Goodell: NFL Eyes 8 International Games for 2025 Schedule; Names Expected Locations

Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via The NFL is weighing scheduling up to eight games abroad for the 2025 season.

Commissioner Roger Goodell said Sunday on NFL Network that the league is "shooting for" eight contests as part of its annual International Series. He listed off Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, England and perhaps Ireland as the potential staging grounds.

The NFL already announced it's adding Spain to its regular rotation of international countries. The Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid will host the occasion.

Ireland, meanwhile, has increasingly emerged as a candidate for the International Series.

The Associated Press' Ken Maguire spoke with Henry Hodgson, the general manager for the NFL's United Kingdom office in May and Hodgson said Dublin was under evaluation.

"There's a feasibility study, as we would call it, in a number of different European cities and Dublin is one of those," Hodgson said. "Looking at the stadiums, taking local meetings ... we'll take away all of that information, digest it and determine what the next steps are.

"That's something that's happening in Dublin, it's happening in Paris for example, and a number of other cities around the world as well."

ESPN's Adam Schefter reported on Oct. 6 the Pittsburgh Steelers are believed to be a "prime candidate" for a Dublin game. The Steelers have spent years building a foundation for support in Ireland, going back to a 1997 preseason game. The franchise is also one of three teams assigned to Ireland as part of the NFL's Global Markets Program .

Last December, NFL owners approved expanding the International Series to as many as eight games starting in 2025.

Considering how focused the league is on widening its footprint around the world, it doesn't come as a surprise that Goodell would try to max out its international slate as soon as possible.