NEW YORK — Commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday the league is looking into the possibility of playing a Super Bowl outside the United States, although not before 2012 at the earliest.
It was among a range of proposals he announced the league is considering during a meeting with sports editors two days before the league's annual draft.
Goodell said the three most likely international sites for a Super Bowl would be London, Toronto or Mexico City because they are in time zones that would allow the game to be televised in the United States at reasonable hours.
Also, the league also could expand its international appeal by cutting the exhibition season to three games and adding a 17th game, to be played outside the United States.
The NFL already has played one regular-season game in Mexico City and the New York Giants and Miami Dolphins will meet in London next Oct. 28 as part of a planned rotating schedule for annual overseas games involving different teams
17th game would have to be approved by the NFL Players Association, but would solve the problem of taking a home game from a team, as the current plan does. The game in London was scheduled as a Dolphins home date.
There is some talk of changing the date of the Pro Bowl, perhaps to the weekend before the Super Bowl to get more fan attention. There are three years left on the league's contract to play the game in Hawaii, but the league is allowed to move it in one of those years.
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/2007-04-26-notebook_N.htm
It was among a range of proposals he announced the league is considering during a meeting with sports editors two days before the league's annual draft.
Goodell said the three most likely international sites for a Super Bowl would be London, Toronto or Mexico City because they are in time zones that would allow the game to be televised in the United States at reasonable hours.
Also, the league also could expand its international appeal by cutting the exhibition season to three games and adding a 17th game, to be played outside the United States.
The NFL already has played one regular-season game in Mexico City and the New York Giants and Miami Dolphins will meet in London next Oct. 28 as part of a planned rotating schedule for annual overseas games involving different teams
17th game would have to be approved by the NFL Players Association, but would solve the problem of taking a home game from a team, as the current plan does. The game in London was scheduled as a Dolphins home date.
There is some talk of changing the date of the Pro Bowl, perhaps to the weekend before the Super Bowl to get more fan attention. There are three years left on the league's contract to play the game in Hawaii, but the league is allowed to move it in one of those years.
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/2007-04-26-notebook_N.htm
