What football can learn from NFL's international games

Two European shot leagues are group to measurement into uncharted territory aft agreeing to return regular-season games overseas for nan first time.

Fans, players and moreover European football's governing assemblage Uefa have stressed their opposition to La Liga's scheme to play successful Miami successful December, while Serie A is group to shape a crippled successful Perth, Australia.

They will not beryllium nan first sports leagues to spell global, pinch America's large 3 - nan National Basketball Association (NBA), Major League Baseball (MLB) and nan National Football League (NFL) - having held regular-season games overseas for much than 2 decades.

So really successful person they been, and what do NFL players, fans and teams deliberation astir world games?

Since 1990, nan NBA has held 40 world games crossed 4 countries while MLB has staged 37 successful 5 countries since 1996.

Both leagues person much scheduled complete nan adjacent twelvemonth and Leah MacNab, NBA caput of world strategy and operations, says world games person "served arsenic a catalyst for nan continued maturation of nan crippled connected a world basis".

But nan maturation of nan NBA and MLB has been dwarfed by that of nan NFL. Sunday's crippled astatine Wembley was nan NFL's 54th overseas crippled since its first successful Mexico successful 2005.

Although nan number of world NFL fans has grown to 410 million, different sports person acold more. It is conscionable nan NFL now has a business exemplary that has proved highly profitable, pinch world games contributing to that revenue.

The NFL's shared income, which is distributed arsenic to its 32 teams, has accrued from $8bn (£6bn) for 2010 to much than $23bn (£17bn) successful 2024 - almost double nan NBA and MLB, and triple nan Premier League.

That accelerated maturation began astir 2003, erstwhile nan NFL put a semipermanent strategy successful place, pinch competitory overseas games seen arsenic nan champion measurement to turn American shot globally.

London staged yearly games from 2007 and nan NFL only expanded its world bid erstwhile it was assured nan matches would proceed to waste out.

The convention initially met guidance from teams because they did not want to sacrifice a location fixture, and from players because of nan travel. That began to alteration arsenic teams saw really celebrated nan games were and because they were made to consciousness astatine home.

Henry Hodgson, wide head of NFL UK and Ireland, told BBC Sport nan convention made it clear teams "had to person a seamless, exceptional acquisition erstwhile they played overseas".

And world games person been held successful immoderate of nan world's astir iconic, state-of-the-art stadiums, specified arsenic Wembley and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, pinch more to follow.

The Jacksonville Jaguars helped nan origin by agreeing to play each twelvemonth astatine Wembley from 2013. They are nan only NFL squad that manages an world crippled themselves and support each revenues from it.

"From a financial standpoint, it was amended for america to play 1 crippled present than successful Jacksonville," said Jaguars president Mark Lamping.

"By moving that 1 game, we really make nan Jaguars stronger. I deliberation that's a bully trade-off, and our [US-based] fans person travel to understand nan logic for it."

The team's regular beingness successful London has besides raised consciousness of Jacksonville, helping forge business partnerships betwixt nan UK and Florida.

"It's been much successful than we anticipated," Lamping added. "But this wouldn't person worked if it didn't besides use nan metropolis of Jacksonville."

Some fans recreation from nan US and Europe to be world games, and usually 90% of nan crowd is from nan big country. But for Ireland's first NFL crippled successful September, much than 30% were from nan US.

That shows really nan move astatine each world crippled is unique.

Captain Duval is simply a long-time NFL instrumentality based successful nan UK who says he "dipped his toed in" by watching different teams successful London earlier becoming a Jaguars superfan.

"The games are awesome for fans - they're ever-growing," he said. "We would travel conscionable to bask nan ambiance but erstwhile nan Jaguars started playing aggregate games present I decided to perpetrate to them and go this character."

Jetman is simply a New York Jets season-ticket holder who attended their games astatine Tottenham successful 2024 and this month.

"I had truthful overmuch nosy present past twelvemonth I had to travel back," he said. "The NFL is truthful ascendant that if you return a crippled to a different country, truthful galore group want to visit. I've met truthful galore group from truthful galore countries. I deliberation it's amazing."

Another Jets season-ticket holder successful London said: "It's awesome that nan NFL does this, but I don't deliberation different sports tin hit nan American shot fandom. I wouldn't urge them having world games."

An American Jets instrumentality attending his 2nd London crippled added: "I'm conscionable waiting for them to spell to different countries truthful I tin spell location too. I didn't cognize location was this galore Jets fans successful nan UK - it's awesome."

Former wide receiver Marquise Goodwin, who scored a touchdown successful nan NFL's first crippled successful Germany successful 2022, said: "The power was astonishing - I didn't expect it to beryllium for illustration that.

"It gives guys a chance to recreation and spot different cultures. I deliberation it's basal for guys to create into men, not beryllium confined to America, and spot that this world is bigger than you think."

Wide receiver Pat Bryant, who grew up successful Florida, had not been retired of nan US earlier helping nan Denver Broncos hit nan Jets astatine Tottenham this month.

"I'm blessed to beryllium capable to recreation nan world playing nan athletics I love," he said. "Growing up I was a Jaguars instrumentality and I ever wondered 'why do they support going complete there?' Then I heard they person a batch of fans complete here.

"To spot nan athletics increasing and becoming much worldwide, I'd emotion to spot different sports from different countries travel to america and show america what they've got."

Quarterback Trevor Lawrence was drafted by nan Jaguars successful 2021 and Sunday's crippled against nan Los Angeles Rams was his seventh successful London.

"It's nosy being complete here, it really is, and nan 2 stadiums are incredible," he said. "It's conscionable a cool ambiance to play in."

Rams backmost Matthew Stafford added: "It's a blast. Sometimes recreation is tough, but erstwhile you get retired present nan fans are great."

This twelvemonth nan Minnesota Vikings played successful Dublin and then London, becoming nan first squad to play successful 2 overseas countries successful nan aforesaid season, and afterwards linebacker Jonathan Greenard said he "would not for illustration to do back-to-back [again]".

That is judge to beryllium noted, arsenic different facet successful nan NFL's world occurrence is nan convention learns from caller things it tries to proceed improving nan process.

Perhaps nan biggest instruction for La Liga and Serie A is that nan NFL's activity successful world markets originates years earlier an existent crippled comes to town.

The NFL has established a world emblem shot web while nan Jaguars launched their ain grassroots programme called JagTag, which reached 100,000 young group crossed nan UK and Ireland successful 2024.

Other teams present akin initiatives arsenic portion of nan NFL's world markets programme, to thief build marque consciousness and fandom. The San Francisco 49ers, for example, are now processing connections successful nan United Arab Emirates.

Their strategy has 3 pillars - emblem shot competitions, organization events specified arsenic watch parties aliases charitable initiatives, and being consistently coming successful nan market.

"We want to create a semipermanent narration pinch fans there," said Stephanie Rogers, 49ers executive vice-president of marketing.

"We cognize their dedication is not contingent connected america playing a crippled there, truthful we person to show that our committedness to them isn't contingent connected a crippled either."

The UAE mightiness soon big an NFL crippled though, arsenic Abu Dhabi is 1 of nan cities wherever nan convention has conducted a tract visit.

This play location is simply a record 7 world games crossed 5 countries and nether nan NFL's existent Collective Bargaining Agreement, nan convention tin play up to 10 per year.

So arsenic La Liga and Serie A hole to return their first measurement successful world description , nan NFL's world footprint is group to get moreover bigger.