Dave Birkett

Detroit Free Press

GUILDFORD, England -- Adam Meller took today off from his job as a London-based recruiter, put on his Calvin Johnson No. 81 jersey and went to Surrey Sports Park in hopes of catching a glimpse of his favorite NFL team.

When a Detroit Lions executive heard that the 31-year old standing alone on the patio was a huge fan, Meller's glimpse got even closer than he ever could have imagined.

Ushered onto the field where Lions players were running a Play 60 clinic for a couple hundred area youths, Meller posed for pictures with Calvin Johnson and Matthew Stafford, got Johnson to sign the back of his blue jersey and left with memories of a lifetime.

"A dream come true," Meller said. "I was hoping to meet some players today, but meeting Calvin, he seems like a regular guy as well. For me, that was just … that was unbelievable."

Meller is one of an undocumented number of Lions fans looking forward to seeing their adopted team in live action for the first time ever this weekend, against the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium (9:30 a.m. Sunday, Fox).

The Lions flew into England's Gatwick Airport early today and went straight to their midday community session, where they were greeted by a tunnel of screaming kids.

"They seem like they knew exactly who we were," Stafford said. "I don't know if they did or not. I don't know if they were just jumping around 'cause it's cold and they're trying to stay warm, but they seemed to be genuinely happy and excited to be out here playing, and we're the same."

While Stafford and other Lions said that they're treating this week as a business trip and trying to avoid distraction as much as possible, the NFL's expanded 8-year-old International Series -- Lions vs. Falcons is one of three games in London this year -- has fans such as Meller brimming with excitement.

American football is still relatively new to the sporting landscape in England, and Meller, like many fans with no home team to root for, has a unique story about how he picked his allegiance.

Growing up, Meller's favorite animal was a lion. His dad watched the NFL when he was little. And when he saw Barry Sanders do something special on TV, he was hooked.

"A little bit of a crazy reason," Meller admits.

But not entirely unique.

While many local football fans have gravitated toward the Chicago Bears, New England Patriots and Dallas Cowboys, David Smith, a 41-year-old railway timetabler from Stevenage, England, said he became a Lions fan years ago, when he was drawn to the sport and, looking for a team to root for, pulled the Lions out of a hat.

Smith wasn't entirely sold on rooting for the team until he flipped on his TV later that night and stumbled upon the movie "Beverly Hills Cop" and saw Eddie Murphy's character, Axel Foley, with a Lions jacket on.

Smith decided to research the city of Detroit more, found lots of similarities between it and his native Glasgow, Scotland, and has been a Lions fan ever since.

He started following the team closely during their winless season of 2008, and two years ago went to a game at Ford Field, against the New York Jets.

"Absolutely phenomenal experience," Smith said. "I've never experienced so much emotional ups and downs in one game, 'cause we were ahead in that game. I remember walking back to hotel, I was absolutely wrenched, I was with my girlfriend, and the guy behind the front desk, he looked at me and he went, 'You know, the same old Lions.' And I thought, 'I keep hearing this phrase, 'same old Lions.'' But ever since then, I've been absolutely hooked on them, and I've never missed a game."

Both Smith and Meller will be at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, where 80,000-plus fans, most indifferent to the outcome, are expected to attend.

Tim Evans, another London-area Lions fan, said he started following the team in the mid-2000s, when he was working in Ohio for Marathon Oil. Now semi-retired, he has Lions season tickets and travels back to Michigan, where he keeps a second home, for about six games per year.

Evans watched last week's comeback win against the New Orleans Saints after running in the Detroit Free Press/Talmer Bank Marathon and is flying back to England tonight for Sunday's game.

"I've been waiting for years" for the Lions to come to London, Evans said. "This is the best of all worlds for me, so I can't wait."

Contact Dave Birkett at dbirkett@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @davebirkett.