The National Football League (NFL) is pursuing a long-term strategy to establish American football as a global sport, with Australia identified as a critical growth market. NFL Chief Marketing Officer Tim Ellis emphasized the country’s existing nine million fans and strong sports culture as key factors in the league’s expansion plans during last Friday’s game in Melbourne between the San Francisco 49ers and the Los Angeles Rams.
Ellis described Australia as a “natural next step” for the NFL’s international outreach, which aims to deepen fan engagement and grow the league’s presence beyond the United States. The NFL’s international schedule for 2026 includes nine games across key global cities such as London, Madrid, Mexico City, Munich, Paris and Rio de Janeiro. Although the idea of establishing teams outside the US has been discussed, Ellis said there are currently no plans to base NFL teams internationally. The focus remains on bringing regular season games to important markets worldwide.
“We only have 17 regular season games, so to have a team go overseas and play is a big deal,” Ellis said. He underscored the league’s commitment by noting the decision to avoid preseason or exhibition games, opting instead to showcase meaningful matches in international markets. “This is not about us coming to Australia, like the circus coming to town. This is a long-term commitment.”
The NFL’s growth strategy seeks to build loyal fanbases that will generate revenue through merchandise, licensing, media rights and content. Following Australia, the league plans to expand its international games schedule in Asia, although no teams will be permanently based outside the US yet.
The league’s global push dovetails with efforts to reposition its brand domestically. Eight years ago, the NFL was the lowest-ranked sports league in the US, trailing behind even soccer. A rebranding initiative, led by agency 72&Sunny, centered on the “Helmets Off” campaign, which aimed to humanize players and highlight their personalities, interests and social causes. This approach successfully expanded the NFL’s appeal to younger audiences, women, Latino communities, and other groups traditionally underrepresented among fans.
As a result, the NFL added 218 million new fans globally year-on-year and moved to become the most popular sports brand in the United States by 2025, with 73 percent of Americans aged eight and older identifying as fans. The league also drew record TV audiences for the Super Bowl, which attracted an average of 125.6 million viewers in 2026. The event’s growing international appeal, boosted by entertainment features such as halftime shows, has reinforced the NFL’s global commercial ambitions.
Ellis highlighted the NFL’s ability to capitalize on cultural moments, referencing the spike in female audience engagement following pop star Taylor Swift’s association with Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce. Swift’s involvement contributed to a 34 percent increase in NFL viewership among women aged 12 to 24, demonstrating the league’s capacity to leverage widespread media attention.
Despite drawing nearly 100,000 spectators to the Melbourne game, the NFL acknowledges the challenge of converting initial interest into sustained fandom and consistent revenue streams. “It’s gonna take a tremendous amount of marketing over time to create a fan base that will really drive our business in Australia year round,” Ellis said.
Participation initiatives, particularly around Flag Football—a non-contact, five-a-side variant—play a significant role in the league’s international growth. The NFL has invested heavily in this format, which will feature at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympic Games, and is actively campaigning for its inclusion in the Brisbane 2032 Games. These efforts are designed to broaden the sport’s grassroots reach and build pathways for long-term engagement with new audiences worldwide.