The NFL will return to the Santiago Bernabéu and the city of Madrid in the 2026 and 2027 seasons. The American league, Real Madrid, the Madrid City Council, and the Community announced today a multi-year agreement for American football to return to Chamartín. After the success of the game held last November between the Miami Dolphins and the Washington Commanders, the NFL expressed its desire to return to the white coliseum. "We will return," announced Roger Goodell, NFL commissioner, on the Bernabéu pitch. And so it will be.
The game, which still does not have an official date or participating franchises, could repeat last year's month and be held in November, taking advantage of the international break, leaving the Bernabéu without Real Madrid matches. Additionally, the Miami Dolphins will not repeat, but the Chicago Bears, one of the top teams this season, are favored for one of the spots due to their commercial rights in Spain. For the third year, it could be the turn of Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, the best team of the last five years and one of the most followed worldwide.
"The NFL Madrid Game 2025 at the Bernabéu was a key moment for this sport in Spain, and we are delighted to confirm that we will play a regular-season game in 2026 as part of a multi-year agreement," stated Rafa De Los Santos, NFL Director in Spain.
Emilio Butragueño, Director of Institutional Relations at Real Madrid, stated that "for Real Madrid, it is an honor and a privilege for the Santiago Bernabéu stadium to once again host the NFL spectacle." "We experienced a historic event a few months ago. The stadium's transformation represents a significant boost for sports to continue being a link between millions of fans on all continents," he noted.
The Metropolitano Stadium, owned by Atlético de Madrid, has also shown interest in hosting NFL games, but at least for the next two seasons, it will be the Bernabéu that repeats the American show.
This official announcement comes just in the week of the Super Bowl, to be held from Sunday to Monday in Santa Clara, near San Francisco, between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks. A delegation from Real Madrid led by José Ángel Sánchez, the club's general director, will fly to that game.
The news once again confirms the NFL's expansion strategy, which in the 2026 season, starting in September, will have games in Melbourne (Australia), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), London (United Kingdom), and Munich (Germany). Madrid now joins that list, awaiting confirmations from Dublin and Mexico City.
Spain is an important market for the NFL globally, with 11 million potential fans. As part of the multi-year commitment and with the aim of growing the sport at all levels in Spain, the NFL will also focus its efforts throughout the year on developing NFL Flag, the non-contact version of this sport that will debut as an Olympic discipline at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.