'We're all on the same team': Bengals fan travels from UK to watch team's home opener

Forty years ago, a teenage Chris Hood began following American football from his hometown in the United Kingdom.

In the 1980s, the NFL's reach outside of the United States was minimal, and it was difficult for Hood to watch games live. The only things he could do were to read the newspaper for scores and updates, as well as watch highlights of the previous week's games on the following Sunday.

Nonetheless, Hood was captivated by the uniqueness and foreign allure of American football, even in a part of the world where soccer, rugby and other sports reigned supreme.

"When you're suddenly introduced to a sport that you knew nothing about, didn't even know it existed essentially, as a teenager, it can just blow you away a little bit," Hood said. "It's just completely different."

However, what's even more surprising is that in a time when the San Francisco 49ers, the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins were the most popular teams worldwide, Hood went against the grain.

The Cincinnati Bengals were the one's to pique his interest the most, with their brightly colored, tiger-inspired helmets and uniforms, and also because the name "Cincinnati" sounded so different to him.

"That is what became my connection," Hood said, a connection that grew even stronger when the Bengals made a run to the Super Bowl in 1989.

Decades later, the 53-year-old Hood is now part of a small, but rapidly growing faction of British Bengals fans who are arguably just as passionate as the ones in America.

So passionate in fact that Hood, who currently lives in the Welsh capital of Cardiff, made the nearly 4,000-mile journey across the Atlantic Ocean to treat himself to the ultimate Bengals experience: watching a game live at "The Jungle," aka Paycor Stadium.

"Once we get inside Paycor, we're all Bengals. It doesn't matter what country we come from. We're all on the same team."

And since arriving in the Queen City on Thursday, Hood and his son Monty have checked most of the boxes in a quintessential Cincinnati itinerary. In just four days, they caught a home run ball at a Reds game, met former Bengals running back Ickey Woods at Fountain Square, attended the University of Cincinnati football team's home opener at Nippert Stadium, and tried local delicacies like Skyline Chili and Graeter's Ice Cream, which he both loved.

Of course, the trip wouldn't be complete without watching the Bengals take the field at Paycor Stadium on Sunday. Unfortunately for Hood, who proudly sported his orange Cam Taylor-Britt jersey, the Bengals fell to the New England Patriots 16-10 in front of a frenzied crowd of 66,214 .

"A disappointing result, but was great to see the game, and experience the atmosphere," Hood said in a post on X , which is where he's been documenting all his most memorable moments on this trip.

X is where Hood has been most active , interacting and engaging with other Bengals fans. He said social media in general has made it easier for him to follow the team and the NFL.

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Moreover, Hood said it's from those online interactions with other Bengals fans that he's learned so much about the overall culture of Cincinnati. He attributes his whirlwind of a trip to the fans who gave him all sorts of recommendations, allowing him and his son to experience all the best things the city has to offer.

"Because of these interactions with people on Twitter (X) over the last few days, along with the weather being good and having all these incredible experiences, it just makes you see the city with your heart as much as you're seeing it with your eyes, and it's just made it a really pleasant place to be."

Hood and his son will spend six days in Cincinnati before taking off on a road trip to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton. They will then drive all the way to Kansas City to watch the Bengals take on the Chiefs on Sunday.

Despite the Week 1 loss, Hood said the Bengals could be contenders for the Super Bowl this year provided they stay healthy and settle contract negotiations with a couple key players.

"I think if they stay healthy, I don't see why they shouldn't be contenders," he said. "Obviously, we have a really tough division, so just getting out of that division is not straight forward. But if we can do that, I don't see any reason why we can't make a deep run in the playoffs. This could be our year."

Read more about Hood's journey as an international Bengals fan here .

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 'We're all on the same team': Bengals fan travels from UK to watch team's home opener