After watching the Winnipeg Blue Bombers online in the UK for years, Frank Horsley is flying "across the pond" to cheer on his favourite team.

Horsley works for his local government in Nottingham, England where he lives with his wife and children. He says his love for North American football started with the early broadcasts to the United Kingdom of NFL games in the eighties.

Soccer later become a sport of interest for him and his kids, but "Two or three years ago we started getting more coverage of gridiron on TV, so I watched the NFL.

"I was watching a lot of NFL and decided 'I'll check out Canadian football and see what that's like'. So I watched a lot of that online. I just love the game. It's a lot quicker and has a lot more speed."

Horsley was watching different CFL teams and games when he finally fell in love and committed himself to the Winnipeg football team.

"I watched the Bombers and I must admit I liked the uniforms, I like the fact that they haven't won a Grey Cup for many years, and I just thought the fans at Investors Group Field just seemed really on it. So I thought 'Well, I'm going to follow the Blue Bombers' and I'm pleased I am."

Since then, he has launched popular social media pages for other UK CFL fans on Twitter and Facebook.

These platforms connected him with other Bomber super fans: "I've been in contact with so many people on social media and I can't wait to come over and have a bit of the hospitality over there."

"Without social media and the internet, all this stuff wouldn't really be possible I don't think."

Horsley's first time in Canada will be for the Banjo Bowl at Investors Group Field on Saturday, September 7.

His fellow fans convinced him that this was the year to come and support his team in-person and cheer on some of his favourite players, like 6'7" defensive lineman Willie Jefferson.

Horsley arrives in Winnipeg at 4 p.m. on Thursday to meet up with fellow Bomber fans at a local pub in The Exchange before game day. 

Despite a disappointing Labour Day Classic for Horsley and other Bomber fans, he predicts a win for the 8-3 team.