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While the United States is a country of immigrants, the NFL is still dominated by American-born players. Just five percent of players are born abroad, and the majority of them enter the sport by going to university in the United States. True outsiders are rare, and foreign coaches are especially scarce, which makes James Cook’s journey exceptional.

Cook’s Unlikely Path to the NFL

For the past six months, Cook has been in control of athlete growth at the Browns organization. This is an achievement in itself, but it’s incredible considering he grew up in Surrey, is in his twenties, and did not participated in professional sport. Cook discovered the NFL as a 12-year-old while channel-flicking with his father and stumbled upon what he called a “strange and amazing” sport. He started playing locally and quickly wanted to become the first-ever NFL quarterback born in Europe. He progressed to playing for Team GB, but his dreams to attend university in the US proved too expensive.

“I was scooping popcorn, cleaning seats, flipping burgers, doing a bit of everything. Any time the NFL people wanted me, I would adjust my schedule and assist. As a quarterback, the one thing I had was I could throw. So when they trained with players, I’d show up all over London and toss the ball to them. I wasn’t paid, but they’d often buy me lunch.”

This is where he met Durde, who had stints with the Carolina Panthers and Chiefs during his career before he established the IPP programme in that year with two-time Super Bowl winner Umenyiora. When Durde became part of the coaching team at the Falcons, becoming the first British full-time coach in NFL annals, Cook assumed control of the IPP. “I had a lot of fun with it, coaching some really interesting players,” he says. “We had Louis Rees-Zammit; Travis Clayton, who was selected by Buffalo; Charlie Smyth, the specialist from the Emerald Isle who’s now with the New Orleans. I traveled to Australia to train younger players from around the Pacific to introduce them to college football, similar to what I wanted to do.”

Making the Leap to Coaching in the NFL

Like his predecessor before him, Cook made the jump from working with foreign players to coaching in the NFL. “The Browns called unexpectedly,” he says. “They had a multi-faceted position supporting younger players, optimizing efficiency on the training ground, working closely with medical staff, the coach and GM. It’s a really active position, which is perfect for me. My experience was guiding international athletes who had not played the game. Rookie newcomers also have to establish habits and schedules: how to take care of their health and handle a massive game plan. But also just being present for guys. That’s the identical everywhere. And I enjoy that.”

Does being an Englishman who did not play in the NFL a disadvantage? “It’s more of a imagined barrier than an real one,” says Cook. “I get a lot of Lasso-style jokes and loads of players call me ‘bruv’ as they love that. It’s more about checking myself. I use ‘garbage can’ not ‘bin’. But we get nervous or stressed about the similar things and need help in the identical ways. If players understand you can assist them, they don’t care about your origin or what accent. And when players know that you are invested, all the rest melts away.”

Advantages of Coming From Outside the US System

Originating from beyond the American football world has its upsides. “I addressed in front of the entire team soon after joining, and, as we left, one of our linemen asked me about the sport with me as he enjoys it. You build those bonds and build relationships. Teammates are truly intrigued. NFL buildings are varied than people think. We have people from all sorts of backgrounds, a variety of upbringings. Our mantra at IPP was: ‘Be uncommon – you are unique so embrace it.’ It’s something to celebrate.”

The NFL has been more successful at producing international supporters than nurturing global talent. Jordan Mailata, a ex- rugby league player from Australia who won the Super Bowl earlier this year with the Eagles, is among the rare IPP graduates to have made it to the elite level.

International Athletes and Their Journeys

Foreign players have typically been specialists, recruited from different sports. Bobby Howfield exchanged soccer for English clubs for being a placekicker for the Denver Broncos and Jets; Mick Luckhurst graduated from rugby union in St Albans to the Atlanta Falcons roster. If you aren’t aiming to be a kicker and were not trained in the US college system, it’s very challenging to make the leap to the NFL.

Oyelola, a native of London who was part of Chelsea’s academy before discovering the sport at Nottingham University, has achieved that. He competed in the CFL for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers before moving to the Jaguars and Pittsburgh Steelers.

Maximilian Pircher’s story is equally improbable. At over two meters and 23 stone, the Italian was clearly not built for his preferred games, soccer and the sport, so started the NFL in his late teens. He impressed while playing for teams in Austria and Europe, as well as the national side, and was offered a place on the IPP in that year.

The following year, he held the championship trophy as a member of the Rams practice squad. Pircher went on to have spells on the periphery at the Lions, Seahawks and Washington Commanders, before he signed with the Vikings at the end of August. He has been popular in every locker room but is hasn’t had game time on the gridiron. Is his status as a foreigner still a hurdle?

“It’s not really difficult, not a barrier,” notes the player. “We have players from various regions, so it doesn’t really matter. At first, they inquire: ‘You got an accent – what’s your background?’ But, once we have that figured out, we’re teammates. The Vikings have a very welcoming culture, a excellent team, a top franchise.”

Despite devoting the majority of training with his other offensive linemen, Pircher has thrown himself into the social mix at his clubs. “Obviously the offensive line is consistently very tight because we are a group and united, but we have friends from all positions. My close friend, Landen Akers – my best man, actually – was a wide receiver at the LA. The long snapper from the Packers, Orzech, is a close pal: we shared a home for two years at the Rams. Quarterbacks, defensive linemen, special teams: we’ve got to be supportive.”

Motivating the Future

Pircher is conscious he represents not only his home countries. “In my view every nation outside the United States. The more successful every IPP graduate does, the greater number of young people who participate in Italy, in Europe, anywhere, can see: ‘Oh it is possible – if I put the work in consistently, I can succeed.’ I have a lot of kids hitting me up, asking for tips. It’s nice to encourage them to experience what I’ve achieved.”

The program alumni are all invited to the US each year to train the new group of aspiring NFL outsiders. “Almost all of us return