FA offered serious cash to sell Wembley Stadium – so what does it all mean?

Fulham and Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan. His aim: bring more NFL games to London.

The NFL said: "We are very happy for Shad Khan and the Jacksonville Jaguars. The potential purchase of Wembley Stadium is a further powerful sign of their commitment to the UK and their vision to help us grow the sport."

Nope, fans of half-empty stadiums will still get their fix.

Any deal would see Wembley Stadium remain England’s home ground for all major fixtures, but less-important games – and perhaps those that fall during the NFL season in autumn – would be played elsewhere.

But that’s largely a good thing, giving the whole country a hassle-free trip to watch the national side.

Again, the FA Cup semi-finals and final would remain at the stadium.

Basically to hand over the keys to the stadium, which cost over £750m to build.

But given they still get to keep a healthy dose of football matches – and can invest heavily in the grassroots with Kahn's bumper offering – it seems like free money, right?!

Nah.

In Kahn’s words: "To be clear, this venture is 100% independent of my investment in and operation of Fulham Football Club, Motspur Park and Craven Cottage. No less attention will be paid to developing players and fielding a squad that will win with frequency and always make you proud. It will have no impact on Craven Cottage as the home of FFC."

Tottenham supremo Daniel Levy will certainly be unsettled by the news, given the club have poured £1bn into a new stadium, which was built on the proviso of regularly staging NFL matches and – maybe – hosting an NFL franchise in the capital.

The entire stadium, from sightlines to a separate entrance, has been built with American football in mind. Indeed, Spurs have signed a 10-year deal to host two NFL matches a season from 2018. This latest development will not affect that deal.

But if an NFL franchise upped sticks and headed for the English capital – a move that looks increasingly likely for the Jacksonville Jaguars – it now seems that Wembley and not Spurs’ as-yet-unnamed stadium would be the venue of choice.

The NFL added: "Having stadium options in London has always been critical to the NFL and, in tandem with our 10-year partnership with Tottenham Hotspur, this new relationship would allow for even greater flexibility in scheduling future NFL games in London."

Almost nothing.

The name would change to include some horrible corporate body, but it’s enough money to make soul-selling acceptable.

The FA are being paid loads of money to keep every important football match at Wembley. It's a no-brainer.