With the NFL’s global markets growing, its international series of matchups expanding, and its globally supported flag-football initiatives getting a grand stage at the 2028 Los Angeles Summer Olympics, the NFL’s Game Pass partnership with DAZN is helping it find the next pockets of American gridiron football lovers among European football fans.
“We really enjoy working with the NFL, and our goals are very much in lockstep with theirs,” said Zander Berlinski, DAZN’s svp of strategy and business development. “Growing the game and growing the fan base benefits both of us, and I think we’ve brought a lot to the table in terms of our existing scale and platform, and how we’ve been able to expose the game to new fans and get more people involved with and loving the NFL.”
The NFL’s global media game plan
The NFL wants to become a global sports property and told the world as much during a 2024 Super Bowl commercial touting its international reach and regional academies. But there isn’t a single trick play that can make that happen: The league is already trying to establish regular international games, build gridiron participation around efforts like flag football, and create space in the league for global players through its International Player Pathway.
But Pabari noted that NFL media distribution remains one of the league’s strongest tools for driving awareness and creating more fans. To do that, the league needs to secure broad reach and work with the biggest platforms in any country it targets to build a following. In markets where NFL start times don’t always sync up with waking hours, on-demand programs like Netflix’s Quarterback and Receiver can help the streamer average more than 30 million viewers in non-U.S. markets for its Christmas doubleheader.
Game Pass, however, has given the NFL direct-to-consumer bundles of live games, highlights, and documentaries all in one place that’s guaranteed the league extensive distribution across multiple markets.
“It’s one of the primary sources of data that we have on our fans in terms of not just knowing who they are, but how they engage with the sport,” Pabari said. “What teams they follow, how much are they enjoying it, what moments matter the most? That ability to have a direct connection through Game Pass is also really strategically important to us.”
