After planning for an attendance of 60,000, Wembley was about half full at 46,523, with some ticketholders moved to the bottom tier to keep the top tier empty.
Although there were some big plays, the game was not as entertaining as anticipated as ASU claimed a 24-17 win that flattered Kansas.
Music acts played throughout the game and there was a light show in the third quarter. It gave UK fans a flavour of college football, but it lacked the pomp and circumstance of regular games in the US.
There were fewer band members and cheerleaders than normal, and the crowd was not as loud as during ASU home games – they averaged 54,000 last season.
Both teams took 105 players (or student-athletes), 90% of which did not have a passport before this trip.
Many fans and members of the coaches’ families also visited London for the first time, and ASU head coach Kenny Dillingham said they had “an experience they will remember for the rest of their lives”.
Kansas head coach Lance Leipold added that the hospitality was outstanding, while the hotel and practice facility “was a win”.
Both teams are part of the Big 12 Conference, whose commissioner Brett Yormark said: “It exceeded my expectations, from the crowd to the logistics to how the local community has embraced us. It’s been fantastic, so we want more.”
UJC organisers have signed an exclusive multi-year deal with Wembley, and Yormark says other Big 12 colleges are interested in playing in London.
Big 12 teams also played two games in Dublin over the past 13 months, and the conference could expand to another international market.
Yormark said: “There’s not a two-week period where I don’t get a call to say ‘take some of your product to this country or that country’, so we’re exploring that right now.”
He said there will be an announcement about next year’s London game “within the next month or two”.
That will give UK fans plenty of time to swot up on the next two teams who will make their presence known across the pond.
