Chiefs And Rams Lead NFL In Global Marketing Rights
Flags of both the United States and Germany adorn the field before the Chiefs and Dolphins play in ... More Germany in 2023. Photo: Arne Dedert/dpa (Photo by Arne Dedert/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Chiefs Kingdom is getting more expansive, and only Rams Nation can match it.
On Monday the NFL announced that the Kansas City Chiefs were awarded marketing and commercialization rights for the United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain as part of the NFL's Global Markets Program.
'We are incredibly excited to bring Chiefs football to fans in the U.K., Ireland and Spain,' said Chiefs owner Clark Hunt in a statement. 'Kansas City has certainly made a name for itself in the global sports landscape, and we are proud to showcase our town and our team on the international stage.'
The Chiefs already had rights in Mexico, Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
Only the Los Angeles Rams, who have rights in Australia, where it will host the first NFL game Down Under in 2026; China; Japan; South Korea; Mexico; New Zealand and United Arab Emirates, can match the Chiefs with seven countries.
The Rams had six before just adding the United Arab Emirates.
Twenty-nine NFL clubs will participate in the global marketing rights program across 21 international countries.
NFL clubs can apply for those rights to international markets by submitting proposals to the International Committee for review each spring. Clubs are then awarded rights for a five-year term.
During that five-year period, teams — like the Chiefs and Rams — can pursue activities in these international markets, which are consistent with what they can do in their home domestic market.
The Chiefs, who were scheduled to play the Rams in Mexico in 2018 before turf issues arose, plan to host events in their new international markets to engage fans locally, unveil language-specific properties on their website and app, launch advertising campaigns, sign local sponsorship deals, extend existing domestic sponsors internationally and align with local agencies with on-the-ground expertise.
The Chiefs already have launched those kinds of initiatives in Germany, where it played in 2023. That's one reason why the Chiefs — along with the New England Patriots — had cemented themselves as Germany's favorite NFL teams.
'It's probably the Chiefs right now, but it's a close race,' NFL Germany general manager Alexander Steinforth said in 2023. 'They are probably No. 1 and No. 2.'
The Chiefs creatively marketed themselves in Germany, including having former soccer player Oliver Bierhoff officially announce the Chiefs' fourth-round selection of Joshua Williams from a 2022 Chiefs draft party; partnering with global sports marketing agency SPORTFIVE; organizing watch parties; becoming an official partner with RTL, which broadcasts live games, and even docking their ChampionShip boat on the Main River of Frankfurt.
'We've been one of the most aggressive international teams in the league,' Chiefs president Mark Donovan said during the week of Super Bowl LIX.
Each of the Chiefs' newest international markets — United Kingdom, Ireland and Spain — will host an NFL regular-season games in 2025, and the Chiefs could play there in the future.
'We'd love to be overseas again,' Donovan said. 'Anywhere in Europe really is where we'd like to go.'
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