There has been much speculation about the likelihood of an NFL regular season game coming to Dublin this year and most of it is pretty well informed but none of it has been confirmed.
The NFL maintains a very strict control on communications and would not look favourably on anyone breaking the news prior to an official announcement.
The likelihood is that this could happen as soon as today with the NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell in New Orleans for this weekend’s Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles.
The US Embassy is hosting an NFL themed event this evening though not connected to any announcement on a game.
The NFL is committed to hosting up to eight international games in the 2025/26 season with that number rising to 16 in years to come.
There are already three games announced for London, two at Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium featuring the New York Jets and the Cleveland Browns, and one at Wembley featuring the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars and the Jets also have marketing rights in Ireland alongside the Pittsburgh Steelers so via a process of elimination that would mean the Steelers hosting the game in Dublin if it is to be confirmed.
A new game has already been announced for Berlin in the Olympic Stadium and for Madrid in the Santiago Bernabeu home of Real Madrid.
Overnight a first ever game for Melbourne Australia was announced, featuring the LA Rams as the designated home team.
That is six confirmed and last season Sao Paulo hosted a game and would expect perhaps to do so again. Mexico City would be in the mix as well.
The Australian announcement is important in that if Dublin is to make the slate this year it will mean taking one of the last two available international slots.
Nothing is confirmed until everything is confirmed and the formation of a Government was a necessary slow down on discussions here but the clock is ticking quickly now.
We can only hope that Dublin is so close as to make a rival city hope forlornly.
SPORT FOR BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE
Hosting a regular season game in Dublin would be a sporting occasion the likes of which we have never seen. Having hosted a business breakfast with NFL UK and Ireland and the Pittsburgh Steelers last year we have seen at first hand the level of professionalism and the sheer scale of what is possible.
WHAT’S UP NEXT?
We will be looking ahead to the Super Bowl and back on a night at the US Ambassadors Residence in tomorrow morning’s bulletin.
MEMBERSHIP AND EVENTS
Sport for Business will be hosting our second annual Sports Tourism Conference in partnership with the University of Limerick next month.
