The NFL’s visits to London have gone well enough for the league to toy with the idea of adding a permanent team — or two — there.

Prior to the New York Giants’ 27-20 win over the Green Bay Packers at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said that London could support full-time teams.

• “I think there’s no question that London could support not just one franchise, I think two franchises — I really believe that,” said Goodell.
• Goodell said that while logistics present an obvious challenge, the greater question may be if London-based teams could be competitive with the rest of the league.
• The Minnesota Vikings edged the New Orleans Saints 28-25 on Oct. 2 at Tottenham Hotspur, and the Denver Broncos will take on the Jacksonville Jaguars on Oct. 30 at Wembley Stadium.

Germany, Too?

The NFL will play regular-season games in Munich and Frankfurt over the next four years, starting with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Seattle Seahawks at Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena on Nov. 13. 

Goodell appears open to adding several teams on the continent.

“We’re trying to see, could you have multiple locations in Europe where you could have an NFL franchise, because it would be easier as a division.”

The San Francisco 49ers and Arizona Cardinals will play the season’s final International Series game in Mexico City on Nov. 21.

Add billions in soccer sponsorships to Saudi Arabia’s sports strategy. 

The country’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, which has made incredibly aggressive investments in sports and gaming in recent years, said in a financial filing that it has agreements with multiple soccer clubs, totaling around $2.3 billion.

• Companies owned by the PIF, namely Qiddiya and Jeddah Central, have multiple 20-year deals with domestic soccer clubs.
• PIF-owned real estate development firm ROSHN sponsors the country’s soccer league.
• The PIF owns around 80% of Premier League club Newcastle United F.C.

The PIF-funded e-commerce platform Noon is a Newcastle shirt sponsor and Manchester City’s official sales partner in the Middle East.

The Long Game

The PIF, which claims $620 billion in assets under management, seeks to diversify Saudi Arabia’s economy and shift from its dependence on oil — and sports has been a key part of the plan. 

The LIV Golf backer has turned its attention to high-profile international events. The country is hosting the 2029 Asian Winter Games and aims to host both a World Cup and an Olympics. 

The investments have attracted controversy: LIV golfers have faced questions on Saudi Arabia’s human rights record, and top winter sports athletes objected to it being chosen for the Asian Winter Games over climate change concerns.

One of America’s most iconic sports leagues is in fiscal trouble, according to its top teams.

Team executives are seeking more money from media contracts and other changes to the sport. 

Hendrick Motorsports vice chairman Jeff Gordon, Joe Gibbs Racing president Dave Alpern, RFK Racing president Steve Newmark, and 23XI Racing investor Curtis Polk spoke to the media on Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina, after negotiations stalled.

“The sustainability of the teams in this sport is not very long-term unless we have a fundamental change in the (business) model,” said Polk.

• The core issue presented by the teams is that the bulk of their revenue — generally 60-80% —comes from sponsorships.
• Teams receive 25% of the revenue from NASCAR’s media deals, compared to 65% to tracks and 10% to NASCAR.
• Teams are seeking a reworked arrangement, starting with NASCAR’s 2025 charter.

Racing teams sent a seven-point proposal which included a new revenue-sharing model to NASCAR earlier this year, but did not receive a favorable response.

New Car, New Problems

Gordon said that Hendricks hasn’t been profitable in years and won’t be again this season, despite success on the track and NASCAR’s new, less expensive Next Gen car.  

The car has raised safety concerns: Three full-time drivers were unable to compete in Sunday’s playoff race at Charlotte Motor Speedway due to injuries sustained while driving the Next Gen.

Two soccer clubs are losing deals following the release of the U.S. Soccer Federation’s investigation into the NWSL’s alleged misconduct.

Alaska Airlines is redirecting money from the Portland Thorns and Timbers to the NWSL Players Association’s Support the Players National Emergency Trust and local youth sports. 

The investigation was launched due to complaints against former Thorns and North Carolina Courage coach Paul Riley.

• The probe found that Timbers and Thorns owner Merritt Paulson had been supportive of Riley despite the allegations. He removed himself from decision-making duties and has been called on to sell the team.
• Thorns executives Mike Golub and Gavin Wilkinson have been fired.

Alaska Airlines’ decision was made after “calls from the player association to support their emergency fund, listening to the Portland fan community, and speaking with team leaders to understand their progress.”

As a founding partner of the Timbers, Alaska Airlines has long had ties to the club, including as its “official jersey partner” since 2011.

Oregon-based Directors Mortgage and Union Wine Company have also ended their deals with both teams.

“We will only reconsider future sponsorship if the organization makes meaningful institutional transformation that helps lead to positive systemic change,” Union Wine Company stated.

Portland’s Price

Paulson purchased the then-USL Timbers in 2007 and paid $35 million for an MLS expansion team in 2011. Arctos Sports Partners and other investors who weren’t identified acquired a 15% stake in the Thorns and Timbers last year at an enterprise value of $600 million.