How the Miami Dolphins are Increasing in Popularity Abroad

No matter how you look at it, American Football is the most popular sport in the United States. In terms of ticket sales, game attendance, TV viewing figures, and popular option, the NFL always comes out on top. However, around the world the story of the NFL has been less successful, with other sports like soccer, cricket, and field hockey taking the top three spots in the popularity ranks.

Back in 2010 Roger Goodall declared his aims to triple the NFL’s yearly revenue by 2027 and these plans included significant investment in overseas promotion. At one point the possibility of the Superbowl being held in London, England was even considered. While neither of these things has happened, the NFL has grown in popularity all over the world, with England and Germany being the main European hubs.

How Are the Dolphins Doing Abroad?

The Miami Dolphins is the most popular team amongst British NFL fans, ranking ahead of the Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants. The played against the Giants in the first ever regular season NFL game held outside the US. Played at Wembley Stadium in 2007 the Dolphins lost the game 13-10 but won the hearts of the British public. They returned to play in 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2021, splitting games between Wembley Stadium and the newly built Tottenham Hotspurs stadium. Millions of fans fought to get tickets and the stands were filled to capacity.

Dolphins Abroad in 2022

The Dolphins didn’t travel abroad during the current 2022 regular season, which will have seen many foreign fans disappointed. However, with greater television coverage across providers like Sky Sports, BBC, Channel 5, and Amazon Prime Video means that fans can still watch all their favorite teams and follow every game from their own home.

Betting on NFL Games

Diehard sports fans love placing bets on their team; it gives them a chance to win when the team do and share in the spoils of victory. One of the most popular forms of betting is live betting where customers can bet on events happening during the game, and the odds update accordingly. If your team is playing well and you fancy them to make the next touchdown, you can hop online using your PC or smartphone and instantly place that bet.

Live betting allows you to choose from a much larger range of options than standard betting. Next touchdown, next fumble, next field goal, these are all exciting options to win you some money, and live betting can help to offset any pregame bets you made that now look unlikely to win. If you fancied one team but they’re now behind due to factors like injuries and inclement weather, you could offset your losses by placing in-game bets.

Plans for Future International Success

We’ve already looked at the Dolphins’ popularity in the United Kingdom, but that’s not the only oversees territory that the NFL is expanding into. As part of the 2022 regular season international games were organized in the UK, Germany and Mexico. NFL is Mexico’s second favorite sport and the NFL’s popularity in Mexico has been rapidly increasing since 2016, when the first regular season game was held there. The Dolphins haven’t played there since 1997 even though they are the 7th most popular NFL team in the country, and local fans hope that it won’t be too long before their favorite team comes to the Estadio Azteca.

Elsewhere in Europe, Germany and France are both showing their love for the Miami Dolphins. Along with the UK, both countries have their own Miami Dolphins International Fan clubs: The Miami Dolphins French Fan Club and the Miami Dolfans Germany. Fans from both countries travelled across international borders to get to London in 2021 to see their beloved team play at the Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium. While there are three more games planned for future seasons in Germany, nothing so far has been organized in France, probably because the NFL does not have as many fans there as other countries. That must be frustrating for French Dolphins fans who only want to experience the joy of seeing their team playing live.

Conclusion

In the US, football fans tend to support their local team, so the Dolphins’ appeal has a short range. But international fans choose their teams based on performance, personality, and even their jersey colors. Clearly something about the Dolphins is catching the eye of fans in other countries, especially in the UK, and long may it last.