Baltimore Ravens – The NFL team taking flight in the UK

Manchester might soon have a new favourite football team – but it’s not necessarily what you think.

The NFL is becoming increasingly familiar to British sports fans. Games in London have become an annual fixture, American football has found a growing audience across the country, and now one team in particular is building a passionate following here: the Baltimore Ravens.

You may have seen the purple jerseys at watch parties around the UK, or heard fans talking about the ‘Flock’.

But who exactly are the Ravens, and why are so many British fans getting behind them?

To understand the Ravens, you have to go back to 1996.

The city had previously been home to the Baltimore Colts, but the franchise famously relocated to Indianapolis in 1984, leaving behind a huge hole in the city’s sporting identity.

More than a decade later, NFL football returned, when Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell moved his franchise to Baltimore (unusually, leaving the Browns name behind in Cleveland, and launching a new franchise in Maryland).

Baltimore’s new franchise needed an identity, so it was put forward to the fans, who settled on Ravens after Edgar Allan Poe’s famous poem, The Raven. The team’s mascots are also called Edgar, Allan, and Poe.

The Ravens played their first regular-season game in September 1996, beating the Oakland Raiders 19–14.

And they didn’t have to wait long to become one of the NFL’s most formidable teams.

The defining moment of the Ravens’ early history came in the 2000 season.

Led by a ferocious defence featuring future Hall of Famers such as linebacker Ray Lewis and safety Rod Woodson, Baltimore powered through – and then dominated – Super Bowl XXXV.

The Ravens had their second Super Bowl triumph 12 years later, when quarterback Joe Flacco led the Baltimore Ravens to a dramatic victory over the San Francisco 49ers. It was the final game, and a fairytale ending, for Ray Lewis’ legendary career.

If Ray Lewis helped define the Ravens of the 2000s, Lamar Jackson has become the face of the modern franchise.

Drafted in 2018, Jackson quickly established himself as one of the most exciting players in American football. He’s arguable the perfect introduction to the sport if you’re discovering American football for the first time.

So, why should Manchester care about Baltimore Ravens? Part of the appeal is the football itself.

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The Ravens have traditionally built their identity around toughness and physicality. There is a sense of personality about the franchise too, from the purple colours and the raven imagery to the passionate ‘Flock’ of supporters.

Ravens fans have been gathering in the UK for years, with regional meet-ups and watch parties taking place around the country, including in Manchester. The UK Ravens community continues to organise events where fans can watch games together, whether they’ve followed the team for decades or have only just discovered the NFL.

That’s perhaps the best way to understand the appeal of the NFL in the UK.

You don’t need to fly to Baltimore to experience it. Find a watch party, grab a purple jersey, learn the rules as you go and join the Flock.

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Featured image: The Manc Group