NFL
New Orleans Saints call on Brees to work magic in France
The New Orleans Saints bring out the big guns in their maiden efforts to win over the French, sending Drew Brees to Paris as part of their marketing efforts
It is well known that New Orleans and France have a special relationship. The French Consulate in New Orleans is the oldest such office in North America and is the only one that deals exclusively with just one state: Louisiana. The French Republic invests hundreds of millions of dollars in Louisiana, rivalling and often bettering what is spent in the state by Washington DC.
When the FAA refused to allow the British-French Concorde to land at US airports back in the 1970s, the French responded by flying one into New Orleans. Louisiana is an ace card that France holds in all US negotiations.
Louisiana loves France. Now the New Orleans Saints are hoping that France loves them back.
When the NFL offered teams the opportunity to claim exclusive marketing rights for international territories as part of their expanded Global Markets Program, the New Orleans Saints snapped up France. They are the first team to try their hand amongst the Gauls and are hoping that they can convince even the often diffident French to take interest in le foot Américain.
While there is some evidence that the relationship is already bearing fruit. President Macron recently visited the Big Easy and the French Ambassador met with Saints owner Gayle Benson to discuss collaboration between technical experts in the renovation of both New Orleans’ and Paris’ cathedrals. Air France has added a non-stop service between the two cities.
But the Saints are taking no chances, and have decided to pull out the big guns. Legendary New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees and his wife Brittany are visiting the French capital as part of a charm offensive and marketing push.
While in Paris, Brees met with President Macron before touring all of the usual sites. He took part in a an NFL and International Federation of American Football conference, dedicated to the development of American football around the world.
While it is not clear that the French appreciated the level of NFL excellence that they had in their midst, the Saints have shown that they will stop at nothing to showcase the game’s highest names in a quest to win the hearts of France.