The New Orleans Saints in France. The Atlanta Falcons in Germany. The Pittsburgh Steelers in Ireland and Northern Ireland.
These are some of the new pairings announced Tuesday in the NFL’s year-and-a-half-old global markets programs, which allow teams to market in specific countries. The program had 19 teams operating in 10 countries (many of these clubs have multiple markets, so when adding them all together it’s 30 markets). It’s now 21 teams in 14 countries and 40 total markets.
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“Clubs are looking at it strategically and not necessarily, ‘This is some near-term thing, I’m going to come in and do a couple of deals,'” said Peter O’Reilly, NFL executive vice president of international and league events. “They are looking at it over the long haul as we are in terms of growing fans.”
Teams are allowed to sell sponsorships, set up fan clubs, create alliances with local sports teams, and do almost anything they do in the U.S. The NFL still controls and manages the staging of international games, other than for the Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium.
Prior to the 2022 implementation of the program, teams were prohibited from marketing overseas (the Jaguars were the exception given their annual game in London). Unlike European sports leagues that do not restrict greatly where clubs may market, U.S. sports leagues tightly regulate it.
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So the NFL’s global push allowing teams some free reign is being closely followed in this country. It’s hard to judge success so far. American football is not greatly popular outside the U.S., though the German market, which will now have five NFL teams marketing there, has demonstrated great passion for the sport.
Last year, 750,000 requests came in the day when tickets went on sale for the first Germany game in Munich (O’Reilly said the reports that there could have been 3 million tickets sold is a bit of an urban legend but does underscore the demand). Expressions of interest in getting in the queue for the two Frankfurt games this fall already are outpacing last year’s figures by 100 percent, O’Reilly said.
The Falcons chose Germany for that demonstrated passion, but also because of the estimated 30,000 flag football players there, said Greg Beadles, the team’s president.
“So we’re one of the leading teams in the NFL girls’ flag football,” Beadles said. “Second, most military, U.S. military bases in Germany salute to service. And that outreach for us is huge. We’re always kind of recognized in that space.” Salute to Service is the NFL’s military appreciation platform.
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Also, German company Mercedes-Benz has naming rights for the Falcons’ stadium, he added. The team hopes to play a game in Germany, Beadles said.
Three of the clubs with German rights — the Kansas City Chiefs, New England Patriots and Tampa Bay Buccaneers — expanded their presence beyond Germany to include Austria and Switzerland (the Carolina Panthers also have German rights). The Jaguars added Ireland as a marketing territory.
An NFL team is putting down roots in France for the first time. Given the French history in New Orleans, O’Reilly said, it makes sense for that team to be the Saints. And the Rooney family that owns the Pittsburgh Steelers has long-standing ties to Ireland. The late Dan Rooney was even an ambassador to Ireland during the Obama presidency.
“My family has deep roots throughout Ireland and being able to connect with our fans across the island is something special to our organization,” Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a release. “My father did so much in Ireland during his lifetime, first as one of the founders of the Ireland Funds, then as ambassador.”
One other change to the program: the name. It had been known as the International Home Market Areas, a word salad that wasn’t quite clear. It is called the Global Markets Program.
Market teams
• Austria: Chiefs, Patriots, Buccaneers
• Australia: Rams, Eagles
• Brazil: Dolphins
• Canada: Vikings, Seahawks
• China: Rams
• France: Saints
• Germany: Falcons, Panthers, Chiefs, Patriots, Buccaneers
• Ghana: Eagles
• Mexico: Cardinals, Cowboys, Broncos, Texans, Chiefs, Raiders, Rams, Steelers, 49ers
• New Zealand: Rams, Eagles
• Republic of Ireland: Jaguars, Steelers
• Spain: Bears, Dolphins
• Switzerland: Chiefs, Patriots, Buccaneers
• United Kingdom: Bears, Jaguars, Dolphins, Vikings, Jets, Steelers (Northern Ireland only), 49ers
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Source: NFL
(Photo: Sebastian Widmann / Getty Images)
