At the time of writing, there are protests in La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football (soccer), over plans to stage a league fixture in Miami in December 2025. Clubs have long toured the globe to play friendlies, while more recently certain super-cup clashes have taken place abroad, typically in Saudi Arabia.
This is always done for commercial reasons, with hosts such as the uber-wealthy Saudis generally paying for the privilege. Moreover, the clubs also gain because they can win more global fans and generate more money through sales of merchandise and memberships.
While this is all very new in the beautiful game, and faces opposition, it should be no real surprise that the world’s most financially successful league has long staged league games overseas. The NFL easily leads the way in terms of revenues generated by the various leagues across different sports and countries.
In the 2024 season, the NFL brought in almost $20bn, over 50% more than the next most lucrative pro sports league, the NBA. That it achieved this despite holding less than a quarter of the matches of basketball’s leading league is a testament to just how financially successful the NFL is.
The NFL can be seen as the master of commercial success, with the premier American football league squeezing every last penny out of fans and the many TV companies and businesses that want a piece of the action. Quite how big a role the staging of overseas regular-season games has had is impossible to quantify. However, for those who love the NFL, with all its undeniable razzamatazz and incredible athleticism, it has certainly made watching a world-class game of American football in person less logistically challenging.
UK the NFL’s Second Home
Regular-season games played outside of the USA have become known as the NFL International Series. It all began almost 20 years ago, when the New York Giants met the Miami Dolphins at Wembley Stadium in 2007. Franchise owners approved plans for international games in October 2006 and a year later, in week eight, the Giants won 13-10 on the 28th of October 2007. Over 81,000 watched live inside Wembley and the whole endeavour was an instant success.
In the following five years, Wembley hosted a single game each season, averaging well over 80,000 fans, with tickets generally selling out within hours of going on sale. 2013 was the first year when multiple matches were held in the UK, with two that year, increasing to three and then reaching four in 2017.
In 2016, Twickenham hosted the first UK game outside of Wembley. The Giants beat the LA Rams 17-10 and Twickenham expanded to hold two matches in 2017. With the UK now boasting four matches per season, there was a steady stream of NFL action throughout early autumn, with clashes typically scheduled on consecutive Sundays throughout October.
In 2019, the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium held an NFL match for the first time, in fact, staging two of the four UK clashes that season. In 2021, it held both the UK’s games and now, broadly speaking, shares the honours with Wembley. With the UK’s 2025 matches completed, Wembley has now held 27 NFL games, with Spurs’ home on 12 and Twickenham having held just three, back in 2016 and 2017.
Neighbours Next
Amid this expansion in the UK, the NFL also sought to stage games in other countries. There was much discussion and debate among owners and the league’s marketeers, but eventually it was decided that Mexico should be the next nation to feature in the International Series.
In November 2016, following on from three October games in London, Mexico City’s iconic Aztec Stadium welcomed the Houston Texans and the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders won the first NFL game to be staged outside the US and UK, triumphing 20-27.
Mexico City held a single game in each of the 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2022 seasons. Over 78,000 fans watched the 49ers beat the Arizona Cardinals in the last clash but Mexico has not held a game since the 21st of November 2022. It is, however, on the schedule once again for 2026.
Germany Next for NFL Roadshow
In 2022, Germany became the third nation outside America to host an NFL regular-season contest. On the 13th of November, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers got the better of the Seattle Seahawks by a score of 21-16. The game took place in front of almost 70,000 fans at the Allianz Arena, better known as the home of Bayern Munich.
Two games followed in 2023, with a single game in 2024 and 2025. Frankfurt and Berlin have joined Munich in staging matches.
And Then Brazil…
The expansion of the International Series has beaten a steady and consistent path and the NFL moved to a third continent, after North America and Europe, when Brazil hosted a match on the 6th of September 2024. Almost a year to the day later, a second game followed, with both of the clashes being played in São Paulo. In 2026, there is a third match scheduled, with one of the world’s great stadia, Rio’s Maracana, set to do the honours.
Expansion Becomes More Rapid
The NFL money men and the teams themselves are clearly happy with the way the notion of international matches is going as 2025 saw two new countries host matches for the first time. In late September, the Minnesota Vikings and Pittsburgh Steelers broke new ground in Ireland, playing at Dublin’s Croke Park.
Then, in mid-November, Madrid was booked to host Spain’s first NFL regular-season contest. The brilliantly modern Santiago Bernabeu, which holds well over 80,000 following redevelopment, will see the Washington Commanders “at” the Miami Dolphins, with the latter officially designated as the home team.
What Does the Future Hold?
We know for certain that 2026 will see more games in London, Mexico and Brazil but we will also see a new country and indeed a new continent join the NFL party. The vast Melbourne Cricket Ground, which has a maximum capacity of over 100,000, though probably less for an NFL game, will see the LA Rams play in 2026. They will be the “home” side, with their opponents yet to be confirmed.
There are also already discussions about playing matches at some stage in Wales, Scotland, China and Canada, with the latter having hosted pre-season games in the past. There have even been talks about trying to have a permanent London-based franchise, though that has several fairly obvious issues. In the short term, it is most likely to see an existing team make the UK their home for a season or two. And who knows, maybe in the future we’ll see Barcelona play a season in New York, with Manchester United in LA? Or maybe not!