08 October 2023 , 14:54
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NFL commissioner Roger Goodell revealed that the league could add further expansion locations for the international series from 2024.
The NFL currently has an international series in London and Germany, with the latter first starting back in 2022. London has hosted NFL games since 2007, and will be at centre stage for three games this season.
Wembley Stadium has already hosted the Atlanta Falcons vs Jacksonville Jaguars in Week Four last Sunday. The Jaguars recorded a 23-7 win over the Falcon to move to 2-2 for the season.
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Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is hosting two further games in London this year. The Buffalo Bills face the Jaguars on October 8, followed by the Baltimore Ravens taking on the Tennessee Titans next Sunday, October 15.
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Goodell, who attended a fans’ forum this week, has explained how the NFL is considering adding another international location. "I do see us playing in more markets very soon, as early as next year," Goodell said on Saturday, via ESPN.
"We actually have three or four markets that are here this weekend and next weekend that are interested in hosting a game."
Goodell added: "We will not stop playing games in the UK, but we will play more games in other markets because we want to be a global sport.”
The NFL confirmed on September 29 that two further locations are under review to be added to the international series. Brazil and Spain could become hosts in the future to join England and Germany, although the league declined to comment further on Goodell’s comments from the fans’ forum.
It was confirmed by NFL executive vice president for club business Peter O’Reilly that league officials made visits to Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paolo in Brazil, as well as Madrid in Spain. These visits were made with the possibility of adding the cities to the NFL international series in the future, as well as “building relationships, looking at the stadia there, looking at the operations partners, the infrastructure.”
“There is passion and demand for our game and for the NFL outside the US, and that’s why we’re exploring it as fully as we are,” O’Reilly is quoted as having told the on September 29.
“We’ve seen the impact of bringing a game to a new market like last year in Germany, and the impact locally, the response from fans.”