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Jacksonville Jaguars want to stay in London beyond current 2020 deal

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The Jacksonville Jaguars' long-term commitment to the U.K. has allowed them to become a much stronger franchise, according to the team's senior vice president of international development, Hussain Naqi.

The Jags, who travel to Foxborough on Sunday to play the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game, have made five visits to London since the NFL launched the International Series back in 2007.

Following a dominant 44-7 victory over Baltimore in their 2017 matchup at Wembley Stadium, it was confirmed last week that the Jags will host the Philadelphia Eagles -- a potential Super Bowl rematch -- under the famous arch as part of the 2018 schedule.

In addition to transforming Wembley into something of a fortress -- winning their last three games at the ground -- Naqi says the team's time in the U.K. has also benefited the franchise away from the field.

"One of the really important elements of our presence here is our ability to grow local revenue," Naqi told ESPN. "London represents a very important part of that and allows for a lot of flexibility, such as how you structure player contracts.

"Through our regular presence here, we have been able to engage with this market, and it's really been able to stabilize us in Jacksonville in many ways.

"The franchise, in general, has been a lot stronger as a result of our presence over here."

Since the Jags made their first visit to the capital in 2013, their reputation in the U.K. has received a significant boost, with frequent matches and various community projects helping them emerge as "London's team."

"Our fan base has really grown," Naqi added. "When we started out over here, we were unsurprisingly a very small-market team. We were probably 31st or 32nd in popularity, and we're now the eighth-most-popular team in the U.K.

"We're starting to see that there is a real level of engagement with our team and that the folks in the U.K. are really embracing us as their home team."

The AFC South outfit is contracted to play at least one home game a year at Wembley until 2020, when the venue's current deal with the league expires.

Despite noting that the team's future in the U.K. beyond that date is still unclear, Naqi expressed hopes that the franchise's relationship with the city will continue beyond the existing deal.

"I certainly hope [it continues after 2020]," he said. "It's one of those decisions which is ultimately up to the NFL and others, but I would certainly like to see that, and I think our fans would too.

"We're constantly trying to think of new ways to engage with the market to make sure we are developing from the bottom up and having a deep foundation here."

With the NFL International Series now coming into its 11th year, speculation around the possibility of a franchise finding a home in the U.K. continues to grow.

During the announcement of this year's London matchups, Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy voiced his ambition to host a permanent team at the club's new ground, which will host its first game this year.

NFL International VP Mark Waller added to the discussion by outlining his belief that the sport is better suited to having an overseas team than the likes of the NBA.

Despite suggestions that it could be a while before a team relocates to London full-time, Naqi is confident that the city is on the right track to getting its own franchise.

"We'll see. It's our job as the Jaguars and the NFL here to really understand as much as we can about the market," Naqi said. "The decision of whether there will be a franchise here on a permanent basis is an ownership-level decision.

"If and when they are ready to make that decision about the expansion or relocation of a franchise, we want to know as much as we can about it. That's one of the things we're doing here.

"One thing for sure is that we have great fans here who are really passionate about the NFL. We're a vastly growing sport with regards to participation and fandom in the sport here. The trajectory is certainly very positive from my perspective."

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