Patriots and Raiders to Square Off in Rising NFL Market Mexico City

Courtesy of NBC Sports

The NFL schedules games in London every year to draw more international appeal, and Mexico City is another location teams have traveled to in these efforts. For the second straight season, the Oakland Raiders will host an AFC opponent in Estadio Azteca. The reigning Super Bowl champion, 7-2 New England Patriots will play visitor to the 4-5 Raiders on Sunday.

When the Raiders played the Houston Texans last season, it was the NFL's first game in Mexico since the Arizona Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers met in 2005: the league's first internationally held regular season game. Fans were treated to a good game last November, as the Raiders scored 14 straight points to win 27-20 in the fourth quarter.

Now, the Raiders return to Mexico should garner a little more continued interest in their team, just as the Jacksonville Jaguars frequently visit London and the Buffalo Bills used to play games in Canada. Additionally, bringing in the Patriots brings a high-profile team south of the border.

According to a 2015 study, the Patriots are actually the 3rd-most popular team in Mexico, behind the Pittsburgh Steelers (who always travel well) and Dallas Cowboys (widely popular and geographically close).

The Raiders ranked 10th at the time, a figure that has more likely grown than fallen after their 2016 visit.

Even though this is only the second game this decade in Mexico, that doesn't mean there isn't a huge NFL following. Though only 7% of Mexico City's 20.3 million populants identify as NFL fans, that still equates to an estimated 1.49 million fans: the 7th largest metropolitan fan-base in the world! It ranks only behind six U.S cities: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, and Houston. (Source: FiveThirtyEight)

Last season, the NFL's highly anticipated return to Mexico with Texans-Raiders sold out in in less than 30 minutes. Attendance for the game in Estadio Azteca was 76,473, a mark that is only surpassed by some NFL stadiums. 

As far as the football game goes on Sunday, the Patriots come in as seven point favorites, and will maintain a tie for the AFC's best record with a win. The Raiders are under .500 but have won two of their last three, hoping to get back on track.

Tom Brady looks to continue to keep the Patriots rolling, a win in Mexico would be their 6th straight since a 2-2 start. New England scores 28.6 points per game this season; the Raiders have given up 29.3 points per game over the last three weeks to the Dolphins, Bills, and Chiefs.

The Raiders could have a slight edge to the familiarity in their second straight visit. Fullback Jamize Olawale told Fox Sports: "It's always an advantage to know where you're playing and what to expect." He also commented on the setting itself saying "I just remember the atmosphere and excitement was electric out there. It was awesome to see. It was a like a true home game."

"The atmosphere and excitement was electric out there." (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports)

As the NFL considers international games, expansion teams, or relocation in the future, Mexico and Mexico City should definitely be in their plans.

As mentioned, Mexico City has the most NFL fans in a non-US city with 1.49 million. The next closest, Toronto, Canada, has 0.99 million NFL followers. After that there's another big dropoff to London's 410K fans, a market that is on the rise. This continued FiveThirtyEight data is a couple years old, so London has probably grown some with annual games held.

Instead of jumping the shark and moving a team to London, however, the NFL would be wise to first expand to their bordering neighbors. Mexico City also wouldn't cause the logistical problems a permanent London team would pose, such as as having the team cross the Atlantic Ocean multiple times.

Mexico City and even Canada make more sense for the NFL to tap in to than London, but it's understandable why they try to reach further for global appeal. Ideally, if teams relocate outside of the United States, Mexico and Canada would be more suitable, while the London four game annual series could easily co-exist.

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