilbride Pirates still compete in the British American Football Association National Leagues.
The IAL features an indoor version of the sport which became popular with the Arena League in America from its launch in 1986, but closed its doors in 2019. The style of play is fast and high-scoring, something which may appeal to more casual fans who find the NFL too slow.
The league features teams from across the globe, stretching from teams on the west coast of the United States all the way to Zurich in Switzerland.
On the Glasgow Tartans website they claim that they “bring International Arena League football to Scotland with a bold identity, fast-paced indoor action, and a game-night atmosphere built for live entertainment.” I travelled to Braehead Arena to find out if that was true.
Before the game even kicked off there was controversy however, with an article from BBC Scotland earlier in the week raising concerns over the cost of attendance. As late as the middle of this week (15 April) single game tickets ranged from £45 for a bronze ticket, to £125 for a gold ticket. However, by Friday (17 April) prices had dropped to £20 for all three levels, meaning I paid £20 for a ticket originally billed at £125.
There was further turmoil when the game was postponed from Saturday to Sunday with less than 24 hours notice, prompting fans to demand refunds in the comments of their social media post announcing the change.
After all of that, the game kicked off at little after 4pm on Sunday afternoon and to the Tartans credit, there was plenty of the razzmatazz and theatre you expect with American Football. The Tartans ran onto the field through pyro before the Flower of Scotland was played, and music blared through the speakers between plays.
There were still some teething problems for the game itself though, with patchy artificial turf having to be adjusted every few minutes - even causing one of the officials to require medical attention after falling over. Thankfully he was back on the field within a few minutes and there didn’t appear to be any other turf related injuries.
The game itself was very entertaining, with an end zone interception sealing a 56-42 victory for the home side and, to the league’s credit, it was fast-paced and high scoring. Full credit goes to the players for putting on a show with big plays throughout the game that kept the crowd entertained.
Ultimately it was a fun afternoon out, but not one that many people would be willing to spend £125 per game to attend - even £20 felt like a stretch for Sunday’s action. If the league can figure out pricing then the indoor version of the sport could have some legs in Glasgow, but there’s still some work to be done on the overall presentation too.
Gordon McGuinness is one of the hosts of the Stramash! NFL podcast, which provides a Scottish take on the NFL year round.
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