The NFL and NBA are two of the most-watched sports leagues in North America. The leagues entertain sports fans throughout Canada and the United States from November to the new year. Despite being two of the most popular leagues in the United States and Canada, the NFL and NBA have worked hard to find ways to bring in people from the UK into the action.
The NFL has played games outside of the US for some years now. The NFL International Series was launched in 2007 with the New York Giants playing against the Miami Dolphins at London’s Wembley Stadium. The Giants won the game 13-10. Over 60,000 in attendance, the Oakland Raiders and Chicago Bears played at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in 2019. More than 30 NFL games have been played in London.
Regular season and pre-season games in the UK and Europe
Three games will be played in London for the upcoming season: the Minnesota Vikings vs Cleveland Browns on October 5, Denver Broncos vs New York Jets on October 12, and Los Angeles Rams vs Jacksonville Jaguars on October 19. All of those games will be a regular season game. I wonder, do people in the UK bet more on an NFL game that is played in the UK? The NFL has shown a commitment to expanding the team into Europe. Cincinnati Bengals star quarterback Joe Burrow has spoken publicly about growing the game internationally and his desire to play an international game.
The NBA didn’t schedule any games for London during the 2024-2025 season. The Miami Heat played against the Washington Wizards in Mexico City. Indiana and San Antonio played two games in Paris. But multiple games have been played in the UK over previous NBA seasons. The New York Knicks played against the Washington Wizards in London on January 17 in 2019.
Expanding into Europe
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has talked about creating an NBA league in Europe, it’s years away from becoming a reality. The idea makes sense when you consider the winner of five of the last seven NBA regular season MVP awards was a player from Europe. Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic won the award three times during that span. Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo won the award two times. According to the NBA, about one in six players in the league are from Europe.
At least 20 regular season NHL games have been played in Europe since 2017. Regular season games have been played in Finland, Sweden, and Czechia. Finland and Sweden were also two of the four countries that were part of the 4 Nations Face-Off that had the sports world talking. Maybe in the future the NFL, NBA, or NHL will appeal to sports fans in Europe as much as football, or soccer in North America, leagues in the UK like the English Premier League. The best football betting sites take bets on all of those leagues. Will a team host a playoff game outside of North America? Which league will be the first to give a franchise to a city in the UK or Europe?
