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](/cheerleaders/index.html)Foxborough, Mass. – Next week, New England Patriots Cheerleader Director Tracy Sormanti and four Patriots cheerleaders will be taking their high-kicks and back-flips halfway around the World as part of the NFL Home Field Initiative. They will travel to Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou to encourage China's expanding number of football fans to celebrate and participate in America's most popular sport.
In America, NFL Sundays are a vibrant part of life, uniting individuals and bringing friends together, all in the name of football. The New England Patriots Cheerleaders (NEPC) are proud to be featured in a partnership with NFL China, the Shanghai Stadium, Beihang University in Beijing, and Tianhe Sports Center in Guangzhou, to create a home for football fans.
Sormanti will be joined by four members of the 2013 squad, two-year veteran Alexandria and rookies Camille, Brittany and Leigha Marie. The cheerleaders represent three New England states, as Alexandria is from Needham, MA, Camille is from Killingworth, CT, Brittany is from Woonsocket, RI, and Leigha Marie is from Rutland, MA. The trip provides the cheerleaders with an opportunity to experience a new culture while promoting the Patriots and the NFL.
"The Patriots Cheerleaders feel privileged to have the opportunity to share the excitement of the New England Patriots and the NFL with Chinese fans," says Sormanti. "The NFL Home Field program is designed to give Chinese fans an American football game-day experience, and of course that wouldn't be complete without cheerleaders!"
Throughout their trip, the cheerleaders will teach youth cheer clinics, conduct media interviews, perform routines and engage a new demographic of football fans, but this is certainly not the first time fans in China will have cheered along with the Patriots Cheerleaders.
Sormanti and the Patriots cheerleaders have played an active role in the NFL Home Field initiative, as this will be their seventh trip to China to promote the NFL and the New England Patriots.
The first trip in 2007 brought squad members to Beijing and Shanghai where the ladies interacted with the growing number of American football fans in the region. Next, squad members returned to China to promote the NFL playoffs. The squad visited China for the third time after receiving an invitation from the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad to organize a week-long cheer/dance clinic for Chinese cheerleaders and dancers who performed at Olympic related events. The fourth visit was to celebrate the Super Bowl and associated festivities with Chinese fans. In 2012, the Patriots Cheerleaders traveled to China twice to participate in NFL Experience events in Shanghai and Beijing.
"We've been visiting China for the past six years and I've watched our fan base grow," says Sormanti. "It's an amazing feeling to be on the other side of the world and see so many people wearing Patriots jerseys. We hope to continue our travels to China in an effort to increase awareness of the New England Patriots and the NFL and to thank our fans already established there."
As Patriots Ambassadors, this trip will serve to further grow the NFL and Patriots brands, leaving a positive, lasting memory in the minds and hearts of Chinese fans. And while the ladies are certainly up for the challenge, they will have plenty of help. Members of the Miami Dolphins Cheerleading Squad and several NFL alumni ambassadors will join together with the NEPC members to play a major role in bringing the game day feel to NFL Home Field.
Each NFL Home Field venue will be transformed into a family-friendly celebration of sport. Kids will have the chance to make plays like pros with interactive games like the Quarterback Toss and Running Back Obstacle Course. Sports fans and athletes will enjoy specialized on-site Nike Pro Training challenges while local restaurant outlets will provide an authentic tailgating experience at the on-site concessions zones.
Since its establishment in October 2007, NFL China has been devoted to promoting the game of football in China. Last year's NFL Experience attracted thousands across Beijing and Guangzhou while the official NFL China Super Bowl Parties in Beijing and Shanghai sold out weeks in advance. NFL games and programs are broadcast across 19 regional TV broadcasts and digital media outlets, and television viewership has increased by over 66 percent to 80 million viewers, with 1.4 million people streaming Super Bowl XLVII live earlier this year.
NFL Home Field is designed to bring the game of football to people across the world, building an international following of NFL fans. The program also provides existing fans to learn from some of games former greats and feel a part of a true game day experience. The initiative runs throughout the football season, and the two weeks that the Patriots Cheerleaders will spend in China is another opportunity to build on the game's success.
But don't worry Patriots fans, Brittany, Camille, Leigha Marie and Alexandria will be back on the field for the November 3 home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers with their pom-poms in hand and a new wave of football fans watching from overseas.
For more information, please contact Tracy Sormanti, Cheerleader Director, at 508-384-9101, or visit www.patriots.com/cheerleaders.
