Stade de France in Saint-Denis, host of Steelers–Saints on Oct. 25. Photo by Chris93, CC-BY-4.0, resized.From Wembley to the Stade de France
Wembley Stadium in London, where the International Series began on Oct. 28, 2007. Photo by Wonker, CC-BY-2.0, resized.One game in London
The International Series began on Oct. 28, 2007, when the Giants beat the Dolphins 13-10 at Wembley Stadium in front of 81,176 fans.
It was not the first regular-season game played outside the United States. Two years earlier, on Oct. 2, 2005, the Cardinals beat the 49ers 31-14 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City in front of 103,467 people, still the biggest crowd for a regular-season game outside the U.S.
For its first six seasons the series was a single game a year, every one of them at Wembley.
Tottenham Hotspur Stadium during the Jaguars’ 2021 London game against Miami. Photo by Tony Hisgett, CC-BY-2.0, resized.London becomes a second home
London went to two games in 2013, three in 2014 and four in 2017 and 2019. Games moved between Wembley, Twickenham Stadium and Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, which opened its NFL run in 2019.
The Jacksonville Jaguars made London a regular stop. They have played 16 games there and are 8-8, including a 34-31 loss to Houston at Wembley this past Sunday.
Estadio Banorte, formerly Estadio Azteca, in Mexico City. Photo by ProtoplasmaKid, CC-BY-4.0, resized.Nine countries
Counting the 2005 game in Mexico City and the Bills’ six regular-season games in Toronto from 2008 to 2013, France will be the ninth country outside the United States to host a regular-season NFL game.
- Cardinals 31, 49ers 14 at Estadio Azteca
- Giants 13, Dolphins 10 at Wembley
- The Bills open a six-year run of regular-season games in Toronto
- Buccaneers 21, Seahawks 16 in Munich
- Eagles 34, Packers 29 in São Paulo
- Steelers 24, Vikings 21 at Croke Park in Dublin
- Dolphins 16, Commanders 13 at the Bernabéu in Madrid
- 49ers 27, Rams 7 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground
- Steelers vs. Saints at the Stade de France, Oct. 25
International Series games played, by country, 2007-2026
The pace has picked up. The league played seven international games in 2025 and has nine on the 2026 schedule, the most in a single season. After Paris come Madrid on Nov. 8, Munich on Nov. 15 and Mexico City on Nov. 22.
Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid. Photo by Ank Kumar, CC-BY-SA-4.0, resized.The crowds
The new markets have brought some of the biggest crowds the series has seen. Melbourne drew 100,021 on Sept. 11, the seventh-largest crowd for a regular-season game in league history.
In Rio de Janeiro on Sept. 27, the Ravens beat the Cowboys 34-31 on a 56-yard field goal by Tyler Loop as time ran out. The 72,792 fans at the Maracanã set a 2026 record at the time for a sporting event in Brazil.
Biggest International Series crowds, by venue
Alvin Kamara with the Saints in 2021. Photo by All-Pro Reels, CC-BY-SA-2.0, resized.Paris week
Kickoff is at 2:30 p.m. in Paris on Sunday, Oct. 25. That is 9:30 a.m. ET and 4:30 p.m. in Cairo.
Brett Gosper, who runs the league’s business in Europe and Asia-Pacific, said about 70% of the tickets were bought in France, around 20% in the United States and the other 10% elsewhere in Europe.
“If we can make this week as much like a Super Bowl as possible, a mini-Super Bowl, then we’ll hopefully recruit some new fans this week and that’s the whole goal.”— Brett Gosper on the Paris Game
The week has come with unrest in France and the first overnight curfews in parts of central Paris. The league says preparations are going ahead as scheduled, and the Paris orders have not covered Saint-Denis, the stadium or the league’s fan sites.
The Saints have been in France since Monday and are based outside Versailles. The Steelers practice at home and fly out on Thursday.
The Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, February 2026. The Saints are giving up a home date there to play in Paris. Photo by Ajay Suresh, CC-BY-4.0, resized.Steelers and Saints
Pittsburgh arrives at 4-2 after a 26-19 overtime win in Tampa. New Orleans is 2-4 and snapped a three-game losing streak by beating the Giants 34-27. The Saints are the designated home team.
Both teams have been here before. The Steelers are 1-1 abroad: they lost to Minnesota in London in 2013 and beat the Vikings 24-21 in Dublin last season. The Saints are 2-1, all in London, with wins over the Chargers in 2008 and the Dolphins in 2017 and a loss to the Vikings in 2022.
“Playing the New Orleans Saints in such a historic setting is a great opportunity to showcase the NFL’s global growth and to connect with fans around the world.”— Steelers president Art Rooney II
The first International Series game drew 81,176 people to Wembley. Nineteen years later the league has nine international games on one schedule, and Paris makes France the ninth country outside the United States to host a regular-season game.
Gosper said it would make sense to come back every year, but the league has not made that call yet. Sunday will go a long way toward deciding it.
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