America’s most popular sport could hold a regular season match Down Under within the next three years after the NFL confirmed it is looking at Australia as a possible location for one of its international series games.
The NFL’s head of international affairs Peter O’Reilly said at the league’s spring meetings on Tuesday that Australia was one of several markets the NFL was interested in having host a match in the future.
The NFL has played games in London since 2007.Credit: AP
“Australia is among a set, and it’s not a small set of markets, that we’re looking at,” O’Reilly said, confirming a report by Channel Nine earlier this week.
The NFL has played matches in England since 2007 and has expanded the reach of the international fixture since 2016, with only COVID-19 interrupting its progress. England, Brazil and Germany will host matches in the 2024 season, with the final overseas match played on November 10.
Philadelphia will open the 2024 NFL season against the Green Bay Packers in Sao Paulo on September 6 this year while the NFL announced in February that a game in Madrid, Spain would be played in the 2025 season. There are still international slots available in the schedule for 2025 and 2026. Mexico has also hosted a match. NFL teams play 17 matches each per season, meaning some years they have eight home games, but some years nine, which allows them the flexibility to play one of their home games outside America.
The NFL has taken a strategic approach to expanding the game’s reach, with NFL franchises allocated global marketing rights to overseas markets. The Los Angeles Rams and Philadelphia Eagles have the rights in Australia and New Zealand. Rams chief operating officer Kevin Demoff said in February 2022 he would love the franchise to play in Australia.
The MCG shapes as a perfect location for an NFL match. Credit: Getty Images
Along with Australia, clubs also have global marketing rights in countries such as Ireland, Switzerland, Austria, France, Ghana and China.
The MCG was flagged as a potential location for a match in Australia, but sources familiar with the process, who were not authorised to speak publicly, confirmed Visit Victoria along with entertainment giant TEG would be involved in any discussions to bring the NFL to Australia. A match played in Australia on a Friday afternoon could be broadcast into America on Thursday night, or Friday night if it was played on Saturday afternoon.
Visit Victoria, which has an office in Los Angeles, would not outline the progress being made in such discussions but responded to enquiries about their interest in bringing the NFL to Victoria.
“As Australia’s major events capital, we’re always looking at new opportunities and events for our calendar,” a Victorian government spokesperson said. The MCG is also hopeful of an NFL match being played at the venue but is not directly involved in the discussions with the NFL.
Sydney hosted a pre-season match between the Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers in 1999 and would also be a possible location for the match.
The NFL is America’s most dominant and popular sport and is booming in Australia with Super Bowl Monday now a key part of the country’s sporting calendar. There are also multiple Australians playing in the NFL, mainly as punters, with many former AFL players including Darren Bennett, Ben Graham and Saverio Rocca forging strong careers in the NFL.
The league is also opening an NFL Academy in September that will be based at A.B. Paterson College in south-east Queensland to create pathways for international talent. Most Australians have graduated to the NFL through former AFL player Nathan Chapman’s Prokick Australia.
The MCG would not be available until late in October each year, when the NFL season is under way, which would create challenges for teams travelling.
“When you start to talk about Asia, Pacific and Australia, you talk about distance and logistics and the football component of that,” O’Reilly said. “So those factors are real. But our role is to really look at the globe, look at where the fan base is strong and do the diligence, make the evaluations.”
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