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The NFL in Australia: Why is American Football Heading Down Under?

Will Brown by Will Brown, July 29, 2025

NFL LA Rams at Melbourne Cricket Ground Australia

In 2026, the National Football League (NFL) is set to play its first regular season game Down Under, with the LA Rams set to battle an unknown opponent before a packed stadium in Melbourne. The NFL in Australia game is a part of the NFL’s broader international expansion plans, which aim to build a global audience and, potentially, new franchises outside of the US. In this guide, we’ve discussed the event, the strategic thinking behind it, and more.

Intro to the NFL Game in Australia

While the details surrounding next year’s game are still a little murky, the NFL has clarified where and when the event will take place. To kick off this guide, we’ve shared what we know so far about the game and its inception.

From there, we’ve explored how it relates to the NFL’s international expansion plans, including its efforts to boost its global viewership and even create another team. Its Global Partners program has also been scrutinized, before we look at the pros and cons of hosting an NFL game in Melbourne.

What We Know About the NFL Game in Melbourne

In February 2025, the NFL announced that it would be entering a multi-year deal to bring regular-season games to Melbourne, Australia. While the opponent, specific date, and kickoff time are yet to be announced, it’s believed that NFL Melbourne 2026 will be held in Week 1 in September, with the LA Rams confirmed to be competing against an as-yet-unknown team.

The game will be held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), which is Australia’s most iconic sporting venue. The stadium holds over 100,000 spectators and is the home to the Australian Rules football Grand Final, among other sporting and non-sporting events. Organizers are confident the event will sell out.

The news came after nearly nine months of negotiations between the NFL and Australian states, with the state of Victoria ultimately winning. Due to its many stadiums and hosting of international sporting events such as the Australian Open tennis tournament and F1, Melbourne is considered to be Australia’s sporting capital.

However, there are some logistical challenges to address, namely that the game will be followed shortly by the AFL Grand Final at the MCG. Nevertheless, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has stated that the city is up for the challenge and highlighted that the event will boost jobs, tourism, and fandom across Australia.

The NFL’s International Expansion

The NFL game in Australia is a continuation of an international growth strategy that the league has been pursuing since the early 2000s. The NFL’s first regular-season international game came in 2005 when the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers battled it out in Mexico City.

However, its formal International Series didn’t begin until 2007, with London’s Wembley Stadium hosting a showdown between the Giants and Dolphins. Since then, a total of 55 NFL regular-season games have been held abroad, with games also held in Munich, São Paulo, and Frankfurt. The 2025 season is set to expand the rotation to include Dublin, Madrid, and Berlin, with a record seven international games to be held across the season.

Not only does this bring extra excitement when live betting at the best NFL online sportsbooks, but the games are a part of a broader strategy to boost the sport’s global appeal. The NFL sees the International Series as a chance to introduce internationa fans to the sport, further improving its profitability and sustainability into the future.

While early International Series games were criticized for only featuring low-ranked teams, roughly 40% of teams that’ve played international games have reached the playoffs since 2016. This has helped to ensure international audiences that the games they attend will be consequential and high-quality.

Another benefit of the International Series is the prospect of television rights money. It’s been reported that the NFL has been preparing a multi-billion-dollar rights package for international games, buoyed by the fact that overseas games may require obscure timeslots. If successful, the league will likely need to create international games featuring more big-market teams.

About the NFL’s Global Partners Program

The NFL in Australia marks the first time a regular-season game will be held in a Southern Hemisphere city. It is the result of the NFL’s Global Markets Program, which was launched in 2022 to help teams build overseas fan bases. Essentially, franchises are granted the right to partner with overseas cities or nations with exclusive marketing deals.

Teams can make multiple deals across regions, with the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams, Las Vegas Raiders, and Seattle Seahawks having marketing rights deals in Australia and New Zealand. Under the program, the franchises can run events, build local sponsorships, develop football programs, and create local content as they would in their home markets.

It is estimated that there are already 6.6 million NFL fans in Australia, so the teams can already capitalize on a pre-existing following. According to the Los Angeles Rams owner E. Stanley Kroenke, the partnership with Australia will further close ties between the country and the US. “When we first identified Australia as one of our global markets, it was not only because of our passionate fans who reside there, but also because of the important role Los Angeles plays,” he said.

Why Will There Be an NFL Game in Australia?

In addition to the already large NFL following in Australia, the NFL game in Melbourne also makes sense on a practical level. Australia is home to dozens of modern sporting facilities, and its hosting of two Olympic Games and countless other international sports events has proved its capability of showcasing global sports.

The MCG’s large capacity is similar to that of SoFI Stadium’s expandable capacity of 100,240 seats, ensuring that the games will be held before some of the game’s largest ever crowds. Rams players Kobie Turner and Steve Avila recently toured the MCG and expressed their excitement for the event, with Turner saying, “It is a crazy stadium… imagining 100,000 people screaming for football—that gives me chills.”

Australia is a prime market for several other reasons too, including the nation’s known passion for sports, its appeal to US tourists, a high-spending consumer population, and modern media facilities. ESPN Australia reported that the 2025 Super Bowl was the most-watched event in the broadcaster’s history, despite the Monday morning broadcast slot, proving its appetite for the NFL.

Melbourne’s time zone difference is also a benefit, with a 1 PM Sunday game meaning that it will still air during primetime on Saturday in the USA. The multi-year nature of the deal means that the 2026 NFL game in Australia will likely be the first of many, though it’s possible the location could move to Sydney, Brisbane, or beyond.

The Challenges of Bringing the NFL to Australia

Despite the many advantages to hosting the NFL in Australia, there are still some uncomfortable truths to address. The clearest is that there is a 16-hour flight from Los Angeles to Melbourne, making it the longest journey an NFL team would have to make for a game.

This will likely cause travel fatigue for players by disrupting sleep patterns and training routines. Therefore, teams would need to arrive a few days in advance to adjust to the time difference and have enough time before competing the next week to reacclimate in the US. Of course, the distance may also be too costly for the Rams’ local fans to attend.

Another hurdle is that the game must not interfere with the AFL finals while still adhering to the NFL’s strict calendar. This will involve both leagues working in tandem with the Victorian government to ensure minimal disruptions. Of course, considering the stakes, we do not doubt that the NFL will rise to the challenge to create a truly historic event.

The Future of International NFL Games

The NFL Australia 2026 game is just one example of the NFL’s ultimate international expansion efforts. Commissioner Roger Goodell has openly expressed interest in the idea of an international Super Bowl, and the entrance into the Asia-Pacific market could pave the way to visits to Japan, South Korea, or even China.

There is also much discussion of opening new global franchises, with London, Munich, Madrid, Dublin, Mexico City, and Canadian cities earmarked. While it is unlikely that Australia’s location will make it a viable candidate, establishing connections could help to strengthen a pipeline of international sporting talent to the league. For now, all signs toward the NFL’s global future are strong.

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