The NFL is already delivering on its promise to expand its European footprint.

London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is now guaranteed to host at least two regular-season games — and potentially more — each year through the end of this decade.

The venue is the only one outside the U.S. built for specific NFL use and has hosted six regular-season games since 2019. 

This season, Tottenham is hosting two more games, and a third is being played at Wembley Stadium, which will host the Jacksonville Jaguars once per season through 2024. Germany will host another two NFL contests for a total of five games in its International Series this fall.

“We expect to do more games in the future,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said last week when asked about international matchups. “We’re looking at games around the world.”

Build It, And They Will Come?

The idea of an NFL team — or even division — based in Europe has long been rumored. But the NFL’s record five games on the continent this season is still several short of what would be an eight- or nine-game home schedule for a theoretical European squad. 

Last week, Goodell wouldn’t shoot down the idea of a European team, while acknowledging the logistical challenges associated with the idea.

Should the NFL one day expand to eight-plus games in Europe per season, perhaps that would be enough evidence that fans across the pond would support a full-time franchise — and possibly the aforementioned European division.

The long-term ownership future of the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers and NFL’s Seattle Seahawks remain murky at best — but at least one league commissioner isn’t forcing a sale for clarity’s sake.

The estate of the late Paul Allen owns both teams and is led by his sister, Jody. Paul Allen, who died in 2018, left instructions to sell the teams and donate the proceeds to charity. NBA bylaws also mandate that any estate-held team in the league be transferred within a “reasonable” time period.

But nearly five years after Allen’s death, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said he doesn’t intend to compel the estate to make a move.

“The board [of governors] has not discussed compelling a sale of the team,” Silver said Wednesday at the conclusion of league BOG meetings. “And obviously ‘within a reasonable time’ is subjection to interpretation. In the case of Paul Allen’s estate, it’s one of the largest estates in American history, and is highly complex in terms of his assets.

“I’ve spoken directly to Jody Allen, and they are working through those issues and in the meantime continue to operate the team in a first-class manner,” he said.

Nike co-founder Phil Knight is among those who have shown interest in acquiring the Trail Blazers.

Seahawks Considerations

Any consideration of a sale of the Seahawks is operating on a different timetable.

A Seattle referendum from 1997 related to the construction of Lumen Field requires that if the team is sold within 25 years of the bonds being issued, 10% of the team’s sale price must go to the state of Washington. That period ends in May 2024.

Already one of the fastest-growing domestic and international sports, particularly after the 2023 Women’s World Cup, women’s soccer continues to see historic levels of business expansion reflecting surging fan interest.

Manchester City Women has become the first Women’s Super League club to complete a facility naming rights agreement, signing a pact with baby gear brand Joie to rename the 7,000-capacity Academy Stadium, the WSL’s only purpose-built venue.

In the U.S., Angel City FC — already one of the NWSL’s most prominent franchises with its star-studded ownership group of sports and entertainment icons — is reportedly raising additional capital to fund further growth opportunities. 

In just its second season of play, the club is already among the leaders in NWSL attendance, which has risen to historic levels. Angel City’s initiative follows the recent record-setting sale of the NWSL’s Chicago Red Stars.

The latest efforts mirror a wave of growth seen in women’s basketball, tennis, and ice hockey.

TV Tune-In

Fueled significantly by the successful WWC, the Women’s Sport Trust also found that women’s soccer has become the fourth-most popular sport on TV in the U.K., trailing only men’s soccer, tennis, and cricket.

“The visibility of women’s sport continues to grow at a phenomenal rate, due in main part to the unbelievable progress of our female athletes on the global stage,” said Tammy Parlour, Women’s Sport Trust CEO. 

Also in the U.K, that country’s government also just revealed plans to invest further in women’s sports through a newly created investment accelerator.