The NFL’s International Fanbases

  • New research from Gambling.com into the geographic location of NFL fans has revealed which NFL franchises have the highest percentage of international fans based on their social media following.
  • The research revealed that the San Francisco 49ers have the highest percentage of international fans in the NFL, with over half of their social media following living outside the US (51.10%).
  • The Minnesota Vikings and the New England Patriots claim a joint second place, with international fans accounting for 44.50% of both of their social media followings.

For some time now, the NFL has been expanding abroad and trying to broaden its horizons in terms of attracting fans around the globe, and on the 27th of June, tickets for their November 5th game between the Chiefs and the Dolphins in Germany sold out in just 15 minutes – their efforts are clearly working!

Because of this, the guys over at Gambling.com decided to do use HypeAuditor to analyze the social media following of every team in the NFL in order to reveal which teams have the highest percentage of international fans in the league. The following table ranks every team in the NFL in order of highest to lowest percentage of international fans, along with the country that is home to the largest portion of their international fans:

Rank Team US Fans International Fans Largest International Fanbase % of fans from that country
1 San Francisco 49ers 48.90% 51.10% Germany 7.20%
2 Minnesota Vikings 55.50% 44.50% Germany 5.20%
3 New England Patriots 55.50% 44.50% Mexico 5.30%
4 Green Bay Packers 56.20% 43.80% Germany 7.00%
5 Seattle Seahawks 56.70% 43.30% Germany 8.30%
6 Pittsburgh Steelers 61.30% 38.70% Mexico 9.20%
7 Miami Dolphins 63.70% 36.30% Brazil 6.70%
8 Dallas Cowboys 63.80% 36.20% Mexico 9.80%
9 Philadelphia Eagles 65.90% 34.10% Jordan 8.80%
10 Arizona Cardinals 66% 34.00% Mexico 3.40%
11 Las Vegas Raiders 66.50% 33.50% Mexico 5.40%
12 Denver Broncos 66.60% 33.40% Mexico 4.60%
13 Carolina Panthers 67.50% 32.50% Germany 4.50%
14 New Orleans Saints 67.50% 32.50% Brazil 3.60%
15 Baltimore Ravens 67.80% 32.20% Mexico 4.00%
16 Cincinnati Bengals 68.20% 31.80% Canada 2.50%
17 New York Giants 68.30% 31.70% Brazil 4.00%
18 Atlanta Falcons 69.20% 30.80% Germany 4.10%
19 Los Angeles Rams 69.40% 30.60% Mexico 3.00%
20 Indianapolis Colts 71% 29.00% Mexico 4.30%
21 Los Angeles Chargers 72.70% 27.30% Mexico 5.80%
22 Tennessee Titans 73.50% 26.50% China 2.30%
23 Jacksonville Jaguars 73.70% 26.30% Canada 1.90%
24 Kansas City Chiefs 73.90% 26.10% Germany 2.40%
25 Tampa Bay Buccaneers 75.20% 24.80% United Kingdom 2.30%
26 Detroit Lions 75.30% 24.70% China 2.40%
27 Buffalo Bills 75.80% 24.20% Canada 4.60%
28 Chicago Bears 75.90% 24.10% Germany 2.50%
29 Houston Texans 76.30% 23.70% Mexico 2.90%
30 New York Jets 76.30% 23.70% China 2.30%
31 Cleveland Browns 77% 23.00% United Kingdom 2%
32 Washington Commanders 78.50% 21.50% India 4.60%

The research revealed that the San Francisco 49ers lead the way in the NFL when it comes to international fans, with over half of their social media followers residing abroad!

The Minnesota Vikings and the New England Patriots claim a joint second place, with 44.50% of their fans being internationally based, with the Green Bay Packers in 4th place with 43.80%.

Mexico is the most common country to dominate the international fanbases of the NFL, appearing 11 times as a team’s largest international fanbase. Germany is close behind in second place, appearing eight times on the list, whilst China, Canada, and Brazil are tied for third place with three appearances each.

Please feel free to use any of the above data and information as inspiration for a story of your own, and if you’d be kind enough to reference the original study by linking back to Gambling.com’s homepage, it would be much appreciated: https://www.gambling.com/us/sports-betting/nfl