It looks like the NFL will add a new division in the coming years. An anonymous NFL owner told Front Office Sports that the league is looking to create an international division down the road. The owner said the NFL doesn’t know if the international division will start in two years or five years since there is no timetable in place. This news comes after the NFL had five international games in 2022.
The NFL hasn’t added a new team since 2002 when it welcomed the Houston Texans. Before that, the league added the Carolina Panthers and Jacksonville Jaguars in 1995. There have been reports over the years that the Jaguars could move to London since they play one game person there. The NFL has played an international game nearly every season since the NFL International Series began in 2007. The only year the NFL didn’t have international games during that span is 2020 which was the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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According to Pro Football Talk, the NFL has played 38 regular season games outside the United States with 33 in the United Kingdom, four in Mexico and one in Germany. For the 2023 season, the UK will host two games and Germany will host two games. There will be no games in Mexico due to the renovations taking place at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
“Every time we play a game whether it’s in the UK or Germany, it’s just extraordinary to see the reaction of the fans,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said. “When we went to Germany, I don’t think any of us would have anticipated the kind of reaction we got there. For our first game, and having been somebody who was involved with American football in Germany through the NFL since 1989. To me, it was really rewarding to see how our fan base has expanded, and we want to make NFL football a global sport. I think we’ll continue on this path. We both every record around our international games this year whether it was viewership or attendance. The excitement is just extraordinary. What our biggest challenge is how do we bottle that? How do we take that and how do we make NFL football a global sport? We’re well on our way to that, and we’re going to put a lot of focus on that.”
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DUESSELDORF, GERMANY – SEPTEMBER 14: Meghan, Duchess of Sussex Prince, and Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, take selfies with fans as they attend the Ukraine Nigeria Mixed Team Preliminary Round – Pool A Sitting Volleyball match during day five of the Invictus Games Düsseldorf 2023 on September 14, 2023 in Duesseldorf, Germany. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for the Invictus Games Foundation)
