The Bengals are off to a franchise best 7-0 start, and it seems like nothing can stop them. Now that they are recognized as one of the top teams in the league, they have been getting a lot of international attention and might start playing a few games in London over the next few seasons.

There have been rumors going around that the Bengals could possibly be the next team to start playing international games in London. This all stems back to a deal that the Bengals made with Hamilton County officials last year. The deal made Hamilton County pay for the recent renovations to Paul Brown Stadium.

Last week, Ohio State Marching Band performed at Wembley Stadium in London. The NFL might be trying to warm up the Europeans for a Battle of Ohio (Bengals vs. Browns) game for next year’s season. Although some might be happy to get the Bengals some international exposure, many despise the idea of playing games in London.

The first reason why fans might be angry with international games would be the time of the game. Bengals fans would have to set their alarms for 9:30 AM if they want to catch the game. (This is opposed to a 1:00 PM game back in Cincinnati.)

Another reason fans are upset is that our city just payed upwards of 10 million dollars for multiple renovations for Paul Brown Stadium including a brand new scoreboard. By playing games, the city is losing money from revenue from the games that are played in London. I understand the Bengals would probably get a portion of the money generated from the game, but I can’t imagine it would be greater than the amount generated from a sold out home game. Also, since the taxpayers are paying for the stadium upgrades, shouldn’t they be allowed to watch their team at home on Sunday instead of in London?

Junior Mike Dirksing has another negative with the Bengals playing in London. Mike seems to be more concerned on the players’ health and sleeping schedule. “Playing in London is detrimental to these players’ health,” Dirksing says. “The time change can definitely mess up their sleep schedule which won’t allow them to perform at the level that they need to.”

Another point Mike wanted to bring up was the fact that there was no “home field advantage” if games would be held in London. “I mean the crowd really has no clue what’s going on,” said Dirksing. “It’s definitely harder to get into a game when the fans don’t even want to be there.”

Although having the Bengals play in London might start a international fan base, the negatives substantially outweigh the positives in this case. The problems with the early game time, loss of money, and putting the players’ health at risk all play a factor in playing a few games in London, which is why it would be an unintelligent idea for the Bengals to accept.