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NFL International Series

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(Redirected from NFL London and Mexico Games)
This article is about the games held in Brazil, Germany, Mexico and the United Kingdom. For the Buffalo Bills' Canada games, see Bills Toronto Series.

The NFL International Series logo used between 2009 and 2016; the year was updated annually.
Opening ceremony at Wembley Stadium before the Denver Broncos vs. San Francisco 49ers game in 2010

The NFL International Series is a series of American football games during the National Football League (NFL) regular season that are played outside the United States. Since 2024, the series has three sub-series: the NFL London Games in the United Kingdom, which have been in place since 2007; the NFL Germany Games in multiple cities, the NFL Brazil Game in São Paulo, and the future NFL Madrid Game in Spain.

Initially, all games in the International Series were held in London. Wembley Stadium was the exclusive home stadium for International Series games from 2007 to 2015 and continued to host NFL games through 2019 and from 2022 to 2024; beginning in 2016, the series expanded to more stadiums, first to Twickenham Stadium in London (2016–17) and to Estadio Azteca in Mexico City (2016–17, 2019, 2022) and eventually to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London (2019, 2021–29), two locations in Germany: Allianz Arena in Munich (2022 and 2024) and Deutsche Bank Park in Frankfurt (2023),[1][2] Arena Corinthians in São Paulo, Brazil (2024),[3] and Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid, Spain (2025).[4]

Background

[edit]

Before 2005, the National Football League (NFL)'s primary method of promoting its game abroad was through the American Bowl, a series of preseason games played around the world, and NFL Europe, a developmental league based in Europe. The American Bowls ended in 2005 (though a similar China Bowl was planned for 2007 before being canceled), while NFL Europa (as it was known for its final season) folded in 2007. On October 2, 2005, the Arizona Cardinals defeated the San Francisco 49ers by a score of 31–14 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, Mexico, under the name "NFL Fútbol Americano". It was the first regular season NFL game held outside the United States.[5] The game drew the NFL's highest game attendance at the time with 103,467 spectators.[5][6]

Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL, considered expanding the league's appeal overseas ever since the end of NFL Europe. Goodell has openly discussed the idea of holding a future Super Bowl game in London.[5] The NFL also investigated the possibility of adding a 17th regular season game to all teams, taking the place of the fourth pre-season game.[7] Waller noted that there would not be 16 different venues for the 17th games. More likely would be a "mini-season ticket" of perhaps four games in one city or country.[7] There was discussion that this "17th game" could take effect as early as the 2009 NFL season; however, 2010 would be the earliest this could be implemented because of concerns about playing on Labor Day or over the 2010 Winter Olympics, the league's rigid scheduling formula, and the league's collective bargaining agreement (CBA).[7] League officials were pondering moving a second existing game abroad for the 2010 season, but eventually abandoned it due to the ongoing CBA negotiations.[8] The league eventually abandoned its attempt to expand the NFL season via CBA negotiations, and the new CBA enacted in 2011 kept the NFL schedule at 16 games through 2020. However, the CBA enacted in 2021 expanded the regular season to 17 games with one bye week and introduced at least four neutral site games each year from 2022.[9] Teams will alternate seasons where they host nine regular-season games and one preseason game, or eight regular-season games and two preseason games. The NFC will have nine regular season home games in the 2022 season.[10]

Games in the United Kingdom are broadcast by Sky Sports with some games on terrestrial broadcaster ITV. On radio, the games are broadcast by Talksport2.[citation needed]

The games have been popular, with tickets selling out in two days, nine months in advance. According to the NFL, only 3% of those attending the London games are Americans or American expatriates, while 22% are from London and 60% from elsewhere in Britain. Ticket prices start from £64 at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and £44 at Wembley Stadium.[11] Each designated home team receives US$1 million for giving up the home game.[12]

On October 11, 2011, the NFL owners approved playing NFL games in Great Britain through 2016. This stated that a home team could visit every year for up to five years but visitors could only visit once every five years.[13] However, in 2015 the Detroit Lions returned to London as visitors in an apparent disregard for this rule. Subsequently, an agreement was reached to play internationally through 2025.[14]

The Buffalo Bills received a unanimous vote of approval to play a series of regular and preseason games at Rogers Centre in Toronto from 2008 to 2017.[15][16] This was separate from the regular International Series as arrangements are made by the team as opposed to the league as with the International Series. The Bills' Toronto Series was mutually terminated after the 2013 contest.

Due to significant time zone differences, from 2007 to 2015 teams playing in London would have their bye week in the following week after their game in London. For 2016, the Indianapolis Colts volunteered to play a game the week after their London game, preferring to have their bye week later in the season. The Colts playing the week after London was also done by the NFL as a test to see team fatigue for evaluation of an eventual London franchise.[17] As Mexico City is within the Central Time Zone—eight NFL teams play home games in Central Time and the rest are within two hours of it—no bye week would be needed for those teams, though they may still by chance be scheduled their regular bye week anyway. For 2017, three teams playing in London (the Baltimore Ravens, Jacksonville Jaguars and Miami Dolphins), would have games immediately following their International Series game.[18] In all three cases, the teams playing after their International Series game are based on the East Coast of the United States and will either be home or (in the Jaguars' case) playing in East Rutherford, New Jersey. In 2018 and 2019 all teams once again received their bye immediately following their international game, including the teams who played in Mexico.

Through 2020, due to NFL rules, teams that were playing in temporary homes as part of a relocation or that were recently awarded the hosting of the Super Bowl were required to play a home game internationally. The Los Angeles Rams, upon relocating from St. Louis, agreed to host an international game from 2016 to 2019, while their new stadium was being built. The Los Angeles Chargers, who would share the stadium with the Rams, also hosted an international game in 2018 and 2019, only getting out of the 2017 game because the team had executed its get out clause to relocate from San Diego after the 2017 International Series games had been announced.[19] The Oakland Raiders, who spent the 2019 off-season in limbo due to the expiration of their stadium deal in Oakland and the lack of an NFL-ready stadium in their eventual home in Las Vegas, also agreed to annual international home games through 2019.

NFL rules require the designated home team for each international game to have their home stadium reserved for use in the event that a game cannot be played at the international site.[20][21][22][23]

History

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Early years (2007–2012)

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The Miami Dolphins hosted the New York Giants in the first International Series game at Wembley Stadium in London, England, on October 28, 2007. The Giants defeated the Dolphins 13–10 in the first regular season NFL game held outside North America. The first 40,000 tickets sold out for the game in the first 90 minutes of sales.[5][24] The game was aired regionally on Fox.

A single game was held in London each year through 2011. Like the 2007 game, each was televised nationally in the United Kingdom, but only regionally in the United States.

Multi-year deals and multi-game years (2013–2015)

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NFL International Series game between Dallas Cowboys and Jacksonville Jaguars in London

On January 20, 2012, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed that from 2012 to 2014, the St. Louis Rams would play one of their eight home games each year at Wembley Stadium.[25] However, on August 13, 2012, the team announced that they would not play the proposed games in London in 2013 and 2014, only the 2012 game against the New England Patriots that had already been scheduled.[26] Goodell had previously proposed the use of certain regular teams in the International Series in an effort to build a fan base for those teams, raising the prospect of a permanent NFL team on the British Isles.

An NFL bid to become anchor tenants of London's Olympic Stadium failed.[27]

The Jacksonville Jaguars took the Rams' place and agreed to play a home game in London for four seasons from 2013 through 2016. With this announcement also came news that the NFL were working to schedule a second UK game from 2013 onwards[28] (the Jaguars later extended their agreement with Wembley Stadium through 2020 in an agreement announced in October 2015).[2] In October 2012, it was announced that the Jaguars would host the San Francisco 49ers and the Minnesota Vikings would host the Pittsburgh Steelers, marking the first season with multiple games in London.

The NFL played three international games for the 2014 season, including one game with an earlier 9:30 am ET (2:30 pm UK time) start, which allowed for an afternoon game, rather than an evening game, in London. This timeslot proved to be successful as all London games in 2015 and 2016 were also scheduled at 9:30 am ET. Three games were again scheduled in 2015 – including the series' first division game between the New York Jets and the Miami Dolphins.

Long-term deals and new stadiums (2016–2021)

[edit]
NFL London and Mexico Games logos, first used in 2016 in Mexico and 2017 in London.

On July 8, 2015, the NFL and Tottenham Hotspur F.C. announced they had reached a 10-year deal to host at least two London Games a year at the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium from its opening year in 2019.[29] Additionally, on October 7, 2015, the league announced that a resolution had been passed to schedule international games at additional locations to London until 2025.[14] Subsequently, on October 22, 2015, it was confirmed that at least two games per season would remain at Wembley through at least 2020 and that the Jacksonville Jaguars will continue to play a home game there annually throughout the agreement.[30] Another stadium deal was confirmed on November 3, 2015, when the league announced they had reached an agreement with England's Rugby Football Union to host regular season games at Twickenham Stadium from 2016 onwards, with a minimum of three, and as many as five games to be held over the initial agreement period of three years.[31]

In 2016, the Oakland Raiders hosted the Houston Texans on November 21 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, at the first International Series game played in Mexico. Previously, the Houston Texans and Pittsburgh Steelers had expressed interest in playing a game at Estadio Azteca (or possibly Estadio Olímpico Universitario) in Mexico City, although Houston was not prepared to give up a home date.[32][33] It was televised as part of ESPN's Monday Night Football, marking the first MNF game broadcast from outside the United States, and ESPN's second broadcast from Mexico City since the 2005 Fútbol Americano game (which was televised as part of ESPN's former incarnation of Sunday Night Football).[34][35]

The 2016 game between the Washington Redskins and Cincinnati Bengals was the first International Series game to go into overtime, the first to end as a tie, and had at the time the highest attendance of all International Series games (later surpassed by the 2017 game between the Baltimore Ravens and Jacksonville Jaguars, which drew an attendance of 84,592).

NFL game held in Mexico, at the Estadio Azteca, in 2017.

For 2017 the series underwent a partial rebrand with four games in London branded as NFL London Games[36] and one game in Mexico City branded as the NFL Mexico Game.[37][failed verification]

In January 2018, it was announced that three games would be played in London that year, with two at Wembley and the other the first game at Tottenham Hotspur's new stadium. However, it was later confirmed that the opening of Tottenham Hotspur Stadium would be delayed and therefore all three games would be held at Wembley.[38] Having already fulfilled the minimum three-game requirement for Twickenham Stadium in 2017, the league would no longer host games there.[39] The Mexico City date and opponents were not announced at that time, but were later confirmed as the Los Angeles Rams playing as designated home team against the Kansas City Chiefs. This game was subsequently moved to Los Angeles due to poor field conditions at Estadio Azteca.[23] The ensuing game would also attract notoriety as the third-highest scoring game in NFL history, and the highest-scoring game in Monday Night Football history.[40]

In October 2018, the league confirmed four London Games would take place in 2019. Wembley Stadium would host two and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium would host the remaining two. The Jacksonville Jaguars would return to Wembley Stadium for the seventh consecutive year in line with their annual commitment.[41] The final schedule was announced in April 2019 alongside that of the rest of the regular season.[42] This marked the end of the Los Angeles Chargers', Los Angeles Rams' and Oakland Raiders' annual commitments, with all three moving to new stadiums in 2020.

In November 2019, the Atlanta Falcons[43] and Miami Dolphins[44] were announced as home teams for 2020 games in either London or Mexico City.

On February 4, 2020, it was announced that the Jaguars would play two home games at Wembley Stadium on consecutive weekends in 2020, the first time a team had done so. 2020 would also have been the final year of games at Wembley Stadium and the final year of the Jaguars' agreement to host annual home games there.[45] On February 28, 2020, it was announced that the Arizona Cardinals would host a game in Mexico City. Their hosting was due to the awarding of Super Bowl LVII to the State Farm Stadium in 2018. The Cardinals would have returned to Estadio Azteca for the first time since 2005's Fútbol Americano game. The date and opponent were not announced at the time.[46] On May 4, 2020, the league announced that all international games for 2020 have been moved back to the home stadiums of the designated home teams due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[47]

On April 1, 2021, the Atlanta Falcons announced their intention to play a home game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in October 2021.[48] On May 11, it was reported that the Falcons and Jaguars would each host a game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.[49] This was confirmed the following day.[50] This would mark the Jaguars' eighth home game in London but their first at Tottenham.

International marketing and expansion (2022–present)

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Photo of the opening ceremony of the game between the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles, on September 6, 2024 at Neo Química Arena in Sāo Paulo, Brazil.

The National Football League announced the International Home Marketing Areas initiative, where 25 NFL teams have been selected to freely market their team across eight countries, starting in January 2022.[51] In May 2022, two more countries were added to the list of international marketing.[52] In 2023, the league added Austria, Switzerland, France and Ireland.[53][54] In 2024, the league would continue to expand their reach across the globe by putting their footprint in Argentina, Colombia, Japan, Nigeria and South Korea. [55] Teams were selected based on their proposals submitted to the NFL, along with the performance of their marketing domestically.[56] The following teams were granted the five-year initiative that will allow marketing methods such as in-person events, sponsorships, and merchandise sales, as well as a high priority to compete in the countries granted in:

Country Team[57]
 Argentina Miami Dolphins
 Australia Los Angeles Rams
Philadelphia Eagles
 Austria Detroit Lions
Indianapolis Colts
Kansas City Chiefs
New England Patriots
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
 Brazil Miami Dolphins
New England Patriots
 Canada[a] Detroit Lions
Minnesota Vikings
Seattle Seahawks
 China Los Angeles Rams
 Colombia Miami Dolphins
 France New Orleans Saints
 Germany Atlanta Falcons
Carolina Panthers
Detroit Lions
Indianapolis Colts
Kansas City Chiefs
New England Patriots
New York Giants
Pittsburgh Steelers
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
 Ghana Philadelphia Eagles
 Ireland Jacksonville Jaguars
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers
 Japan Los Angeles Rams
 Mexico Arizona Cardinals
Dallas Cowboys
Denver Broncos
Houston Texans
Kansas City Chiefs
Las Vegas Raiders
Los Angeles Rams
Miami Dolphins
Pittsburgh Steelers
San Francisco 49ers
 New Zealand Los Angeles Rams
Philadelphia Eagles
 Nigeria Cleveland Browns
 South Korea Los Angeles Rams
 Spain Chicago Bears
Miami Dolphins
  Switzerland Detroit Lions
Kansas City Chiefs
New England Patriots
Seattle Seahawks
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
 United Kingdom Chicago Bears
Jacksonville Jaguars
Miami Dolphins
Minnesota Vikings
New York Jets
Pittsburgh Steelers ( Northern Ireland only)
San Francisco 49ers
Notes
  1. ^ NFL teams located near the Canada–United States border, e.g. the Buffalo Bills, have a preexisting domestic Home Marketing Area (75-mile radius) that contains parts of Canada, hence they did not need to be granted an International Home Marketing Area to continue marketing within this region.[58][59]

On February 9, 2022, the NFL confirmed the addition of the Germany Games to the International Series slate, initially with one game each year from 2022 to 2025. Mark Waller had previously stated in 2017 that the only holdup with games in Germany was what he dubbed "an inventory management thing," in that with four games already being played in London each year, adding additional games in Germany atop those four would pose logistical problems.[60] The league began gauging interest from German cities regarding potential games in June 2021; the league viewed Germany as an ideal candidate for expansion of the International Series because of the country's high viewership for NFL games (2.2 million people in Germany watched Super Bowl LV) and the country's numerous modern stadiums.[61] In October 2021, it was confirmed that Düsseldorf, Frankfurt and Munich had been invited to participate in deeper conversations about hosting NFL games.[62]

In March 2022, the Jaguars confirmed they had reached an agreement with Wembley Stadium to host an annual game through 2024.[63] In the following season, the Jaguars became the first team to play two games in London in one season. On October 1, they hosted the Atlanta Falcons at Wembley Stadium and then the following week on October 8 as the designated visiting team against the Buffalo Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium; they won both games.

In November 2023, the NFL said that they would again have five international games for the 2024 season. Three will be in London (one of those will be the Jaguars' regular home game in Wembley), one will be in Munich and the last one will be in a new market, either Madrid, Spain, or São Paulo, Brazil. The league will not expand the number of international games beyond the five they currently have (the four rotational home teams and the Jaguars) until the 2025 season at the earliest.[64] In December 2023, with the announcement of São Paulo as the third venue of the 2024 international slate it was confirmed that the league planned to host eight international games in 2025,[65] the first new venue for 2025 was announced as Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid, Spain.[4]

Tickets for the São Paulo, Brazil, game went on sale beginning on June 10, 2024, and the high demand for them surprised the broker Ticketmaster. Of the approximately 150,000 people who queued online, only about 10% received a ticket.[66]

Game history

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London Games

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Year Date Designated
visitor		 Score Designated
home team		 Score Stadium Attendance
2007 October 28 New York Giants 13 Miami Dolphins 10 Wembley Stadium 81,176
2008 October 26 San Diego Chargers 32 New Orleans Saints 37 83,226
2009 October 25 New England Patriots 35 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7 84,254
2010 October 31 Denver Broncos 16 San Francisco 49ers 24 83,941
2011 October 23 Chicago Bears 24 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 18 76,981
2012 October 28 New England Patriots 45 St. Louis Rams 7 84,004
2013 September 29 Pittsburgh Steelers 27 Minnesota Vikings 34 83,518
October 27 San Francisco 49ers 42 Jacksonville Jaguars 10 83,559
2014 September 28 Miami Dolphins 38 Oakland Raiders 14 83,436
October 26 Detroit Lions 22 Atlanta Falcons 21 83,532
November 9 Dallas Cowboys 31 Jacksonville Jaguars 17 83,603
2015 October 4 New York Jets 27 Miami Dolphins 14 83,986
October 25 Buffalo Bills 31 Jacksonville Jaguars 34 84,021
November 1 Detroit Lions 10 Kansas City Chiefs 45 83,624
2016 October 2 Indianapolis Colts 27 Jacksonville Jaguars 30 83,798
October 23 New York Giants 17 Los Angeles Rams 10 Twickenham Stadium 74,121
October 30 Washington Redskins 27OT Cincinnati Bengals 27OT Wembley Stadium 84,448
2017 September 24 Baltimore Ravens 7 Jacksonville Jaguars 44 84,592
October 1 New Orleans Saints 20 Miami Dolphins 0 84,423
October 22 Arizona Cardinals 0 Los Angeles Rams 33 Twickenham Stadium 73,736
October 29 Minnesota Vikings 33 Cleveland Browns 16 74,237
2018
[67][68]		 October 14 Seattle Seahawks 27 Oakland Raiders 3 Wembley Stadium 84,922
October 21 Tennessee Titans 19 Los Angeles Chargers 20 84,301
October 28 Philadelphia Eagles 24 Jacksonville Jaguars 18 85,870
2019
[69][70]		 October 6 Chicago Bears 21 Oakland Raiders 24 Tottenham Hotspur Stadium 60,463
October 13 Carolina Panthers 37 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 26 60,087
October 27 Cincinnati Bengals 10 Los Angeles Rams 24 Wembley Stadium 83,720
November 3 Houston Texans 26 Jacksonville Jaguars 3 84,771
2021 October 10 New York Jets 20 Atlanta Falcons 27 Tottenham Hotspur Stadium 60,589
October 17 Miami Dolphins 20 Jacksonville Jaguars 23 60,784
2022 October 2 Minnesota Vikings 28 New Orleans Saints[71] 25 60,639
October 9 New York Giants 27 Green Bay Packers[72] 22 61,024
October 30 Denver Broncos 21 Jacksonville Jaguars[73] 17 Wembley Stadium 86,215
2023 October 1 Atlanta Falcons 7 Jacksonville Jaguars 23 85,716
October 8 Jacksonville Jaguars 25 Buffalo Bills 20 Tottenham Hotspur Stadium 61,273
October 15 Baltimore Ravens 24 Tennessee Titans 16 61,011
2024 October 6 New York Jets 17 Minnesota Vikings 23 61,139
October 13 Jacksonville Jaguars 16 Chicago Bears 35 61,182
October 20 New England Patriots 16 Jacksonville Jaguars 32 Wembley Stadium 86,651

Mexico Games

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Year Date Designated
visitor		 Score Designated
home team		 Score Stadium City Attendance
2016 November 21 Houston Texans 20 Oakland Raiders 27 Estadio Azteca Mexico City 76,473
2017 November 19 New England Patriots 33 Oakland Raiders 8 77,357
2018 November 19 Kansas City Chiefs — Los Angeles Rams — [n 1][23]
2019 November 18 Kansas City Chiefs 24 Los Angeles Chargers 17 76,252
2022 November 21 San Francisco 49ers 38 Arizona Cardinals[72] 10 78,427

Germany Games

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Year Date Designated
visitor		 Score Designated
home team		 Score Stadium City Attendance
2022 November 13 Seattle Seahawks 16 Tampa Bay Buccaneers[72] 21 Allianz Arena[n 2][74] Munich 69,811
2023 November 5 Miami Dolphins 14 Kansas City Chiefs 21 Deutsche Bank Park Frankfurt 50,023
November 12 Indianapolis Colts 10 New England Patriots 6 50,144
2024 November 10 New York Giants 17 Carolina Panthers 20OT Allianz Arena Munich 70,132

Brazil Game

[edit]
Year Date Designated
visitor		 Score Designated
home team		 Score Stadium City Attendance
2024 September 6 Green Bay Packers 29 Philadelphia Eagles 34 Arena Corinthians São Paulo 47,236

Notes

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  1. ^ The November 19, 2018, game was scheduled to be played between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Los Angeles Rams at Mexico City's Estadio Azteca, but poor field conditions forced the league to move the game to the Rams' home stadium, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. The Rams won the game 54–51.
  2. ^ In February 2022, the NFL announced a four-year agreement to expand the NFL International Series to Germany with games to be split between the Allianz Arena in Munich and the Waldstadion in Frankfurt.

Standings

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Team Games W–L–T Pct Most recent
Minnesota Vikings 4 4–0–0 1.000 2024
San Francisco 49ers 3 3–0–0 1.000 2022
Kansas City Chiefs 3 3–0–0 1.000 2023
Philadelphia Eagles 2 2–0–0 1.000 2024
Carolina Panthers 2 2–0–0 1.000 2024
Dallas Cowboys 1 1–0–0 1.000 2014
New York Giants 4 3–1–0 .750 2024
New Orleans Saints 3 2–1–0 .667 2022
New England Patriots 5 3–2–0 .600 2024
Jacksonville Jaguars 13 7–6–0 .538 2024
St. Louis/L.A. Rams 4 2–2–0 .500 2019
Baltimore Ravens 2 1–1–0 .500 2023
Seattle Seahawks 2 1–1–0 .500 2022
Chicago Bears 3 2–1–0 .667 2024
Houston Texans 2 1–1–0 .500 2019
Indianapolis Colts 2 1–1–0 .500 2023
Detroit Lions 2 1–1–0 .500 2015
Denver Broncos 2 1–1–0 .500 2022
Washington Redskins 1 0–0–1 .500 2016
Oakland Raiders 5 2–3–0 .400 2019
Atlanta Falcons 3 1–2–0 .333 2023
San Diego/L.A. Chargers 3 1–2–0 .333 2019
New York Jets 3 1–2–0 .333 2024
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 4 1–3–0 .250 2022
Cincinnati Bengals 2 0–1–1 .250 2019
Miami Dolphins 6 1–5–0 .167 2023
Cleveland Browns 1 0–1–0 .000 2017
Pittsburgh Steelers 1 0–1–0 .000 2013
Arizona Cardinals 2 0–2–0 .000 2022
Buffalo Bills 2 0–2–0 .000 2023
Green Bay Packers 2 0–2–0 .000 2024
Tennessee Titans 2 0–2–0 .000 2023

Future

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Future markets

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Within the United Kingdom, aside from London, potential candidates for hosting NFL games include the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, Wales;[75] and Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, Scotland.[76] Other prime locations to get games would be Croke Park or Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland (Ireland has already hosted the NCAA Emerald Isle Classic, a college football game similar to the International Series, and former Steelers owner Dan Rooney was once an ambassador to the country), Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,[77] Olympiastadion in Berlin, Germany[78], China,[79][77][80][81] and Canada (Canada hosted the Bills Toronto Series from 2008 to 2013 and a preseason game between the Green Bay Packers and the Oakland Raiders at IG Field in Winnipeg, Manitoba in 2019). In 2007, NFL senior Vice President Mark Waller doubted Asia or Australia would be targeted because of travel concerns, but did not dismiss the possibility.[7] The league had planned to host a game in China in 2018 with the Los Angeles Rams as the home team against the San Francisco 49ers.[82] The potential game in China was postponed (the third time the league has postponed playing in China, following failed attempts in 2007 and 2009) to being aimed for the 2019 season to coincide with the league's 100th anniversary; that game ultimately was not scheduled for 2019.[83][84] The league has indicated that a China game is still not certain because of the lack of a fan base in the country; NFL games are played in the middle of the night in China.[60] Other potential problems include whether the stadiums in China are suitable to play an NFL game and Beijing's notoriously poor air quality. The topic of a 2020 preseason game in China was discussed in the 2019 owners' meetings, but no news came out of those meetings.[85]

Potential London team

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Main article: Potential London NFL franchise

The success of the International Series has led the NFL to focus its global expansion aims on the possibility of having a full franchise located in London. It is believed this would be most likely achieved through relocation of an existing franchise, with the Jaguars most often linked due to their association with the International Series, even though their owner is said to be content with the current arrangement and other franchises have more reason to move (the most often cited being poor on-field performance, lack of fans and uncertainty over stadium leases). The NFL has used some of the specific arrangements for the International Series games as a test bed for predicting how a London franchise could be made effective from a logistical and competitiveness standpoint.[86][87]

The Jacksonville Jaguars have significant ties to London. They have played more games in the city than any other NFL team, with a total of 12 games between 2013 and 2024.[88]

There have been recurring rumors about the team potentially relocating to London; however, these have been questioned as the team is planning to begin a $1.4 billion renovation of their EverBank Stadium after the conclusion of the 2025 season. They are planning to play their entire home schedule away from Jacksonville in 2027 ahead of the project's scheduled completion in 2028.[89]

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell expressed in 2023 his interest in having one or two NFL teams based in the United Kingdom.[90] During a press conference in 2024, he mentioned the possibility of scheduling regular games in London while the Jaguars' stadium is being renovated. This initiative would allow the NFL to evaluate the financial viability of a permanent team in London.[91]

Jaguars owner Shahid Khan also owns Premier League club Fulham F.C., who play in West London. In 2018, Khan dropped his bid to buy Wembley Stadium for nearly $800 million.[92][93]

Broadcasting

[edit]

United States

[edit]

From 2007 to 2014, every NFL International Series game was televised by either CBS or Fox through their existing broadcast agreements with the NFL.[94]

For the NFL London series, from 2014 to 2016 and in 2018 and 2021, one game aired outside of these agreements. In 2014, the selected game was streamed by Yahoo! Sports.[95] From 2015 to 2016 and in 2018 and 2021, the selected game was aired by NFL Network.[94] In 2017 and 2019, two NFL London Series games aired outside of these agreements. In 2017, one game aired on Yahoo! Sports with the other on NFL Network.[96] In 2019, both games aired on NFL Network.[97] In 2022 and 2023, with new broadcasting agreements, one NFL London Series game per season aired on ESPN+, with the remaining games on NFL Network.[98]

For the NFL Mexico series, with the exception of 2017 which aired on CBS, all games have aired on ESPN as part of Monday Night Football.[99][100]

For the NFL Germany series, all games have aired on NFL Network.[98]

For the NFL Brazil series, the inaugural game in 2024 was aired on Peacock.[101]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]

Explanatory notes

Citations

  1. ^ Wilson, Ryan (July 8, 2015). "NFL, Tottenham Hotspur agree on 10-year partnership for NFL games". CBS Sports. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
  2. ^ a b "NFL extends deal to play games at Wembley through 2020". Associated Press. October 22, 2015. Archived from the original on December 8, 2015. Retrieved October 22, 2015.
  3. ^ "São Paulo, Brazil to host regular-season game during 2024 NFL season". NFL.com. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Spain to host NFL game at Real Madrid stadium in 2025". ESPN.com. February 9, 2024. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  5. ^ a b c d "NFL commissioner says Super Bowl may someday be held in London". ESPN.com. Associated Press. October 15, 2007.
  6. ^ "3 NFC, 3 AFC teams named possible 'hosts' in Europe". ESPN.com. Associated Press. January 8, 2007.
  7. ^ a b c d "NFL looking closely at expanding to 17 games with international flavor". ESPN.com. Associated Press. May 10, 2007.
  8. ^ "NFL opts not to hold second game in UK in 2010".
  9. ^ "NFL season to feature 17 regular-season games per team". NFL.com. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
  10. ^ "Creating the NFL Schedule". NFL.com. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
  11. ^ "NFL London Games 2022". Pick 6 Apparel. Archived from the original on July 5, 2022. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
  12. ^ Kelly, Omar (November 6, 2014). "Dolphins will host New York Jets in London in 2015". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on January 18, 2020. Retrieved November 6, 2014.
  13. ^ "NFL games in Britain OK'd through '16". Espn.go.com. October 11, 2011. Retrieved August 13, 2012.
  14. ^ a b "NFL clubs expand commitment to playing international regular season games". NFL UK. National Football League. Retrieved October 7, 2015.
  15. ^ Breer, Albert (May 22, 2012). "Five-year extension of Buffalo Bills' Toronto series approved". NFL.com. Retrieved August 27, 2012.
  16. ^ "Bills to play annual regular-season game in Toronto starting next season". ESPN.com. Associated Press. February 1, 2008.
  17. ^ "Colts Are First NFL Team With No Bye Week Following Game In London". Archived from the original on November 21, 2016. Retrieved November 21, 2016.
  18. ^ "Fantasy Football 2017: NFL Bye Week Cheat Sheet". Athlonsports.com. May 7, 2018. Retrieved August 8, 2018.
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