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The NFL is officially headed to France. For the first time in league history, there will be a regular season game played in Paris. 

The NFL announced on Monday that the New Orleans Saints will serve as the home team in the historical game, which will be played at Stade de France, a venue that can seat more than 80,000 fans. NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell is definitely excited about bringing the a regular-season game to a country that has never hosted one. 

"Bringing a regular season game to Paris in 2026 marks an exciting next step in the continued expansion of the league's global footprint," Goodell said. "Paris is one of the world's greatest sporting and cultural cities with tremendous success in hosting global events that unite fans on the biggest stages. Playing our first‑ever regular season game at the impressive Stade de France, together with the New Orleans Saints, underlines our continued global growth ambitions and we look forward to bringing the NFL to our passionate fans in France." 

The Saints have had NFL marketing rights in France since 2023 and since they're the only team with rights in that region, it made sense for them to be tabbed for the first game. Saints president Dennis Lauscha had hinted in November that his team would probably he headed to France, and now, the cat is officially out of the bag. 

This will be New Orleans' first trip to Europe since the 2022 season when they lost to the Vikings in London.

Although the NFL didn't announce who the Saints would be playing, one French media outlet has reported that New Orleans will be facing the Browns in a game that will be played on Oct. 25 (Week 7). The outlet originally broke the news of the Paris game on Sunday, so it's certainly possible that it could end up being Saints-Browns, but you probably shouldn't go booking any flights for this game until the date is finalized by the NFL. 

If the Saints don't face the Browns, that means they'll be hosting one of the other eight teams on their home schedule in 2026 and that looks like this: Falcons, Buccaneers, Panthers, Packers, Vikings, Cardinals, Steelers, or Raiders

Paris is one of six cities so far that will be hosting at least one international game. Here's the full list: 

  • Melbourne, Australia
  • London (Wembley Stadium)
  • London (Tottenham Hotspur Stadium)
  • London (Tottenham Hotspur Stadium)
  • Munich
  • Rio De Janeiro
  • Madrid
  • Paris

Paris, Melbourne and Rio are all hosting an NFL game for the first time. The game in Australia will feature the Rams as the home team. The Seahawks have offered to be the visiting team in that game, but the NFL hasn't announced yet who the opponent will be. 

As of right now, the NFL will be holding a total of eight international games in 2026, but the league could add to the list. The NFL has never held more than seven international games in any season, so even if the league doesn't add to the list, the 2026 season will feature the most international games ever. 

Whatever the record is, it likely won't last long. During an interview last month, Patriots owner Robert Kraft said that the NFL's ultimate goal is to have each team play at least international game per season.