London might not be the only international city that eventually lands an NFL team. According to the league's executive vice president of international, Mark Waller, a second foreign city could potentially land a team sometime in the next 10 years.
During a recent interview with ESPN.com, Waller was asked what he thought the NFL's international landscape would look like 10 years from now.
"I think we will have at least one or two franchises outside of the U.S.," Waller said.
Although Waller didn't name any specific foreign cities, the NFL's international vice president did mention several possibilities.
"I think we'll be incredibly strong in Mexico, possibly even more popular than soccer by then," Waller said. "I think we'll be very strong in the U.K. and Germany."
The NFL plans to play a game in China by 2018, but don't look for the league to put a franchise there because football is a "niche" sport to the Chinese, according to Waller.
"We'll be growing a really interesting niche business in China, but niche in China will still be a meaningful thing to be, and that will really be I think a digital business with the young, global Chinese and Asian consumers," Waller said.
The NFL has been inching toward putting a franchise on foreign soil over the past few years, so it's not that difficult to envision the league adding two international teams.
The league's efforts to put a team in London have gotten so serious that Waller gave a presentation at the NFL's owners meeting in May.
According to CBS Sports NFL Insider Jason La Canfora, one of the biggest issues still facing the league when it comes to a potential team in London is the playoffs. The NFL hasn't figured out what would happen if a team in San Diego or San Francisco had to fly to London on a short week during the postseason.
Despite that obstacle, Waller is still convinced a team will end up in London. Back in January, the NFL VP said the league would have a team there by 2022 at the latest. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell backed that statement up in April when he said there was a "realistic" chance that London would get a franchise.
The one thing that's not yet clear is where exactly a team in London would come from: Would the league expand or relocate a current team?
Anyway, the NFL has definitely been doubling down on its international efforts recently.
The league will hold three games in London in 2016, marking the third straight year that three games have been held in England. The Raiders and Texans will play in Mexico City in 2016, which means that the upcoming season will mark the first time that four regular games have been played outside the country in one year.
If you're looking for other cities where the NFL might eventually play a regular season, Waller offered some clues. The league's goal isn't to take over the world, but to get incredibly popular in about 10 countries.
"I don't think we'll be big in 150 countries around the world," Waller said. "I think we'll have a really powerful presence in six to 10 countries that are really critical globally. If we're big in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, U.K., Germany, China, Japan and Australia, we'd be in a great place."
Basically, don't be surprised if your favorite team ends up playing a game in Brazil, Japan or Australia sometime over the next 10 years. Sydney, Australia was a serious candidate to host the Pro Bowl after this season, but that game went to Orlando.
