“More Coin to Be Made”: Aaron Rodgers Comments on NFL’s International Plans After Steelers Star Called Out League’s Greed

Globalization is something that the NFL is focused on at present. While the league restricted itself to only nine international regular-season games this season, it can soon push it to 10 international games. As the Steelers’ next game is in Paris, the Pittsburgh Steelers defensive tackle Cam Heyward had reasons to make a blunt remark about the NFL’s plan. But for veteran Aaron Rodgers, he sees it as a significant business opportunity for the league.

“There was talk about doing like an international week, where every team played out of the country, and we’re getting close to that,” said Rodgers in a press conference. “I think there could be 16 sites around the world at some point. Canada, Mexico, probably another South American country, multiple European countries. There was a game in Australia this year. The league has a pretty far reach and there’s more coin to be made, they’re going to look into it.”

Rodgers’ comment came right after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell dropped an interesting update on the NFL Daily podcast on Friday, Oct. 23.

“Listen, Tokyo is clearly on our list, whether it’s next year or the year after,” Goodell said. “It’s coming at some point in the near future.”

Rodgers weighs in on the NFL's expansion strategy while a star player questions the league's motives. Subscribe for the inside perspective on how money is reshaping professional football.

Under Goodell, the NFL has broadened its international footprint, regularly hosting at least three games in London each year while expanding into countries such as Germany, Brazil, and Australia as part of its International Series. Given the success of the Los Angeles Rams-San Francisco 49ers Week 1 matchup in Melbourne, Australia, this year, Goodell found the push to break through in Japan.

“We are considering going up to 10 games next year and want to make sure we have the right 10 games,” Executive Vice President Peter O’Reilly said at the owners’ meeting on Tuesday, per The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf. “This is limited inventory, and we want to make sure each one of those games are as impactful as possible.”

From Rodgers’ statement, he is believed to be in support of it. As he highlighted, it will be good for the business side of things.

Beyond expanding its global fan base, the NFL’s international schedule boosts business through ticket sales, online engagement, and television ratings. Last year, NFL Network averaged 6.2 million viewers across six overseas games, marking a record for International Games broadcasts.

Melbourne has received widespread media exposure through the NFL game, generating more than 13,000 domestic media mentions. The MCG has also recorded its sixth crowd of more than 100,000 in the past five years, highlighting the role major events play in boosting tourism.

The NFL’s standard ticket revenue model allows teams to keep roughly 66% of sales, with the remaining 34% going into a shared league pool. Meanwhile, home teams generally retain the bulk of revenue from concessions, merchandise, parking, and premium seating.

Stade de France will play host to the league’s first game in France. The venue can accommodate about 82,000 spectators. According to Brett Gosper, the NFL’s Head of Europe and Asia-Pacific, local fans purchased 70% of the tickets, with buyers from other European countries accounting for another 10%.

“We don’t announce sellouts, but the stadium is full,” said Gosper, the NFL’s head of Europe and Asia-Pacific.

While Rodgers is appreciative of the fact that it enhances the NFL’s chances to earn some more money, that’s not the case for Heyward.

“NFL does feel comfortable in sending us over,” Cam Heyward said on The Rich Eisen Show this week. “That’s the trust we have to believe in. Hopefully we’re not going into a firestorm, but for us, we have to be smart about what we’re doing out there. No traveling alone. Make sure we stay in groups and don’t wander off too far. The NFL likes money, so we’re not looking for that opportunity.”

Heyward was blunt in his answer, since there had been a lot of concerns surrounding the Steelers vs. Saints face-off in France considering the present political unrest.

What began as a student-led protest in France has expanded into a nationwide anti-government movement over the past month. On Saturday, more than 550,000 people demonstrated against high living costs, inflation, cuts to public spending, and inadequate school conditions, Al Jazeera reported.

The fact that the NFL did not cancel the France game despite the players’ security being under threat led Heyward to expose the “money-minded” side of the NFL. But Rodgers remains in full support of the league’s outlook, as his team is set to face the Saints on Sunday, October 25.

Trending Articles

The post “More Coin to Be Made”: Aaron Rodgers Comments on NFL’s International Plans After Steelers Star Called Out League’s Greed appeared first on EssentiallySports. Add EssentiallySports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.