Photos by Richard Smith, Stadium Journey
Stadium Info FANFARE Score: 4.43
Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium 782 High Road, Tottenham London, UK N17 0BX
Year Opened: 2019
Capacity: 62,062
A UK Home for the NFL
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is normally the home of Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur in north London, replacing the club's previous ground, White Hart Lane. It is also the main home of the NFL in the UK, sharing some games with Wembley Stadium.
The stadium is the third largest football stadium in England and the largest club ground in London. It features a retractable, natural grass soccer pitch with an artificial turf field, used by the NFL, underneath. The stadium cost over £1 billion and although announced way back in 2007, saw construction began in 2017.
The NFL International Series is a series of American football games during the regular season that are played outside the United States. Since 2022, the series has had three sub-series: the NFL London Games in the United Kingdom, which have been in place since 2007; the NFL Mexico Games, which began in 2016 with a predecessor game in 2005; and the NFL Germany Games in multiple cities. In 2023 there is one game played at Wembley, two at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium, and two at Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt, Germany.
Stadium Journey attended the NFL London Games match between the Baltimore Ravens and the Tennessee Titans.
Food & Beverage 5
The food and beverage options are some of the best we have seen at any venue. There are more than 60 food and drink options. For the NFL games, the stadium tries to offer more traditional American-type offerings than is seen at Hotspur matches. Stadium Journey talked to the stadium's head chef and they are exploring many options to make their visiting fans comfortable for upcoming years.
A local brewery called Beavertown is the official craft beer supplier and has a microbrewery located within the stadium's concourse. This is the world's first stadium-located microbrewery. Unlike during Hotspurs matches, beer and other liquor drinks can be brought back to your seats during gameplay.
The Goal Line Bar is the longest in Europe.
The Market Place is a popular gathering spot along the concourse. There are numerous vendors such as The Chicken House, N17 Grill Naan Noodle, Linesman, the Smashed Olive pizza place, and the Touchdown Grill.
Atmosphere 5
The atmosphere is electric for the NFL London Games. It has the feel of a playoff game, even if it is just a normal, regular-season game.
The stadium is gorgeous and is quite aesthetically pleasing. We loved seeing the cockerel that sits on top of the roof structure above the South Stand, the symbol of the Hotspurs.
The seating bowl offers a variety of seating options, while still keeping even the "cheap" seats feeling close to the action. Just like a regular NFL stadium, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium features large HD screens and has a very good sound system throughout the facility.
The stadium has its adventure area with the Dare Skywalk experience. It features the UK’s first controlled descent from a stadium. This will not be available on game day.
The stadium is intended to be active all year round. There is the Tottenham Experience, which includes a club shop, club archive, and museum, as well as the media prep room is a cafe for the public on non-game days.
Neighborhood 3
This is a bit of a mixed bag. We would bet that exploring Tottenham's High Road on non-game days would feel much different than on game days. The area can feel a bit rough, but not unsafe. The non-game day activities at the stadium do seem to be changing the area positively.
On game days the atmosphere leading to any of the public transport options feels electric. The roads leading towards the stadium are closed to regular traffic so the fans can make an almost march to the stadium.
Fans 5
The fan support is unlike almost any other. There will be a unique mix of fans, from each team's fanbases making trips abroad, European fans of each team, along with European and UK fans who are not as comfortable with the American game. This makes it sometimes not the loudest stadium atmosphere around, but that is not to say that the fans are not super engaged.
Access 4
We would suggest not driving to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The best option is public transportation. The stadium is accessible via several London Overground, London Underground, and National Rail stations such as Seven Sisters, Tottenham Hale, Northumberland Park, and White Hart Lane stations.
In some cities, the limited parking could be a negative, but the London public transportation system is one of the best around.
Return on Investment 4
Tickets will initially seem hard to find and also high in cost. We tried to buy some tickets on the first day that they were available and had little success. Later on, there were many resale options available on the official UK ticketing website, with many of the cheap options available.
We do not recommend third-party ticketing sites due to UK-specific laws on reselling and price markups. This can often cause some of the third-party tickets to come from sources that may not be authentic.
Even with the high prices, the special atmosphere at the game makes those prices seem fairly in line.
Extras 5
The Beavertown Brewery gives the stadium an extra point for being the first of its kind.
The food options at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium are one of the best in the world and are an extra on their own.
Unique features such as the Sky Walk, Hotspurs Museum, and the roof-based cockerel give the stadium a unique feel.
Amazingly, the stadium was built to not only be a high-end soccer stadium, but one purposefully built for NFL games.
There is a dedicated DJ stage for pre-game and between-action entertainment.
Final Thoughts
The NFL London Games, especially the ones held at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium, is a special event. Between the fun atmosphere and the amazing stadium, fans should enjoy themselves without question.
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