The National Football League (NFL) has been growing their game internationally within the past few years. The league’s International Series began back in 2007 when games took to London, England for the first time. Since then, the league has only been expanding. The 2023-24 NFL season included games in England, Brazil and Germany, and league officials also announced plans to play in Madrid, Spain in 2025. Now, they’ve announced that they are readying a trip to Australia for 2025, as well.
It’s already been announced that the American Football Conference (AFC) rivalry of the Buffalo Bills and Miami Dolphins will be the matchup for the game and will also be the first matchup of the season’s International Series. Two of the league’s best teams and strongest fan bases should captivate the eyes of many. With marketable players like Bills quarterback Josh Allen and Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa taking the field, the kickoff to the 2025 NFL International Series should be one of the most anticipated games of the season. Elizabethtown College fourth-year journalism major and passionate member of Bills Mafia, Jake Moser highlighted his reaction to the news.
“I’m definitely interested in how the league plans it out,” Moser said. “It’s certainly not my first pick, but who knows? Maybe we’ll get to see Josh Allen versus a kangaroo to see who’s stronger.”
Australian rules football is the continent’s most popular sport, dominated by the Australian Football League (AFL), so the NFL bringing a little bit of American style football to Australia was a must. While it’ll be a long trek from the east coast of the United States to Australia, the league hopes that preparing their teams a year ahead of time will make up for it.
Australia has also been pushing to see the NFL play on Australian soil. One of the reasons is because the NFL has seen their fair share of Australian athletes grace the league. A number have tried to make the transition from rugby or Australian rules football to the NFL over the past decade. While it’s a difficult move to make, a few have made their mark in the league. These names are highlighted by Philadelphia Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata, former AFL player and Seattle Seahawks punter Michael Dickson and another retired AFL footballer in San Francisco 49ers punter Mitch Wishnowsky.
The list goes long beyond these names and is only continuing to grow with the NFL’s International Player Pathway program. Players in this program are given the opportunity to play in one of the world’s most popular sports leagues. The league hopes that by heading to Australia, they can grow the game and the program.
While we’ll have to wait a whole season of football before the league touches down in Australia, it’s only going to grow the NFL fan base. As NFL commissioner Roger Goodell continues his mission to grow the game internationally, he and many NFL employees and fans are becoming more excited for the future of American football.
