Spain is getting an NFL regular-season game on Nov. 16 in Madrid, the first sanctioned NFL event there since the Barcelona Dragons of NFL Europe disbanded in 2003. DAZN’s Spanish-language broadcasts and its cross-marketing with La Liga’s soccer matches have already provided direction similar to the path it took in Germany—where it paired last year’s live game in Munich with a three-day fan festival near the stadium.
In Japan, where the Los Angeles Rams have established a global market, DAZN partnered with American Express to offer cardholders free access to the Super Bowl through Game Pass. In Italy, meanwhile, DAZN used its exclusive access to the Serie A soccer league to promote Game Pass to millions of soccer fans and offer them a free “game of the week” for one game during the NFL regular season.
“The free game of the week was definitely a new initiative that we drove this year, where we’ve seen a lot of success,” Berlinski said. “Italy is one of the biggest markets where we’re seeing engagement, primarily because of how many customers come to our platform.”
And the NFL is watching. Pabari said that the league periodically considers which global markets should receive priority as part of its international growth strategy, and Italy was identified as a strong contender roughly a year ago based on media engagement. While Italy hasn’t been selected as a global market by any of the NFL’s teams, its performance on Game Pass—combined with factors including social media engagement and jersey sales—have made it at least an option for the NFL’s travel itinerary.
