ORLANDO, Fla. — The NFL approved an amendment Tuesday to allow a maximum of 10 league-run international regular-season games a season, and the league believes there’s a path to hitting that mark as early as 2027.
Previously, the NFL had capped that annual total at eight international games. However, there are nine in 2026, as the Jacksonville Jaguars will play back-to-back games in London while EverBank Stadium undergoes renovations, negotiating and operating one of the games as the home team. If the league wishes to schedule more than 10 international games in a future season, it would require approval from the NFLPA.
“That shows the momentum and I think the support for the model we have,” NFL executive vice president Peter O’Reilly said at the spring meetings at Conrad Orlando at Evermore.
O’Reilly acknowledged the league could eventually reach a point where it schedules as many as 16 international games a season.
Additionally, the NFL eliminated scheduling protections to ease the burden on the schedule-making process. Teams had previously been permitted to protect two scheduled opponents from being involved in international games, but they can no longer do so.
The league is also eyeing new markets in Asia, including Japan, for future game sites, though O’Reilly didn’t anticipate a “complex” location until at least 2028.
The NFL debuted in Brazil in 2024 and returned in 2025 and 2026. The league also launched games in Ireland and Spain in 2025 and will add Australia and France this year.
“Our strategy is not one and done,” O’Reilly said. “Our goal is to go back to those markets that we’re establishing.”
O’Reilly also indicated an international Super Bowl is not a priority at the moment.
O’Reilly said Monday on the “Up & Adams” show that the games themselves are “big and glitzy,” but the international expansion goes beyond the regular-season games played in the fall.
“It’s about the year-round,” O’Reilly said. “It’s about all of the days in between where you’re building the game.”
O’Reilly highlighted the Miami Dolphins’ selection of Seydou Traore in the fifth round of the 2026 NFL Draft as a “full-circle moment” because Traore is a graduate of the NFL’s UK academy.
“That model is going to happen more and more,” O’Reilly said. “Someone who grew up playing flag in one of our programs around the world, into one of our academies, and then playing on an NFL field. That’s what’s upon us.”
O’Reilly also said the quality of the matchups will be important as the international slate continues to grow.
“That shows the importance to us (and) to our media partners around, making sure in these big windows and around the world, we’re showcasing incredible games,” O’Reilly said.