The locations of the next three Super Bowls have already been officially announced. Where the prestigious event will be held in 2027 and beyond is still anyone’s guess.
London seems to be a possibility, and NFL commissioner Roger Goodell confirmed that the NFL has discussed the idea before.
“It is not impossible, and it is something that has been discussed before,” Goodell told a fan forum in London last week.
Since 2007, the British capital has welcomed NFL teams on its soil to host football games. It seems that fans have come in droves to watch, considering that five regular-season contests are slated to be played overseas this season.
The Week 4 bout between the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars at Wembley Stadium saw the Jaguars win in convincing fashion, 23-7. Jacksonville extended its London win streak to two after defeating the Buffalo Bills at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Week 5.
On Sunday, the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans face off before the Miami Dolphins-Kansas City Chiefs and Indianapolis Colts-New England Patriots tiffs in Weeks 9 and 10, respectively, cap off the NFL International Series this season.
London has hosted an NFL game every year since 2007, except in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Every NFL franchise has flown to the city, with the Green Bay Packers being the last to make the trip last year. For these reasons, it’s easy to see why a Super Bowl in London is plausible.
According to Adam Schefter, someone from the league believes doing it in London makes sense, although the NFL insider noted that there is still no momentum building for such a decision.
Goodell also said that the league is likely to stick with the tried-and-tested formula of prioritizing cities that are home to NFL franchises. Perhaps the time difference is also a significant obstacle to the proposition.
“There has been no momentum building yet for a Super Bowl in London, but as one league source told ESPN last week: ‘Absolutely, it would make sense,'” Schefter wrote.
“Goodell said at the fan forum: ‘I think that is not out of the question. But at the end of the day, I think right now our formula will stay the same about playing [Super Bowls] in cities that have franchises.'”
Regardless, the sports world may still be a long way away from seeing the event in London. After all, the next three Super Bowls already have homes, namely Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Caesars Superdome in New Orleans and Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif.
Goodell understands the potential economic impact of transferring the Super Bowl to foreign soil but emphasized the league’s openness to seeing the championship game played in London.
“I think being able to play it in one of our cities — it’s at a huge economic boost to those cities,” Goodell added. “Our fans live in those cities also. I think that is important. Not that we do not have great fans here [in London]; we do. So, as the international series develops, maybe that is a possibility as we play more games here.”
Only time tell if the United Kingdom will eventually host a Super Bowl.
