International Series: Overseas Exposure Absolutely A Good Thing For The Jaguars

It's understandable that the fan base that has to constantly listen to media rumors that say the Jaguars are the favorite to relocate to Los Angeles would be the group most likely to be wary of news that the team will sacrifice a home game in each of the next four seasons to play internationally.

After all, this news will undoubtedly bring out a long-winded ramble from an uninformed writer with a large platform that talks about how this is another step closer to L.A. for the Jaguars. Regardless, the news of an international series for the Jaguars is good for the franchise and is a step in the right direction towards solving the biggest problem the Jaguars have.

That problem is no longer the ticket sales that many still claim to be an issue. Without a blackout in each of the last two seasons the city of Jacksonville has done enough to earn a break from the 2009 jokes about attendance. The problem for the franchise is the fact that they've been the league's least popular team for a while now.

The goal has to be to reach the popularity of teams like the Pittsburgh Steelers, Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys. None of those three teams have the incredible market size that New York, Los Angeles or Chicago offer, yet consistently rank among the nation's most popular.

Why? Because each of the three franchise's have fans well outside their home markets. No matter where the Packers, Steelers or Cowboys travel, there will be fans sporting their colors in the away stadiums because of their popularity outside that market.

Yes, each of those three franchises have won at least four Super Bowls and their histories of success are absolutely the reason for their marketability, and now they're graced with the luxury of not having to fight for exposure in an entirely brand new era of media featuring Twitter, blogs and non-stop sports news.

For the Jaguars, winning will go a long way towards fixing the fact that the team isn't very popular outside of Jacksonville, but exposure on a grand scale is certainly going to help as well. A world tour that exposes the Jaguars to markets such as London as well as possible other markets like Ireland, Spain, Germany or Mexico is a great opportunity for that type of exposure.

So no, the international series is not a threat that could remove the Jaguars from the Jacksonville market. In fact, it's goal is the opposite. Exposure overseas is something intended to help the Jacksonville market by providing some marketability and recognition.