Super Bowl To Go International?

When asked in October if the Super Bowl may go abroad, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said, “It wouldn’t surprise me at all if that happens one day.”

January 30, 2025

Where Could the NFL Hold an International Super Bowl? The Pros and Cons of Potential Hosts
AP News’ Ken Maguire writes, “It’s a question Roger Goodell gets when he’s in London: Would the NFL stage a Super Bowl internationally? The usual answer is that America’s biggest sporting event is reserved for cities that have NFL franchises. But as the commissioner noted in October, ‘things change. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if that happens one day.’”

As the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles get set to square off in the Super Bowl in New Orleans on Feb. 9, AP News takes a look at key factors and possible venues if the league were to take its marquee event abroad.
^{AP News}

MLS to Introduce Sunday Night Soccer for 2025 and Will Go Head-to-Head With the NFL
MLS will introduce Sunday Night Soccer this season, a featured game of the week on Sunday evenings with “enhanced production and dedicated studio programming,” according to a league press release. The most compelling matchups, per the release, will air throughout the regular season.
^{The Athletic}

SUPER BOWL LIX: CHIEFS VS. EAGLES BY THE NUMBERS
Sportico’s Lev Akabas reports: “On the field, the Kansas City Chiefs are the current standard for NFL franchises. They’ve won three Super Bowls in the past five years, have advanced to seven consecutive AFC Championship games and haven’t had a losing season since 2012.

“Financially, however, the franchise sits in the bottom half of the league. Sportico values the Chiefs at $5.43 billion, the 18th-highest in the NFL and roughly $1.3 billion below their Super Bowl LIX opponents, the eighth-ranked Philadelphia Eagles ($6.75 billion).”
^Sportico

Caitlin Clark Effect: Iowa Generated More Than $3.2 Million in Ticket Sles in 2023-24
Iowa’s women’s basketball program generated more than $3.2 million in home ticket sales during Caitlin Clark’s historic final season, by far the most in Big Ten history. The Hawkeyes, who advanced to the NCAA championship game for the second consecutive season, sold every home ticket in the 2023-24 season three months in advance to become the Big Ten’s first women’s basketball program to accomplish that feat.
^{The Athletic}

FOX Pulls in Record Revenue For Super Bowl LIX
Fox Sports is celebrating its most lucrative Super Bowl yet, with a double-digit number of spots selling for north of $8M, according to a source familiar with the matter. Strong categories this year include beverages, telco, tech, travel, financial, auto, QSR and salty snacks, according to Fox Sports EVP/Ad Sales Mark Evans.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Reggie Miller Joining NBA on NBC as a Lead Color Commentator
The former Pacers sharpshooter is poised to be a top color commentator when the NBA returns to NBC next season, sources told Front Office Sports. He will call games alongside play-by-play broadcasters Mike Tirico and Noah Eagle. An NBC Sports spokesperson declined to comment. A rep for Miller could not immediately be reached for comment.
^{Front Office Sports}

Mike McCarthy Withdraws From Saints’ Coaching Search and Won’t Coach in 2025, AP Source Says
McCarthy is the third high-profile candidate to pull out of the Saints’ search, joining Buffalo offensive coordinator Joe Brady and Washington offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. New Orleans’ remaining candidates include Philadelphia offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi, Miami defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver and New York Giants offensive coordinator Mike Kafka, all of whom have conducted in-person interviews.
^{AP News}

Lions Agree to Hire Broncos’ John Morton as OC and Promote Kelvin Sheppard to DC, AP Source Says
Detroit had both coordinators depart to become head coaches. Offensive coordinator Ben Johnson was hired by the Chicago Bears and defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn left to lead the New York Jets, just days after the top-seeded Lions were stunned by sixth-seeded Washington in the divisional round of the NFC playoffs.
^{AP News}

Cubs Unveil 'The Yard' Space in Wrigley Field Bleachers
On Wednesday, the team unveiled “The Yard,” a new outdoor space complete with five semi-private rental spaces located in the Budweiser Bleachers just above the batter’s eye in the center field.

The space features high-top seating and fully stocked coolers, providing an elevated and inclusive single-game experience for groups of four-to-eight that was previously lacking at the iconic venue. Prices for “The Yard” start at $175 per ticket. The experience includes unlimited beer, seltzer, wine and non-alcoholic drinks.
^{Front Office Sports}

Closing Shot: NASCAR’s Latest Throwback
“Everybody that has worked on this event across all the different departments at NASCAR is just really proud to bring the NASCAR Cup Series back to Bowman Gray and the city of Winston-Salem for the first time in 54 years,” said Joey Dennewitz, managing director of NASCAR regional, who helped set up the race alongside project lead Justin Swilling. “Anybody who has ever been to Bowman Gray Stadium for a race knows it’s a special place, and bringing that brand of excitement to Cup Series fans all across the world is a huge opportunity to showcase the roots of NASCAR.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

UFL to Make Central Football Ops HQ in Arlington, Texas
The UFL has leased more than 111,000 square feet of office space in Arlington, Texas, for its football operations headquarters, the league announced today. Dubbed “The Offices at UFL HQ at Ballpark Circle,” the facility will serve as the primary football hub from training camp and the season for the spring football league as it embarks on its second season. Along with offices for all eight teams, the facility will include training rooms and the league’s FAST tech innovation division.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Trump Fires NLRB’s Abruzzo, an Ally For FOR NCAA Athlete Employment
Sportico’s Daniel Libit writes, “Abruzzo’s tenure as the NLRB’s top in-house lawyer began in July 2021, just weeks after the NCAA adopted its interim NIL policy, and was defined by her influential role in shaping the national conversation on college athlete rights.

“Two months after taking office, Abruzzo issued a landmark memorandum, asserting that college athletes should be recognized as employees under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).”
^Sportico

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