Plane And Simple: NFL Fills Out Full International Flight Plan For 2025
Tuesday, May 13, 2025 at 01:05PM By Barry Janoff
May 13, 2025: In preparation for takeoff of its 2025 season, the NFL has filed the full flight plan for its International Games, adding “visiting teams” to the previously released “home teams” for Dublin, Ireland, London, U.K., Berlin, Germany and Madrid, Spain.
In a first for the league, the Minnesota Vikings will play consecutive international games in different countries this season. The upcoming campaign will also see other international milestones for the league.
"The 2025 NFL season will see seven regular season games played outside of the U.S. — the most ever regular season international games to date, including historic first games in iconic venues in Berlin, Dublin and Madrid,” Peter O’Reilly, NFL evp-club business, major events and international, said via the league.
"The 2025 International Games schedule showcases an exciting selection of matchups featuring major NFL stars, bringing our game directly to fans around the world, and underscores our collective commitment to global growth as we continue our journey to becoming a truly global sport.”
The Vikings will play the Pittsburgh Steelers Sept. 28 in 82,000-capacity Croke Park in Dublin, the league's first regular-season game in Ireland.
"The opportunity for the Pittsburgh Steelers to play in Ireland is truly special, not only because of the Rooney family history there but because it allows us to connect with Irish fans while also giving fans who travel from Pittsburgh and beyond a unique football experience," Steelers president Art Rooney said via the team.
"We are thrilled to be part of this historic event and to represent Pittsburgh on a global stage."
The Vikings then take a short trip to face the Cleveland Browns in London's Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 5.
The Vikings will be the road team for both international games.
The Jacksonville Jaguars have played two international games in the same season, but both in Wembley Stadium in London as the home game as part of their multi-year commitment to playing games in the U.K.
"Playing in Ireland's first-ever NFL game is an opportunity to introduce new fans to the Minnesota Vikings and help the league continue to make the game of football more accessible globally," Vikings owner Mark Wilf said via the team.
"To do so against a storied franchise like the Pittsburgh Steelers adds a unique challenge that makes this even more special. We are honored to be selected for this historic game and will be anxious to see what promises to be an electric game day environment in Croke Park."
The Los Angeles Chargers begin the 2025 International Games Week 1 of the regular season on Sept. 5 in São Paulo, Brazil in Corinthians Arena. The opponent for this game will be named on May 14, with the full 2025 NFL schedule release.
The NFL said YouTube would exclusively stream the Friday night Week 1 game in São Paulo on YouTube and YouTube TV. The league said this marks the first exclusive NFL game to be streamed live and for free in its entirety on YouTube.
“Last year, people spent over 350 million hours watching official NFL content on YouTube, so it’s both fitting and thrilling to continue to build our relationship with our partners at the NFL,” Mary Ellen Coe, YouTube chief business officer, said via the division of Google.
“Streaming the Friday night game to fans for free around the world will mark YouTube’s first time as a live NFL broadcaster — and we’ll do it in a way that only YouTube can, with an interactive viewing experience and creators right at the center of the experience.”
The NFL's first regular season game in South America saw the Philadelphia Eagles defeat the Green Bay Packers, 34–29, on Sept. 6, 2024.
Officials said the game and surrounding events had an economic return of $60 million.
The NFL said it has more than 35 million fans in Brazil.
On Sept. 28, the Steelers will face the Vikings in the largest sporting arena in Ireland, to be staged in partnership with the Government of Ireland and Dublin City Council (NFL Network 9:30 AM ET).
The Vikings then play the Browns in London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium — the only purpose-built NFL stadium outside of the U.S. — on Oct. 5, This game will also be the 40th regular season game to be played in the capital city (NFL Network 9:30 AM ET).
The New York Jets will host the Denver Broncos on Oct. 12, also in Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (NFL Network 9:30 AM ET).
The third and final game in London will feature the Jaguars hosting the Los Angeles Rams in Wembley Stadium on Oct. 19. This will be the 14th game in the capital for the Jaguars (NFL Network 9:30 AM ET).
"We're excited to return to London this October to help drive the NFL's continued growth on the international stage," Rams president Kevin Demoff said via the team.
"Kroenke Sports and Entertainment is one of the largest sports and entertainment organizations in the world and growing the Rams footprint globally is a key priority for our team, whether through year-round engagement across our seven global markets or playing abroad."
For the first NFL game in Berlin, the Indianapolis Colts will host the Atlanta Falcons in Olympic Stadium Nov. 9.
The NFL said '25 Berlin game is part of the NFL’s commitment to playing regular season games across Germany and will be the fifth regular season game in the market, with the league having previously played games in Munich and Frankfurt (NFL Network 9:30 AM ET).
The 2025 international schedule culminates with league’s first regular-season game in Spain in Madrid Nov.16 with the Miami Dolphins and the Washington Commanders in Bernabéu Stadium, home of Real Madrid C.F. (NFL Network 9:30 AM ET).
Beginning in 2025, the NFL can schedule up to eight league-operated regular season games internationally.
The league already has scheduled a game in Australia, a first for the NFL, in 2026 with the Rams as home team.
Fifty-five regular season NFL games have been played around the world throughout the league's history, with London, Munich, Frankfurt, São Paulo, Mexico City and Toronto all hosting games to date.
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