The NFL has nine international games planned for the 2026 season, with more on the way in the coming years.
By Conor Ryan
2 minutes to read
The Tartan Army took over Boston for over a week — with an outpouring of bagpipe-blasting, kilt-wearing, traffic-cone-placing revelry standing as a highlight of the ongoing World Cup festivities here.
Now, Robert Kraft and the Patriots reportedly want to return the favor with a trek over the pond.
According to Nicole Yang of The Boston Globe, Kraft has “made it known to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell that the Patriots would be interested in playing a game in Scotland” at some point in the coming years.
The Patriots already have one international game on their docket for the upcoming 2026 season — with New England heading to Munich, Germany, for a showdown against the Detroit Lions on Sunday, Nov. 15.
But expanding the NFL overseas is a key goal set by Goodell, who previously stated that he wants the league to eventually reach 16 international games per season — ensuring that each NFL franchise can play in one every year.
“That’s an important mark to shoot for and I think we’re on our way,” Goodell said in February before Super Bowl LX. “It’s the ambition we have to be a global sport, but it’s also the demand we’re having. We’re hearing from cities that want to host these games and really want to get more American football.”
The 2026 NFL season has nine total international games — with new destinations this year, including France and Australia. In total, the NFL has hosted games in Mexico, the United Kingdom (England), Brazil, Canada, Ireland, Germany, and Spain.
Scotland has yet to host an NFL game. But given the rapport that has been built between Scottish fans and Boston, a potential partnership would hold plenty of appeal for both fanbases in the coming years.
Thousands of Scottish fans initially descended upon Boston during group-stage play earlier this month, with Scotland playing two matches at Boston Stadium (Gillette Stadium) in Foxborough on June 13 (1-0 win over Haiti) and June 19 (1-0 loss to Morocco).
While The Tartan Army has migrated south to cheer on their team for Wednesday’s match against Brazil in Miami, the odds are in Scotland’s favor that they will return to New England for a Round of 32 match against Germany next week — with kick-off scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Monday, June 29.
Conor Ryan is a staff writer covering the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Red Sox for Boston.com, a role he has held since 2023.
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