Roger Goodell, head of the National Football League, has promised a European division for the North American professional league. “We’re looking to see if there are more venues in Europe that could have an NFL franchise because it would be easier as a division,” Goodell said ahead of Sunday’s game between the Green Bay Packers and the New York Giants in London.
For some time there have been rumors of a possible team in London. “I think there’s no question that London can’t support just one franchise,” said Goodell. The Green Bay Packers are the last NFL team to play a game in the UK.
The NFL has also hosted seasonal games internationally since 2007 with the aim of making the league a truly global brand. There will be an NFL game in Germany for the first time in November, when Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers meet the Seattle Seahawks at Munich’s Allianz Arena. After that, every year there should be a regular NFL match in Germany, alternating between Frankfurt and Munich, to meet the great interest in this country.
A challenge of a European division would be the many long trips abroad for the players and the teams. The problem, according to Goodell, is less logistics than competition. But there are still many other details that need to be clarified, such as player selection and contracts.
