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In its first season under ESPN ownership, NFL Network’s Sunday morning slate of international games averaged a record 6.9 million viewers.
Bengals-Falcons in Madrid on Sunday was NFL Network’s fifth and final European game broadcast of the season, drawing 6.2 million viewers. The 6.9 million average audience for this season’s five matchups is up 16% from last season’s record of 6.2 million across six games. Fox will broadcast Patriots-Lions in Munich this coming Sunday, the final Sunday morning European game of the 2026 NFL season.
Here were the average audiences for NFL Network’s five Sunday morning international games, which all kicked off at 9:30 a.m. ET:
- Eagles-Jaguars in London: 8.1 million
- Steelers-Saints in Paris: 7.7 million
- Texans-Jaguars in London: 6.4 million
- Bengals-Falcons in Madrid: 6.2 million
- Colts-Commanders in London: 5.9 million
With the move to ESPN ownership, NFL Network games this season have also streamed on the ESPN app.
Meanwhile, when the NFL airs games on Sunday mornings, traditional pregame shows on CBS, Fox, and ESPN naturally attract smaller audiences, with many fans choosing to watch live game action instead.
More International Data
In non-Sunday morning international matchups, Netflix averaged 18.5 million viewers in the U.S. for the NFL’s debut game in Australia, 49ers-Rams from Melbourne in Week 1, which aired on a Thursday in primetime in the U.S.
CBS averaged 24.9 million viewers for Ravens-Cowboys in Rio de Janeiro in the late Sunday afternoon window in Week 3, making it the most-watched NFL international game on record.
NBC will carry the final international game of the 2026 season, a Sunday Night Football matchup between the Vikings and 49ers in Mexico City on Nov. 22.
The NFL has nine international games total this season, and could increase that to 10 next year. The league has ambitions of scheduling up to 16 games outside the U.S. per season.
