Goodell Says 'No Doubt' NFL Will Have a Team Based Outside the U.S.
The commissioner told a German outlet an international franchise is inevitable, and said an international Super Bowl becomes plausible once a team is permanently based abroad.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said he has "no doubt" the league will eventually have a franchise permanently based outside the United States, telling German outlet RTL/ntv, "At some point, there will be NFL teams outside the USA."
How does this compare to his past comments?
The statement marks a more definitive tone than in previous years. In 2023, Goodell told CBS he "didn't know what the future was going to be" on international expansion, and in 2024 he said only that "there's potential."
Did he mention hosting a Super Bowl abroad?
Goodell said an international Super Bowl is plausible once a team is established in a host market: "There are definitely international cities that could host something like that," but "we would like to see an NFL team in such a city first." He did not name a specific target market or timeline.
Sources
- ESPN: Roger Goodell says 'no doubt' NFL will have team based outside U.S.