The Commanders are in London. Here is why some Maryland natives followed.

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LONDON — In the shadow of Trafalgar Square, where a statue of British Admiral Horatio Nelson towers over the skyline, there’s a pub the locals like to hit.

It has trivia nights on Tuesday and English Premier League watch parties on the weekends. People get off the main thoroughfare and spill into its wood-paneled rooms as a reprieve. And this past week the upcoming itinerary was scribbled on a chalkboard just behind the bar.

Wales vs. Norway, 7:45

Croatia vs. England, 5

North Macedonia vs. Scotland, 8:45

Wales vs. Denmark 7:45

Standard programming for the EPL’s international break. But just under those matches there was a special addendum added for Sunday.

NFL RedZone — 6 p.m.

A foreign game, younger than the Battle of Trafalgar itself, is making its annual pilgrimage to London.

Nelson led his royal fleet into the Napoleonic Wars in 1805. He died at Cape Trafalgar and had a 169-foot statue christened in his honor. Rutgers and Princeton wouldn’t do their own version of battle until 1869, christening the American version of football.

But now, in one of the world’s great cities, football is the novelty act that comes a few times a year. This time, it is the Washington Commanders’ turn to host.

And, just as much as the locals treated it as a diversion from their standard entertainment, people from Maryland capitalized on the sport’s unique union with an ancient city.

Commanders fans are using the occasion as an excuse to see England, reunite with old acquaintances or just sightsee for a weekend.

Tim Kiessling, a longtime Washington season-ticket holder who lives in Maryland, made a two-week trip out of the game. He started in York, seeing the old cathedrals and English countryside. For game week, he relocated to London and visited Westminster Abbey and the traditional royal spots.

“I went to Madrid last year [when Washington played there],” he said. “It was unbelievable. They had a fan event in an old bullfighting arena. So I had to come to this.”

Other Maryland natives used the trip to see old friends. Suzanne McArdle, who lives in Prince George’s County, had a nanny from London growing up. Almost 30 years later, she saw the Commanders schedule and booked her flight.

She spent the week reconnecting with her old caretaker. And she brought along a friend, Mariel Hopkins, who lives in Baltimore.

“She was our London guru this week,” Hopkins said of McArdle’s nanny. “I missed the trip to Madrid last year.”

There were others who just used the London trip to explore a different part of the world. Bob Ciancaglini used to have sideline passes to Washington games growing up. It was a reward for his Annapolis club helping park cars at the old RFK Stadium. He lives in Maryland but wanted to see his old team in England.

The day before the game, team owner Josh Harris held an event for Washington fans at a Waterloo bar, just across the river from Westminster Abbey. The space had a line out the door, with hundreds of fans waiting to get in.

He bought a round of drinks for everyone in the room. Then he nervously got up on the bar counter to raise his glass to his DMV audience. He started to chug his beer but decided against it.

“I was a little afraid about it,” he said later about standing on the bar.

But nobody in the bar seemed to care. A group of football fans was just happy to be in London, bringing its new history to an old city.