China has a special way of scheduling really fun-sounding events that make me really excited, so excited that I actually plan on going to them, and then cancelling them really suddenly. It’s all part of the “fun.” Sports Illustrated’s Peter King reported Sunday, citing unidentifiable sources, that the China Bowl, a scheduled NFL exhibition game to be played in Beijing on August 7th, has been cancelled. The NFL declined to comment on the SI report and a spokesman from the New England Patriots, scheduled to play the Seattle Seahawks in the game, told the AP, “Any announcement would be a league announcement.” According to the AP, SI.com reported that the NFL has promised a Beijing exhibition game in 2009 in the Olympic stadium that is currently being built. Peter King wrote on SI.com:
The reason for putting off the China Bowl, according to those familiar with the league’s thinking, is twofold. The NFL is devoting tremendous manpower to the first regular-season game ever played outside North America– Miami and the New York Giants will play Oct. 28 in London– and the league doesn’t want to risk cutting corners on either of the massive projects in order to stage both games 11 weeks apart. And though the Chinese would have put on a fine show this summer, doing it with more preparation time two years later– particularly in a stadium that critics are already saying will be the finest outdoor sports venue in the world– fits more into the NFL’s vision of what its China debut should be.
When I run this text through my bullshit filter it comes out as this: “NFL was unhappy with the event planning and with 4 months to go, was terrified about bringing two teams, its own staff and press to Beijing. League feels much safer with London than Beijing.” An NFL game this summer in Beijing would have brought throngs of Americans to Beijing for the weekend who would have paid American prices for tickets, food and hotels. This appeals to the Chinese government. But unfortunately, and we’ll find out for sure in the next few days, it appears that China couldn’t give the NFL an American-style peace of mind.
•SI.com: Preseason Game in China Will Be Called Off