Roger Goodell Says NFL Planning 'At Least Four' Games in Germany Through 2025

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said Saturday the league will likely expand its plans to play games in Germany as part of its International Series.

Ken Maguire of the Associated Press reported Goodell spoke at a fan forum in Munich ahead of Sunday's game between the Seattle Seahawks and Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Allianz Arena, which will be the NFL's first regular-season game contested in Germany.

"In our commitment, we're going to play the next four years, at least, and with at least four games," Goodell said. "I wouldn't be surprised if it expanded beyond that at some point soon."

The NFL's current plans for Germany include two games in Munich, including Sunday's matchup between the Hawks and Bucs, and two in Frankfurt. Düsseldorf was also listed among the final contenders to host a game during the planning process.

It's part of a growing international push by the league, which is also hosting games in England and Mexico this season.

Meanwhile, Goodell suggested in October the NFL could consider a four-team European division in the future, with potentially two London franchises.

"That's part of what we're doing, right?" the longtime commissioner said. "We're trying to sort of see, could you have multiple locations in Europe where you could have an NFL franchise? Because it would be easier as a division."

He admitted Saturday those types of discussions are in the extremely early stages because it would either require expansion or the relocation of multiple current organizations.

"We have talked about, could you expand the league? But this is all in conceptual stages," Goodell said. "Are there markets here in Europe that could support an NFL team? I’ve said very often that I do believe that’s the case. As we do our games in Germany, I think we’ll find multiple cities that will be able to host an NFL game or host an NFL team on a regular basis."

The NFL's International Series has received consistent support from markets outside the U.S. since it was launched in 2007, but there's a different set of challenges when it comes to housing a full-time team or an entire division in Europe.

Not only would there be challenges in terms of competitive fairness regarding travel, but there are also ample issues with scheduling since the stadiums being used by the NFL are mostly soccer venues.

It's something Peter O'Reilly, the NFL's executive vice president of club business and league events, discussed Saturday, per Maguire.

"Like the puzzle that is an NFL schedule, the DFL schedule is a puzzle as well," O'Reilly said.

Perhaps someday the NFL will figure out all the logistics to house a team overseas, but for now, it appears content to slowly expand the size of each season's International Series schedule.