The Brick Connection– A novice Lego fan explores the great brick world of LEGO

Wazzzuuuppp??? Remember when that was a thing? Should I not admit that I’m old enough to remember when that was a thing? Moving on...

Note to self: When seeking attention for your blog on social media, post a picture of Game of Thrones minifigures.

Seriously. When I posted last week’s blog on the BrickWarriors Facebook page featuring the Game of Thrones minifigures photo, it got a lot of attention: 69 likes, 18 shares, multiple comments(!), and over 300 post clicks.

Of course I’m not too naïve to realize it was the minifigures they liked and wanted to know more about, not my blog, but I’ll take attention anyway I can get it at this point. Really, instead of focusing on the content of my writing I need to focus on the quality of my pictures. Perhaps I should start posting scandalous pictures. Perhaps some nude pictures?

Nude minifigures that is. Geeze guys, this is a family blog! Or is it? I haven’t been able to determine the demographics of my audience yet.

Well whoever you are, can you believe it’s September already? Kids are back in school, everything is pumpkin flavored, and most importantly, football is back! Tomorrow night I will be attending the first football game of the season for my alma mater, the University of Delaware. Go Blue Hens! Then Saturday morning I have my fantasy football draft for my fantasy league, which is run by BrickWarriors owner/CEO/designer, Ryan Hauge. And then next weekend, the NFL season begins.

Yaaaaaaaaay!!

Does this have anything to do with LEGO? Nope, but in the immortal words of Tim Gunn, I’m gonna “make it work.”

Much like with last week when I sought out Game of Thrones LEGO creations, this week I went looking for football-related LEGO.

First I found that there was a Football Player in LEGO Minifigure Series 8. This is actually a retired series, which I guess means that LEGO doesn’t sell it anymore, but you can find it on Amazon and such.

And that pretty much sums up The LEGO Group’s association with football. Thanks for reading! See ya next week!

Okay, so I was disappointed in the lack of football-related products made by LEGO. They seem to not be into sports at all really.

But that’s where OYO comes in. OYO Sports creates officially-licensed building-block minifigures with the likeness of MLB, NHL, MLS, and NFL players. Yes, these are “building-block minifigures,” meaning: NOT LEGO. But the company assures you that the minifigs are the same size as other brands (LEGO) and are compatible with the surfaces of other popular block-building companies (LEGO, LEGO, and LEGO).

What’s really special about these minifigures is that they have bendable knees, rotating forearms, and the ability to hold a football, a baseball, a bat, and a glove. Maybe that’s why LEGO has stayed away from such sporty endeavors. Because they know the LEGO minifigure is not very flexible athletic.

OYO sells team sets as well as individual players and mascots. Check out some pictures below.

Also, in honor of Tom Brady’s win over the NFL in court today, here is a video of OYOs in action, recreating moments from Super Bowl 49.

Ugh! The Patriots. Ugh! Tom Brady.

It’s really impressive that OYO was able to get licensing deals with four major sports leagues and each of the Player’s Associations (which allows them to use the likeness of specific players). And they are very up to date with their minifigures. For my favorite team, the Eagles, they already have minifigs for four players that were acquired this year in trades and our 2015 first round draft pick.

So yes, these are clones, which can be a big no-no for LEGO fans, but this company just took over a building-block toy niche that LEGO didn’t cover so they’re not infringing on LEGO, so much as adding to it. Much like another third party company I know...

OYO was not the best thing I discovered when searching for LEGO football stuff though. Not even close!
I found a company, if you can call it that, called Bricksports that recreates sporting events with LEGO animation. I’ve discussed my fascination with stop-motion animation before, but this is just too-much!

And they did these videos with real minifigures, not ones that have bendable joints. From what I can tell, the company is some kind of German/British hybrid so naturally their first focus was on soccer. But then they decided to take on Super Bowl XLV and man did they deliver!

Although that Super Bowl, which took place in February 2011 was between two teams I despise, the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, I actually remember it being a really entertaining game. And thankfully the team I hated least, the Packers, ended up winning.

Now of course Bricksports had to make do with what they had since LEGO does not make any football stuff. For example, the football is actually a brown LEGO head with no face. Also, Mike Tomlin, the Steelers head coach looks like some evil guy from Star Wars. But the Aaron Rodgers minifigure looks pretty good I think.

Check out the full video below and prepare for your mind to be blown.

Did you love that or did you LOVE that?? The fact that they showed replays from different angles, they somehow made the “football” fly, the syncing of the game audio… Brilliant!

Okay I’ll stop gushing. But guess what? They also did one for Super Bowl XLVII, when the Baltimore Ravens defeated the San Francisco 49ers. Power outage included! Click on the picture for the link to that video.

Bricksports has also covered two World Cups, the Champions League, and the 2012 Summer Olympics. Check out their YouTube Channel and website. Looking at all the videos they've uploaded to their YouTube Channel, the two Super Bowl videos are their #1 and #3 most watched videos with the Packers win accumulating over 700,000 views. 

'Murica!


So that's my LEGO football coverage. I hope you enjoyed that as much as I did. And I hope everyone enjoys the football season and the beautiful fall weather to come. And if you live in the Southern Hemisphere and have no idea what I am talking about, well that sucks for you.

Until next time...does anyone know if Starbucks is selling pumpkin spiced frappuccinos yet? 

*Compliments, general feedback, and constructive criticism are welcome. Any haters that are gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate can go step on some Lego with their bare feet.*