Roger Goodell says an international NFL franchise will happen
International NFL franchises are no longer a question of if, but when, according to league commissioner Roger Goodell. The NFL has been expanding its global profile for years now, with new locations for games being introduced yearly.
Roger Goodell, the commissioner of the NFL since 2006, told former NFL player Markus Kuhn — a German linebacker who spent four years in the NFL with the New York Giants and New England Patriots — in an interview for German broadcaster RTL/ntv that he has no doubt the league will eventually have teams operating permanently outside the United States.
Roger Goodell guaranteed that international NFL franchises will happen and said a Super Bowl could follow once a city gets its own team
“At some point, there will be NFL teams outside the USA. I have no doubt that this will happen one day,” Goodell told German broadcaster RTL/ntv.
Goodell also addressed the possibility of international Super Bowls, suggesting that the league would want to establish a franchise in that city first.
“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.”
American NFL fans, however, are largely against the idea of the league permanently going abroad.
1. Horrible
2. Please no expansion teams. We don’t even have enough good players for 32 teams as it is https://t.co/feyvew4CCd— Stone Tanner (@stone_tanner1) August 18, 2026
“no way to avoid this,” says only league that ever talks about doing it https://t.co/XSVp4LHO87
— Dave Helman (@davehelman_) August 18, 2026
Someone get him out of the commisioners office https://t.co/AIHjB9bDwO
— Ben Houselog (@benlikessport) August 18, 2026
The comments from Goodell come as the NFL prepares for a record nine international regular-season games in 2026, with three in England and one each in Australia, Brazil, France, Spain, Germany, and Mexico.
London has long been the most likely candidate for an international NFL franchise, especially with Tottenham Hotspur Stadium being specifically built to be compatible with NFL playing surfaces. Germany has also emerged as a potential location for an NFL franchise in recent years, given the success of Frankfurt and Munich games in recent seasons.