Mexico City’s stadium is undergoing renovations so there is nowhere to play in Mexico.
The National Football League has not given up on Mexico City as a source of income as the city has been hosting league games over the years as part of an international series but the league will be absent in 2023 and 2024 in Mexico. The reason? Mexico City’s stadium, which was good enough for NFL games except for 2018 where field conditions prevented the league from staging a game, is not good enough for the governing body of soccer. The stadium will be renovated because FIFA wants palatial settings for its well-heeled 2026 Men’s World Cup customers and the Mexico City stadium doesn’t meet FIFA standards. The NFL probably will be seeking Mexico pesos again in 2025. But that leaves the door open for Germany, a place that has caught the NFL’s eye. The NFL apparently is in love with Germany and could stage a second international series game there in 2023.
Initially, the NFL announced it would stage an annual game in Germany through 2025, with games hosted in Munich and Frankfurt. The NFL wants to become a player in European sports even though there is no support system to produce players in any European country from the six-year-old level to high school. So, every game would just be an event as opposed to being part of the fabric of a community. Brett Gosper, who is the NFL’s Head of Europe and UK, said that Spain and France are the two nations the league is most heavily considering currently. Gosper also said the Nordic countries, particularly Sweden, are potential future locations for NFL games. In 1988, the Minnesota Vikings played the Chicago Bears in the only preseason game ever played in Sweden. The NFL is the biggest sports league in the United States but does not have a large presence globally.
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