NFL commissioner Roger Goodell hinted on August 19 that the NFL will have a team outside of the United States in the future.
"At some point, there will be NFL teams outside the USA," he said during an interview with German outlet RTL/ntv. "I have no doubt that this will happen one day."
There are plenty of cities with NFL potential
, but where has the NFL preferred so far with its slate of international games?USA TODAY analyzed the history of NFL regular season games abroad and counted the number of times the league has played a game in each country outside the United States.
The United Kingdom is in first place — and it’s not even close.
Through the 2025 season, the country has hosted 42 NFL tilts, a total that represents 67.7% of all 62 international
games.
All of the NFL’s regular-season games in the U.K. have been in London, which hosted its first regular-season contest in 2007. Multiple venues have been used, however, including Wembley Stadium, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Twickenham Stadium.
After England, Canada has hosted six games, while Mexico and Germany have both hosted five.
Then Brazil has hosted a pair, and Spain and Ireland have hosted one apiece.
Canada has been absent from the league’s latest international push; its six games were part of a series hosted by the Buffalo Bills in Toronto between 2008 and 2013. Germany and Mexico are scheduled to move into a three-way tie with Canada after the 2026 season.
This season will also be the first time the league has ventured to Australia and France with games in Melbourne and Paris. The remainder will be played in the U.K., Brazil and Spain.
In total, nine games will be played internationally during the upcoming regular season, the most in NFL history. The NFL has approved up to 10 international games per season beginning in 2027.
However, what comes next is up in the air: there are plenty of questions surrounding international expansion, from the best city for an expansion team to the potential for a Super Bowl abroad.
For now, the NFL will continue its international series — even though Goodell maintains an international team is inevitable at some point down the line.
Methodology: NFL press releases and the Buffalo Bills’ history of Toronto games were used to tally up country totals for regular-season games through 2025. Exact sources for: the United Kingdom, Mexico, Germany, Brazil, Ireland and Spain.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: The NFL is going global. One country still owns its overseas history.
