British mafia? Bills fans look to make themselves seen and heard in London

Then the Buffalo Bills 2023 season schedule came out and it included a road game in one of the world’s most famous and historic cities.

“I said, ‘Let’s go to London for the game,’ ” she said Wednesday at Buffalo Niagara International Airport. “My sister-in-law and best friend were like, ‘Let’s do it.’ “

Casazza, Melissa Casazza and Lynn Kovaleski will have plenty of company on Sunday when the Bills take on the Jacksonville Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium as Bills Mafia hopes to take over London.

Thousands of fans are packing their Bills gear for an adventure of a lifetime – some already boarded planes earlier this week – to experience all that London and the surrounding areas have to offer and then watch the game in person.

The Buffalo airport in Cheektowaga on Wednesday took on some of the feel of a tailgate party as Bills fans began boarding planes to take them to connecting flights that would eventually deliver them five time zones away in Great Britain.

“It’s definitely been a while that we’ve been planning, so it feels nice that it is here,” Melissa Casazza said.

Therese Forton-Barnes, founder of the Water Buffalo Club, works for a living as an event planner and has gone to a fair share of Bills roads games, but this trip is one of the biggest things she’s ever planned.

“This is huge and it is a big deal for all of us Bills fans to go over there,” said Forton-Barnes, who once studied abroad in London. “It’s just so exciting. I’ve been working on this trip quite a bit.”

“I’ve been to London before, so I’m not worried too much about seeing all the touristy things, but whatever your plans are, I think people on this trip are going to have a great time,” said John Mikulec, a Buffalo native living in Charlotte, N.C., and owner of tailgate company Gameday Hospitality, who left for London on Monday. “London is an…