NFL takes a long view as it seeks its next 50 million international fans

The NFL is betting that its next 50 million fans will come from outside the United States. “We believe that the next 50 million fans will not come from the United States. They will come from international markets,” Gerrit Meier, managing director and head of NFL International, told Reuters.

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We believe that the next 50 million fans will not come from the United States. They will come from international markets.

The league is preparing a record nine-game international schedule across four continents and seven countries. It begins with the Los Angeles Rams facing the San Francisco 49ers in Melbourne, giving Australia its first look at the NFL’s top competition. The league wants those games to become annual events rather than one-off spectacles that lose momentum once the teams leave.

That approach has shaped the NFL’s multiyear commitment to Melbourne. The league says Australia has built a fan base of 8.8 million, nearly one-third of the country’s population, based on an independent survey of people who identify as fans. A Deakin University survey also placed the NFL second only to the English Premier League among non-Australian sports competitions in fan interest.

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It’s a good question, and I wish I could say we have the answers for it. We don’t, because internationally, it’s just very different.

Yet the league is still working out what an international fan actually is. “It’s a good question, and I wish I could say we have the answers for it. We don’t, because internationally, it’s just very different,” Meier said. “Even from market to market, if you ask someone what it is to be a fan, the answer differs very much.”

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Even from market to market, if you ask someone what it is to be a fan, the answer differs very much.

Meier described a progression from casual interest to measurable engagement, subscriptions, merchandise purchases and media value. The NFL has plenty of time to pursue that path, he said, because owners support a long-term strategy. “This is not like I’m dealing with an elected two-three-year contract CEO who need short-term returns,” he said. Owners from some families have been involved with the league for more than 100 years. The costs of overseas games are high, but ticket revenue and host fees help offset them.

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This is not like I’m dealing with an elected two-three-year contract CEO who need short-term returns.