Roger Goodell confirms plans for more NFL games at 'remarkable' Bernabeu after Dolphins-Commanders clash in Spanish capital

Commanders quarterback Marcus Mariota was intercepted by Jack Jones in the first play of overtime at the Bernabeu on Sunday. The error, though, paved the way for Riley Patterson's match winning field goal as an entertaining match capped a historic season for the NFL.

The game was not only the first in Spain, but the seventh international match in a season as the NFL continues to expand globally. Owing to the success in Madrid, there have been talks about playing a match in Barcelona. While Spotify Camp Nou won't be completely ready until 2027, the home of the Blaugrana and their eventual 105,000 seater stadium would be the next logical step for the sport.

Barcelona will play their first game at Spotify Camp Nou since the 2023/24 season on Saturday afternoon when they host Athletic Club, albeit with the capacity capped at 45,401 as renovations continue.

The NFL's first international game of the season came in Sao Paulo in Brazil earlier in the year, while there was also games played in Dublin and Berlin for the first time, along with the customary three games in London, two of which took place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the third at Wembley.

Goodell waxed lyrical about the Bernabeu and confirmed that the NFL will one day return to Madrid. Speaking to the Spanish media after Sunday's game, the NFL Commissioner said: "We will be back, we are excited. This has been a great opportunity for us. We always wait until we get through the games, but we want to be back here in Madrid [and] Spain. I think this is a great market for us."

Goodell added to NFL Network: "It's been spectacular. We've never played seven games, Brazil was a great start and finishing here in Madrid it just feels right. This is such a great city. The stadium is remarkable and the partners at Real Madrid and the city have just been amazing."

There are also plans in place to take the NFL further afield, with a game pencilled in for Melbourne, Australia next year, while Goodell stated earlier this year that he is keen to see a game played in Asia in 2026. "Australia is going to be a big learning and test next year," Goodell said.

"We are excited about that. I think we will be back in a lot of the markets we've been this year, but we have a couple more that we're thinking about right now. So many cities have been reaching out, and that's a great thing for us."

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The success of the NFL game in Madrid over the weekend may have a positive impact for Real Madrid in the long run. It's been reported that UEFA were left impressed by the transformation of the stadium and that they'd one day like to see the revamped Bernabeu host a Champions League final.

Real Madrid's home has hosted the final of Europe's showpiece event four times in its history, doing so in 1957, 1969, 1980 and most recently in 2010. In addition, the Bernabeu hosted the second leg of the 2018 Copa Libertadores final between heated rivals Boca Juniors and River Plate owing to safety concerns. River would go on to win 5-3 on aggregate in the last Copa Libertadores final played across two legs.

However, one potential hiccup is that Real Madrid would need to lodge a bid to host the Champions League final, which given the strained relationship between the La Liga leaders and European football's governing body, is unlikely to be forthcoming.

Real Madrid are in the midst of a lengthy run of away fixtures. Xabi Alonso's men last played in front of their fans at the start of November, as goals from Kylian Mbappe - twice - Jude Bellingham and Alvaro Carreras earned a 4-0 win over Valencia.

Since then, Los Blancos have played Liverpool at Anfield and Rayo Vallecano at the Vallecas in the Champions League and La Liga, respectively, and failed to win both. Next up for Real Madrid is a trip to Elche on Sunday before games at Olympiacos, Girona and Athletic Club.

Real Madrid then return home for the welcome of Celta Vigo on December 7.