Buffalo Bills fans heading across the pond with the help of AAA

AMHERST, N.Y. — Lots of Buffalo Bills fans are heading to London to watch the game against the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday.

The team is leaving Thursday, but so are the lucky fans going with AAA.

Bills Mafia is in full force getting ready to head to Toronto, to fly across the pond to London to cheer on the home team.

When the Buffalo Bills released their schedule back in January and there was a London game, AAA knew they had to get fans there.

“Well, we just knew there was a lot of Bills Mafia spirit, you know, in recent years, especially since the pandemic, people are prioritizing travel and going to see the bills on the road has really become a rite of passage for Bills fans. And we’ve seen more and more interest in and people traveling to different games. And in this case, we’re going all the way across the pond to cheer on the team,” Director of Public Relations at AAA Elizabeth Carey said.

There are 54 people on this trip. And two of them are Kathy and Karen.

“Actually, I’m a huge football fan, but Karen was more about going for. For the people, for the, you know, Bills Mafia. Come on, we’re all together. It’s such great energy. It’s exciting,” Kathy Graves and Karen Spaulding said.

Some people might be confused on why someone would fly to another country just to see a football game.

But for Bills fans, the game, and the team is more than that.

“If you grow up in Buffalo, you understand. For those who don’t grow up in Buffalo, it’s a community. You know, we live and die by the Bills. It’s a community atmosphere. The players we love, they’re very involved with our community. They’re a good fit for us. And it’s not just about football. And we’ve seen that time and time again with the charities that we donate to, etc,” Graves said.

The trip cost about $4,000 and sold out in about three hours. And they aren’t just headed to the Bills game.

“So for instance, they’re doing a London City tour, they’re doing a tour of Windsor Castle, they’re doing a pregame dinner cruise the night before, and it’s totally Bill’s mafia themed. So there’s a lot of excitement around that and there’s a lot of special inclusions involved,” Carey said.

The game will be available on the NFL Network and other streaming alternatives. Kickoff is at 9:30 a.m. Eastern Standard Time.