Three things you need to know about the NFL’s first game in Madrid

Over the past twenty years, the NFL has made a concerted effort to bring regular-season games to international markets. The league is looking forward to its first venture into Spain, where the Washington Commanders and Miami Dolphins will square off at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid.
It’s difficult to predict what countries the NFL will strategically target next aNer Spain and Ireland host games in 2025, but the league must make a strong first impression in each country.
We’ll examine three important things fans should know before the Dolphins and Commanders kick off in Madrid in mid-November.
Madrid is the new Miami.
It’s always somewhat comedic when the NFL designates one of the participants in an international game as the home team when they are thousands of miles away from their home base. That said, the Dolphins are officially hosting the Commanders, and this could present an interesting opportunity for them moving forward.
The NFL has a Global Markets Program, through which certain franchises have marketing rights in various countries. Perhaps it’s no coincidence that the Dolphins, along with the Chicago Bears, were one of two NFL teams to hold rights in Spain. This initiative has allowed Miami to start grassroots efforts in Spain to build enthusiasm and expand its brand. It’ll be interesting to see how effective these inroads have generated excitement for their matchup.
A different kind of football
Santiago Bernabeu Stadium is the well-regarded home of Real Madrid, a world-class football club. The venue is used to drawing significant crowds for highly anticipated La Liga matches and is no stranger to being the center of attention in the world of sports. However, it must alter its presentation to accommodate an NFL game and its fans.
The format and setup of an NFL stadium are slightly different, and Real Madrid is aware of the modifications it has to make in advance of the November contest. They’ll need to adjust the first rows of the stadium and transform their locker rooms to accommodate the larger number of players and staff on an NFL team.
Scintillating matchup
Once we get past the business efforts and stadium configuration, we can look more closely at the matchup on the field. NFL odds will be driven by the health of both teams heading into this contest. Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa has been effective when healthy, but he’s missed large chunks of prior seasons due to injury. The NFL is probably crossing its fingers and toes, hoping he can be on the field for this international showcase.
Conversely, Washington is one of the most exciting young teams in the NFL. Quarterback Jayden Daniels led the Commanders to the NFC title game as a rookie and is expected to take his game to the next level in his second professional campaign. If Washington and Miami’s stars are healthy, this game could be a shootout.