The NFL expects to be playing a regular-season game in Tokyo in either 2027 or 2028, commissioner Roger Goodell said on Friday.
“Listen, Tokyo is clearly on our list, whether it’s next year or the year after. It’s coming at some point in the near future,” Goodell told NFL Daily.
“We’re going to continue to focus on our priority markets, which a lot of them they’ve been in, but there are other cities; this year, we went to Rio (de Janeiro) rather than Sao Paulo.
Goodell was quick to point to the power of the NFL with its trip to Melbourne, Australia, for a Week 1 encounter between the San Francisco 49ers and rival Los Angeles Rams.
“On a Friday morning at 10:30 (a.m. local time), to have 100,000 people in the stadium, it was just an incredible feeling for us. I think it’s opened up new opportunities for us,” Goodell said. “The travel is something we think we can manage and do it without impacting negatively on the teams. So, each of these we learned something from and we benefit and we also open those other doors.
“We’re planning on playing global. That’s where we’re going.”
The NFL has played five of its nine international games thus far this season.
Goodell was in Paris on Friday in advance of the Pittsburgh Steelers’ game on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.
The league’s second trip to Spain takes place in Week 9 with the Cincinnati Bengals battling the Atlanta Falcons on Nov. 8 in Madrid.
Next up is Germany, where the New England Patriots will meet the Detroit Lions in Week 10 on Nov. 15 in Munich.
The final international offering features the Minnesota Vikings and 49ers in Mexico City in Week 11 on Nov. 22
The NFL previously played 14 exhibition games in Japan, with the last one pitting the Falcons against the Indianapolis Colts in 2005.
–Field Level Media
