American football’s NFL is rounding out its slate of international games for the 2025 season, announcing the league’s return to Brazil.
The game, as it did in its 2024 debut, will again take place in the opening week of the season in Sao Paulo at the 49,205-capacity Corinthians Arena, which is known as the Neo Quimica Arena for sponsorship reasons.
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The Los Angeles Chargers franchise, which last traveled for an NFL international game in 2019, losing to the Kansas City Chiefs in Mexico City, has been designated as the home team for the fixture, with the away team still yet to be decided.
The NFL has identified Brazil as a priority market for its international expansion, claiming more than 36 million fans in the country and adding that Brazil has the “third largest” NFL fandom outside the US and Mexico.
With the 2025 game confirmed, further fixtures may be on the way in later seasons as a contract of up to six years is reportedly on the cards.
The 2024 fixture was a major success for the league, having sold out attendance-wise, and was a major viewership draw in the US, where it became the second-most-viewed live event ever (at the time) on its exclusive broadcaster, the streaming service Peacock, averaging 14.2 million viewers for the Philadelphia Eagles's win over the Green Bay Packers.
In Brazil too the match drew a strong following, with the livestream on YouTube totaling 2.9 million viewers (peaking at 380,000 concurrent during the match) while other rightsholders ESPN and Caze TV (another streaming service) also reportedly performed well.
A total benefit to the economy of $61 million has also been reported, which has naturally whetted appetites for further games in the country, with reports circling in January that a deal was in negotiations to return the league to the market.
Now, following the announcement, NFL general manager for Brazil, Luis Martinez, stated: “Alongside our partners – SPTuris [the Sao Pauli Tourist Board], Mayor [Ricardo] Nunes, and Corinthians — we will continue to make history together and look forward to delivering an unforgettable experience for passionate fans of the game once again in Brazil."
Martinez was appointed in August 2024 ahead of the first Brazil game and is responsible for leading the league’s business and expansion across the market. He reports to Gerrit Meier, managing director of NFL International.
As part of its wider international expansion strategy, the NFL also intends to open an office in São Paulo under Martinez’s leadership.
Martinez has previously worked for the league’s Mexico office leading its marketing and sales efforts.
With this announcement, the NFL has now confirmed seven of a possible eight international games for the 2025 season, with fixtures set to be staged in Madrid, Spain, at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu, Berlin, Germany, at the city’s Olympiastadion, a trio in London, England, and most recently announced a first-ever game in Dublin, Ireland and Melbourne, Australia.
