The NFL London Games have been a rousing success ever since they debuted all the way back in 2007. In fact, the league has only expanded its schedule in London, as well as other countries, over the past decade-and-a-half. Three games have taken place in The Square Mile this season alone.
Naturally, this has many wondering whether the NFL would ever expand to London outright. Sure, having international games featuring domestic teams draws interest. The NFL is having no trouble putting butts in seats, and intrigue seems to be high among residents of The Capital and the United Kingdom at large. But the commitment to American football would be even more evident if the country had its own team, or even two.
Financially speaking, it would also be a major win for the league. The NFL already generates tens of millions of dollars off its series of London games each year. Permanently expanding abroad would open up a new wave of NFL betting revenue, not to mention merchandising sales and brand partnerships.
Yet, while it all sounds great in theory, the logistics of expanding abroad can get pretty complicated. This is not to say the topic will disappear. It won’t.
On the contrary, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was just asked about it.
The NFL Has Yet to Rule Out International Expansion
The commish recently spoke with Alex Sherman of CNBC, and when asked about the possibility of NFL expansion into London or elsewhere, he did not rule out the possibility. Consider the following excerpt from Sherman:
“‘I would say that the markets outside the U.S. are very, very attractive,’ Goodell told CNBC in an exclusive interview. ‘And we’ve got pretty good coverage here.’ The league has been expanding international play in recent years, with match-ups this season taking place in Brazil, Ireland, England, Germany and Spain. It’s long seen success with games in London, in particular.
“Goodell said standing up a London-based team was ‘possible,’ adding, ‘There are markets that could certainly support a team. We’ve always focused on, what are the competitive consequences of that? Can we manage that? And so every year we try to learn something from the international series…It starts to give you a sense of, can you do certain things that are going to be necessary from a scheduling standpoint and a training standpoint? When we first came up with the idea of [an international] regular season game, I didn’t think there would be as much support. But now, every team wants to do it. We don’t have to talk them into it. They’re asking us.’”
Goodell’s comments about trying to “learn something” from the international series each particularly stand out. This time around, the Minnesota Vikings became the first team in NFL history to play consecutive games abroad. They first faced the Pittsburgh Steelers in Dublin on September 28 before heading to a game against the Cleveland Browns in London on October 5.
Could a team handle international travel on a regular basis, and how does it impact their play? Those seem to be the questions the NFL is trying to answer.
Future of NFL Expansion Remains Murky
Expanding into London and other countries is not a given for the NFL. Indeed, it is eminently more plausible than seeing it happen in the NHL, NBA or MLB—leagues in which teams play more often than once a week. To that end, many are even predicting an NFL team will be stationed abroad by the end of the decade.
At the same time, there remains a lot to consider. For starters, the NFL needs a larger sample on how more frequent international travel impacts the quality of play. It’s one thing to continue adding games to the domestic schedule. It’s another thing entirely having one team jettison to and from London potentially on a weekly basis.
As many point out, the NFL has the ability to futz and fiddle with the schedule more than most leagues. Building a three games at home, followed by three games away model into the schedule of any London-based team, or something similar, could go a long way.
The bigger issue, though, may be the actual relocation. Emphasis on relocation.
Most experts agree that any expansion abroad won’t feature the addition of a team (or teams). Instead, it will be headlined by an existing franchise moving its operating base.
It is tough to say how that would work. Does a current owner volunteer to relocate? Or must the NFL wait for the sale of a team and approve of an ownership group that wants to purchase a franchise and base it out of London?
This exact issue has yet to be tackled. But if the league’s interest in foreign markets is any indication, it’s only a matter of time before it’s forced to take a more definitive stance on international expansion.
