NFL to return to Mexico City for Houston Texans v Oakland Raiders
Wednesday 11 January 2017 12:06, UK
Mexico City will host the first Monday Night Football game held outside the United States when the Houston Texans play the Oakland Raiders in November.
Oakland will face Houston on November 21 at the Azteca Stadium during the 2016 regular season.
Building on the success of its international series of regular-season games in London, the NFL will return to Mexico for the first time since 2005.
The NFL played its first international regular-season game on October 2 in 2005 when a crowd of 103,467 saw the Arizona Cardinals defeat the San Francisco 49ers 31-14 in Mexico City.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, in San Francisco on Friday ahead of Super Bowl 50, said: "Expanding our International Series of regular-season games to Mexico marks an important step in our continued international growth.
"We have a tremendous, passionate fan base in Mexico and we know the atmosphere on game day will be outstanding."
Live NFL: Super Bowl 50
Raiders owner Mark Davis added: "The Raiders are honoured to once again represent the National Football League in its International Series.
"The Raiders are truly a global brand and we look forward to visiting the loyal and passionate members of the Raider Nation in Mexico City."
Texans owner Robert C. McNair said: "We are excited the Houston Texans can represent the NFL on an international stage for the first time on Monday Night Football this fall.
"This is a great opportunity to grow our brand on a global scale and we are looking forward to playing in front of a passionate crowd at historic Azteca Stadium."
NFL owners approved a resolution in 2015 to extend the ability to play international regular-season games through 2025 and enable the league to play games in countries other than the UK.
The success of the International Series in the UK has helped more than double the Sunday TV audience of NFL games.
