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While the United States is a country of newcomers, the NFL is largely led by American-born players. Only five percent of players are foreign-born, and the majority of them enter the game by attending college in the United States. Genuine international figures are unusual, and coaches from abroad are especially rare, which renders James Cook’s journey remarkable.

Cook’s Unlikely Journey to the NFL

Cook has been in charge of player development at the Cleveland Browns. That’s an accomplishment in itself, but it’s extraordinary given he was raised in Surrey, is in his late 20s, and never participated in professional sport. Cook discovered the NFL as a teenager while surfing channels with his dad and stumbled upon what he described as a “weird and wonderful” game. He started playing locally and soon wanted to become the first-ever NFL quarterback from Europe. He progressed to playing for Great Britain, but his plans to go to university in the US were financially prohibitive.

“I was scooping popcorn, wiping seats, flipping burgers, doing a bit of everything. Whenever the NFL people wanted me, I would switch my schedule and help out. As a quarterback, the one thing I had was I could pass. So when they worked out with players, I’d appear all over London and throw the ball to them. I wasn’t paid, but they’d often get me lunch.”

This is where he encountered Aden Durde, who had stints with the Carolina Panthers and Kansas City Chiefs during his career before he set up the IPP programme in that year with two-time championship winner Osi Umenyiora. When Durde became part of the coaching team at the Falcons, becoming the first British full-time coach in NFL history, Cook took over the IPP. “I had a lot of fun with it, working with some remarkable players,” he recalls. “We had Louis Rees-Zammit; Clayton, who got drafted by Buffalo; Charlie Smyth, the kicker from the Emerald Isle who’s now with the New Orleans. I went to Australia to work with aspiring athletes from around the Pacific to introduce them to the US college system, similar to what I wanted to do.”

Making the Leap to Coaching in the NFL

Like Durde before him, Cook made the jump from training international athletes to coaching in the NFL. “Cleveland contacted me out of the blue,” he says. “They had a multi-faceted position assisting rookies, optimizing efficiency on the practice field, working closely with medical staff, the coach and general manager. It’s a very active position, which is perfect for me. My background was working with international athletes who had never played the sport. First-year newcomers also have to establish habits and routines: learning to look after their body and deal with a huge playbook. But also just being present for guys. That’s the same everywhere. And I enjoy that.”

Is being an Englishman who did not play in the NFL hold him back? “It’s largely a imagined hurdle than an real one,” says Cook. “I’ve had a lot of Lasso-style jokes and many players refer to me as ‘mate’ as they love that. It’s more about monitoring my language. I use ‘trash can’ not ‘bin’. But we get nervous or stressed about the same things and require help in the identical ways. If players know you can help them, they don’t care where you’re from or how you speak. And when people know that you care, all the rest fades.”

Advantages of Being Beyond the US System

Coming from beyond the American football world has its advantages. “I spoke in front of the entire team soon after joining, and, as we walked out, one of our linemen wanted to talk rugby with me as he enjoys it. You make those connections and form friendships. Teammates are genuinely intrigued. NFL buildings are more diverse than many think. We have people from various backgrounds, a range of upbringings. Our saying at IPP was: ‘Be uncommon – you are different so embrace it.’ It’s something to celebrate.”

The NFL has been more successful at attracting international supporters than developing global talent. Mailata, a former rugby league player from Sydney who won the championship earlier this year with the Philadelphia Eagles, is among the rare IPP players to have made it to the very top.

International Athletes and Their Journeys

Foreign players have usually been kickers, recruited from different sports. Howfield exchanged soccer for Watford and Fulham for becoming a placekicker for the Denver Broncos and Jets; Luckhurst transitioned from rugby in England to the Falcons roster. If you aren’t aiming to be a special teams player and did not trained in the American system, it’s very challenging to advance to the NFL.

Ayo Oyelola, a Londoner who was part of Chelsea’s academy before discovering American football at university, has made that step. He competed in the Canadian Football League for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before moving to the Jacksonville Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Maximilian Pircher’s experience is just as unlikely. At 6ft 7in and heavyweight, the from Italy was obviously not built for his preferred games, football and handball, so took up the NFL in his late teens. He impressed while playing for clubs in Europe and Europe, as well as the national side, and was given a spot on the IPP in that year.

A year later, he held the championship trophy as a part of the LA Rams training team. Pircher went on to have periods on the fringes at the Detroit Lions, Seahawks and Commanders, before he signed with the Vikings at the end of August. He has been well-liked in each team but is yet to see game time on the field. Is being a foreigner still a challenge?

“It isn’t difficult, not a barrier,” notes the 26-year-old. “We have players from various regions, so it isn’t an issue. Initially, they ask: ‘You got an accent – where are you from?’ But, once we have that figured out, we’re all friends. The Minnesota have a really welcoming culture, a excellent squad, a top organization.”

Despite devoting most of practice with his other offensive linemen, Pircher has thrown himself into the social mix at his teams. “Obviously the offensive line is always very tight because we are a unit and altogether one, but we have mates from all positions. My best friend, Landen Akers – my best man, actually – was a receiver at the LA. The specialist from the Packers, Orzech, is a close pal: we shared a home for a while at the Rams. Quarterbacks, defenders, specialists: we’ve have to be supportive.”

Motivating the Next Generation

Pircher is conscious he represents more than just Italy and Austria. “I would say all the countries beyond the US. The more successful each one of us does, the greater number of young people who play football in Italy, in Germany, wherever, can see: ‘Oh it is possible – if I put the work in every day, I can succeed.’ I have a many youngsters contacting me, seeking tips. It’s nice to encourage them to experience what I’ve experienced.”

The program alumni are all invited to Florida annually to coach the new group of potential NFL internationals. “Virtually everyone of us return